Web2 Had Facebook, Web3 Has Frequency: Revolution in Decentralized Social Networking!
In the era of Web2, platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter transformed how we connect with others. But, they raised concerns about who owns our data and how much control we have.
Now, with the rise of Web3, there’s hope for decentralized social networks that put users first. However, putting the complexity of social interactions on the blockchain is tricky due to the tremendous volume of posts, likes, photos, and messages.
This is where Frequency steps in, offering a solution to make social media decentralized, user-friendly, and scalable for the future.
Content:
1. Web2 socials: Facebook and the others
A revolutionary era began with the arrival of Web2 social networks such as Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, Instagram, and others, influencing the digital landscape and reshaping the way people connect and exchange information. These platforms transformed communication by giving users unprecedented chances to communicate, share personal moments, and develop virtual communities. The ease of connectivity and the appeal of a worldwide audience resulted in a paradigm shift that affected how society interprets social relationships.
However, as these platforms grew in popularity, questions about privacy, data ownership, and centralized control arose. Users were forced to give away huge amounts of personal data to corporations, resulting in a loss of control over their online presence.
Web3 social networks, with their focus on decentralization, data ownership, and user autonomy, aim to restore control to individuals while creating a fairer and transparent digital social experience.
“We’ve been living with democracy in an analog world and institutions that were architected to support that analog world. We now need a civic architecture for a digital world. This is about saving democracy. It isn’t about pitching a product,” stated billionare Frank McCourt for Protocol
2. Project Liberty
Project Liberty is a social media initiative backed by real estate billionaire Frank McCourt that aims to disrupt existing social media platforms. To achieve this goal, McCourt has earmarked $100 million to create an open-source, publicly-owned infrastructure called the Decentralized Social Networking Protocol (DSNP).
DSNP is designed to center the internet around people instead of giant data-harvesting platforms, with a core internet protocol for identity, networking, and messaging. Project Liberty is an exciting initiative that could revolutionize the social media industry.
3. Frequency and DSNP
Frequency, as a Polkadot parachain, has the first implementation of the Decentralized Social Networking Protocol (DSNP), that provides a decentralized infrastructure for users to share, collaborate, and earn rewards.
While it addresses identity within social networks, Frequency isn’t a standalone social network; rather, it empowers users to own their identity, control data sharing, and seamlessly transfer it between social networks. Frequency is designed to enable applications to collaborate instead of compete when submitting transactions.
“Web 3.0 needs a universally accessible social graph to be successful. DSNP presents a clear path toward providing this crucial service.” stated Dr. Gavin Wood, Co-founder of Ethereum and Creator of Polkadot
The four core features for developers of the DSNP protocol are identity, the network, messaging, and the feed. The feed, which is the main differentiator from other social media platforms, is a flexible data source that can be used for personal expression, social graph representation, or machine learning.
4. How Frequency works?
Frequency operates as a PoS blockchain, utilizing a token staking model that earns “capacity,” a renewable resource refilled at set intervals.
Instead of traditional transaction fees, this innovative approach ensures a predictable low-cost framework for sending messages. It can be leveraged by Web3 natives or by Web2 businesses that want to tap into new Web3 features and revenue streams.
In terms of transactions, Frequency supports batch transactions, enhancing efficiency. For service providers building decentralized applications (dApps), the system ensures capacity awareness, with each dApp understanding its specific capacity. The delegation aspect is akin to dapp staking, allowing users to delegate responsibilities as needed.
Secured by the Polkadot relay chain and employing a PoS consensus mechanism, Frequency goes beyond transaction processing. Users engage in content creation, curation, and governance to earn rewards.
The platform’s unique reputation system fosters a community-driven approach, providing developers with benefits like capacity reservation, seamless user growth, off-chain data broadcasting, and shared schemas, marking a paradigm shift in blockchain transaction pricing dynamics.
The Frequency platform utilizes Polkadot SDK runtime module pallets including the messages pallet, schema pallet, stateful storage pallet, and MSA pallet, responsible for DSNP Identity Operations and Delegation management.
5. The two-token ecosystem
Frequency operates on a unique system with two distinct token types.
- Message Source Accounts (MSA), involving permissions and interactions related to messaging,
- Token Accounts, contributing to the network value.
The social graph is stored on the blockchain, allowing users to write to their graph with specific permissions for MSA accounts. Social graph information, which includes only connections, is partially on-chain, and only those with the encryption key can access it.
6. Frequency use-cases: MeWe’s 20M users on track to become the largest Web3 decentralized social network
Frequency serves various purposes, such as empowering content creators to share their work and earn rewards, fostering community building through collaborative platforms with governance mechanisms, tapping into DeFi activities for user rewards, and facilitating NFT marketplaces through its modular architecture.
The prime example of Frequency implementation is MeWe. MeWe, a popular social media platform with 20 million users, has successfully migrated around 170,000 active users (to date of launch of this article) to Web3 after integrating with the Frequency blockchain. This migration represents a significant stride in transitioning users from Web 2.0 to Web3 without disrupting their current experience, positioning MeWe as a pioneer in the decentralized social media space.
MeWe is the next-generation social network, that prioritizes user privacy with a commitment to no ads, no spyware, and no deceptive practices.
Committed to user privacy and control, MeWe employs cutting-edge Web3 technologies to strengthen its platform and increase user empowerment, demonstrating its ambition to become the largest decentralized social media platform globally while maintaining a seamless and privacy-focused user experience.
Frequency additionally disclosed plans to leverage KILT’s censorship-resistant identity infrastructure for decentralized social networks via XCM. DIDs (decentralized identifiers) provided by the KILT Protocol empower users to own and manage their digital identity and data.
It’s important to note that the KILT announcement signifies the exploration of interoperability of Frequency. KILT, while pivotal, wouldn’t stand alone as the exclusive identity system.
7. Conclusion
Consider Frequency to be your customized digital pass to Web3 — the next great thing since Facebook, MySpace, or Twitter disrupted Web2. Imagine it like having a virtual VIP card that protects your online identity and allows you to control who has access to your online existence. This isn’t just a social media upgrade; it’s your golden ticket to a future in which your online space is truly yours. It’s like upgrading your digital life from dial-up to high-speed Wi-Fi.
MeWe ensures DSNP compliance by employing Frequency, a Layer-1 parachain within the Polkadot ecosystem. MeWe’s integration enables users to own their data, secure a universal handle, and enjoy a social media experience marked by enhanced privacy, control, and real sharing.
Frequency emerges as a game-changing force revolutionizing the decentralized social media scene, with the potential to welcome 20 million MeWe users. With the forthcoming connection with KILT DIDs, decentralized social media has the potential for rapid growth.
Frequency is transforming not only social media dynamics, but also how we interact, share, and take control of our digital identities.
- Enhance Polkadot’s governance process by delegating your DOT or KSM to POLKADOTTERS, dedicated community supporters within the Polkadot ecosystem, enabling seamless participation in on-chain governance through Nova wallet or Polkadot Delegation Dashboard
- Support Polkadotters Shrimp and Polkadotters Octopus on Polkadot and be a part of a more secure Web3 future
