From Fans to Partners: How Web3 Is Redefining The Meaning of Social Communities
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Web3 platform Snapmuse.io recently introduced a novel approach that aims to leverage blockchain’s capabilities of offering “true ownership” to every participant. Snapmuse.io’s initiative lays the foundation for other Web3 startups to contribute towards rebalancing the one-sided ideology of Web2, where true engagement is yet to be defined.
The platform uses non-fungible tokens (NFTs) to offer fans the opportunity to own a portion of their favorite creator’s business. It’s a wholesome model that changes the fan-creator relationship, replacing it with a more partnership-oriented approach where communities are forged (and driven) by intrinsic value.
But, to understand how Snapmuse.io solves an age-old dilemma, it is essential to first understand the shortcomings of the Web2 model, especially from a consumer's perspective.
Web2 Has Forever Turned a Blind Eye Towards Consumers
Consider the case of any social media influencer and their fans. How do influencers generate revenue? More importantly, how do the platforms generate revenue when almost all of the content is user generated?
It’s simple: both content creators and content-sharing platforms rely on end-users to generate advertising revenue. For an Instagram influencer, the easiest monetization path is through their followers. The same goes for a YouTube creator. Every YouTube creator relies on their fans to consume (and interact) with their content, which in turn helps them generate ad revenue. The underlying platforms, be it TikTok, Instagram, or YouTube, keep their share of the revenue and divvy the remainder with the creators.
Other monetization avenues also rely on consumers (fans, followers, subscribers, etc.). For instance, an Instagram influencer can offer additional content to consumers by accepting donations on Patreon, OnlyFans, or other platforms. They can also choose to sell merchandise to the user communities.
All in all, the consumers are the only reason creators and platforms can generate revenue. But what does an average consumer get in return? A fan that has spent countless hours watching content from their favorite YouTuber or spent thousands of dollars on merchandise doesn’t actually get anything other than a simple “thank you” for their perennial loyalty.
Even if creators want to incentivize their fans and communities, there is no possible way in the Web2 ecosystem to achieve it. The inherent design of Web2 infrastructure allows corporations and centralized models who are far too busy filling their own pockets by exploiting consumers, be it by commercializing user data or chipping into the revenue generated from user-generated content.
If you think about it, it’s rather ironic that an ecosystem running on “user-generated” content gives little, if anything, to the “users.”
Web3 Breaks the Cycle
Armed with a better understanding of how consumers are overlooked in the Web2 model, let’s reconsider Snapmuse.io’s approach. The platform allows content creators to embed a share of their ad revenue in each of their NFTs.
While the first iteration of Snapmuse.io’s NFT-driven solution is for YouTube, the Snapmuse.io team has unveiled plans to roll out similar solutions for Instagram, TikTok, and other prominent content-sharing platforms.
Because the content creator has embedded shares into each NFT, it also implies that they would no longer be the sole decision maker for their channel and content. By owning an NFT from their favorite creator, fans can now provide their opinions and ideas to help the creator produce the content they want to consume. The entire fan-creator dynamic changes drastically into a more sustainable, equitable, and inclusive community where everyone stands a chance to benefit symbiotically by working together.
Platforms like YouTube have mostly focused on developing models where fans interact with creators by watching content, buying merchandise, and supporting through community forums. Snapmuse.io takes the interaction to a new level by removing all barriers between creators and their fans. By transferring ownership from centralized intermediaries to fans, Snapmuse.io’s initiative sets the foundation for a new internet era that won’t leave consumers out of the value proposition.
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