Time is the most valuable commodity we will ever have. All of the treasured and trying moments of our lives are measured with time, and everyone is aware that we have a finite amount of it. Most people want to prolong that time as much as possible, and strive to value it with the care that it deserves.
“Live life to the fullest, because time is fleeting,” as the saying goes.
In the here and now, companies are concerned about our time as well. They want us to give them our focus, attention, and, most importantly, our money. As a result, they spend millions of dollars on compelling advertising campaigns, they issue shiny annual releases, and they promulgate their products where they think we are most likely to purchase them.
This isn’t usually done with any intentional malice, but rather with business profit interests the priority. Attaining our attention is the most effective way to spread brand awareness and accomplish this end. For example, advertising is proven to have a considerable impact on consumers’ impulse buying habits, and for many service-based operations, time is literally money. The more time consumers spend in a store, on a website, or at an event, the more likely they are to generate revenue for the company.
The process can quickly become manipulative. Unwitting consumers are preyed upon by companies, and these companies pursue the most important thing consumers have to offer: their time and attention.
Flip the Script
However, a series of blockchain-based platforms are turning this proposition on its head. The decentralized economy is already disrupting traditional notions about the limits of security, privacy, and usability, and is now also creating a new arrangement between companies and the consumers populating their platforms.
They are monetizing their users’ time, and they are compensating them for participating in their platform.
In some ways, this seems like an entirely novel concept. Many of the wealthiest technology companies in the world — such as Facebook — are making a killing by selling their users’ information and gobbling up their time. In this arrangement, Facebook gets everything, and the consumer gets a news feed.
Blockchain Platforms Monetize the Moment
It’s not just Facebook that behaves this way. It’s common practice among tech companies, big box stores, and even some small businesses. By contrast, here are four blockchain-based platforms that are directing value back to the consumer.
#1 BUFF — A Reward Program for Gamers
It’s estimated that more than 2 billion people routinely play video games, but, until recently,this was perceived by many people as a lazy activity. The rise of competitive esports and the multimillion-dollar market that accompanies it have completely flipped the script. Now, video games aren’t just fun and entertaining, they can be a hugh money maker as well. BUFF brings that concept to the masses by compensating gamers for the time they spend playing video games and their in-game accomplishments.
Users are paid in BUFF coins, which can be exchanged for cash through various crypto exchanges, but they can also be used to make in-game purchases in hundreds of games. BUFF partners with Overwolf, an open sourced app store, with more than 15 million active users.
With BUFF, users are paid to play, which is as exciting and intriguing as it sounds.
#2 Leonardo Render — High-Speed Rendering for Professionals
The rise of the gig economy has reoriented our relationship with work. As a result, millions of people have taken to a freelancing lifestyle that provides increased flexibility and greater autonomy than a traditional corporate structure. Which is where Leonardo Render is making its most significant impact.
Graphic designers, videographers, and other creative professionals require significant GPU capabilities to complete their projects, tools which aren’t readily available to independent workers. Leonardo Render offers cloud-based rendering services that are fast, effective, and affordable. Time is money, and Leonardo Render saves creative professionals a lot of time, potentially saving them from a lot of wasted times and extra headaches they’d have otherwise.
#3 Basic Attention Token
The founder of Basic Attention Token (BAT) knows something about user behavior. Brendan Eich, BAT’s creator, is the developer of JavaScript and Mozilla Firefox, and his experiences there introduced him to the value disparity in digital advertising.
With BAT, Eich provides a mechanism for digital advertising to guarantee that content is being viewed, and users are compensated for their attention. The exchange is automatically executed using Ethereum’s smart contracts, and adds value to the entire advertising equation.
Most importantly, consumers actually receive something for their time and attention. BAT assumes that these valuable commodities should not be free, creating on this premise a more equitable arrangement between companies and consumers.
It’s just another way that blockchain-based platforms are offering a new value proposition to their users. Time is worth money which should be earned not just by companies but by consumers spending that time on their various activities. Blockchain is enabling people to get value in exchange for their time spent, making it more worthwhile, and incentivizing them to continue with their usual activities, making the exchange of time for content fairer to the consumer.