Deep Dive I: Decentralized Social Networks
A Look at Decentralized Social Networks: Their Ins and Outs
Originally written November 2021.
Introduction
The following is a collection of information regarding decentralized social media platforms, some of which do not utilize a blockchain and some of which are on a blockchain. In numerous of these platforms, the creators of content can be rewarded with tokens that they can use on the platform as well as outside of it in some cases. This combination of social media with decentralization coupled with blockchain and reward structures is an example of different solutions moving towards a web3 model. As has been infamously said, web1 was for read, web2 was for read and write and web3 is for read, write and own. Thus begins an exploration into some of the platforms making waves in recent times.
Jay Graber and others authored a report on decentralized social networks which is discussed in this article
This is the report in its entirety. Well worth the read, as it is an overview of the current decentralized social media protocols, applications and topics in place as of January 2021.
Some of the topics that were requested to be explored in decentralized social media networks were:
-Screenshots
-Features
-Social Media Model and what it compares to
-Protocol in use / languages / systems
-What the project is doing these days:
This report will go over those aspects of some of the selected decentralized social media protocols and P2P networks. The report by Jay Graber’s team goes very in depth regarding many more of the relevant aspects of the specific areas regarding the proper implementation of a decentralized social media network. Some of the topics discussed in the report as they pertain to decentralized social networks include:
Data: Data models, Mutability
Discovery: Curation, Search
Governance: Overview of existing models
Identity: Decentralized identity, in federated applications, in P2P applications, Blockchain identity systems, DIDs (decentralized identifiers), key management, reputation and trust, failure models, sybil and spam, impersonation.
Moderation: Community-based, User drive, Experimental
Monetization and Business Models: Application lever, provider lever, protocol lever
Network Structure: Federated networks, passing messages between systems. Replicating data between systems, P2P networks, hybrid.
Privacy: User Metadata, Private accounts, direct messages.
Other sources of decentralized social network projects and internet:
https://github.com/redecentralize/alternative-internet
https://github.com/gdamdam/awesome-decentralized-web
P2P apps and networks:
https://github.com/kgryte/awesome-peer-to-peer
ActivityPub is an open, decentralized social networking protocol based on Pump.io’s ActivityPump protocol. It provides a client/server API for creating, updating, and deleting content, as well as a federated server-to-server API for delivering notifications and content.
“The ActivityPub protocol is a decentralized social networking protocol based upon the [ActivityStreams] 2.0 data format. It provides a client to server API for creating, updating and deleting content, as well as a federated server to server API for delivering notifications and content.”
The Fediverse (a portmanteau of “federation” and “universe”) is an ensemble of federated (i.e. interconnected) servers that are used for web publishing (i.e. social networking, microblogging, blogging, or websites) and file hosting, but which, while independently hosted, can communicate with each other. These federated social hubs are a decentralized network of millions of users all around the world.
Some of the Decentralized social media outlets that will be looked at. There are dozens of different decentralized networks which include these.
Popular Decentralized Social Media Networks (Not Blockchain based)
1.) Bluesky
2.) Mastodon
3.) Liberson
4.) Pleroma
5.) GNU Social
6.) Diaspora
7.) Misskey
8.) Friendica
9.) Hubzilla
10.) Funkwhale
11.) Pixelfed
12.) Peertube
Popular Decentralized Social Media Networks (Blockchain based)
1.) Steemit
2.) Minds
3.) Peepeth
4.) Voice (a lesson)
5.) Memo.cash
6.) Member.cash
7.) Socialx
8.) Sapien
9.) Lbry
10.) Society2
11.) Hive
12.) Subsocial
13.) Flote
Popular Decentralized Social Media Networks
(Not Blockchain Based)
1.) Blue Sky (in development)
https://blueskyweb.org/
https://blueskyweb.org/satellite
Jay Graber is the project lead of BlueSky and she was the creator of Happening.
She also worked on Zcash, utilizes zero knowledge crypto proofs utilizing protocol developers and web developers to create standards for moderation, privacy and monetization.
Will Bluesky build on existing decentralized projects such as ActivityPub, a social networking standard utilized in Mastodon, or will it create something new?
Graber’s previous decentralized creation Happening was made to compete with Facebook Events. Graber had issues with “bootstrapping a user base” intrigued by the benefits of decentralization.
This project is still under development and prototyping therefore we don’t have screenshots of it or protocols in use, but we can get a lot of information and ideas from their paper in January.
One of the cons of this is that it is an effort by Twitter, a company that has censored some of the most in all of its history. Trust could be an issue here, even if the project is indeed decentralized.
Has been criticized as trying to create their standard instead of funding already existing projects.
The following comment was similar to what was said in a previous developer meeting concerning how some big companies in the past would sometimes say they were developing a new project idea just to kill off other competition that may be thinking of developing a similar idea:
Further reading:
1.) https://www.theverge.com/2021/8/16/22627435/twitter-bluesky-lead-jay-graber-decentralized-social-web
2.) https://techcrunch.com/2021/08/16/twitter-taps-crypto-developer-to-lead-bluesky-decentralized-social-network-effort/
3.) https://fediverse.party/en/fediverse
4.) https://sopa.tulane.edu/blog/decentralized-social-networks
5.) https://bigthink.com/technology-innovation/future-of-internet-is-decentralized
2.) Mastodon (2016)
-Features
-The largest federated network on ActivityPub, with 2699 nodes, 2.6 million users
-Each server an instance and the network of instances that can interoperate is called the “Fediverse”
-A username’s handle is the handle plus the instance the user belongs to and different instances can coexist. There are also three timelines, with access to different areas within the platform such as locally or federally within other networks.
-Feeds are not chronological, not algorithmic and have no ads.
-Supports migration of old accounts to new accounts with followers.
-Protocol in use / languages / systems
-Networking wise, it started out using OStatus (open standard for federated microblogging) and then moved on to ActivityPub which utilized both a server to server and client to server standards, with Mastodon utilizing the server to server protocol. This allowed interoperability between ActivityPub servers. Written in JavaScript and React.
-Social Media Model and what it compares to
As Graeber’s report states, one of the selling points of Mastodon was that it was similar to Tweetdeck in that users who were dissatisfied with Twitter had a place to go, where other efforts like GNU Social and Diaspora tried and came up short. Mastodon implements certain activities from ActivityPub.
-What the project is doing these days
Twitter aims to set the standard when it comes to decentralized social media platforms. Jack Dorsey cited in 2019 that the goal of BlueSky was to eventually have a decentralized network where Twitter could run off of, as a client of BlueSky. This would change the Fediverse and the way that social media platforms operate since Twitter has upwards of 200 million users.
Some do not consider this decentralized because while users can host their own instance, there are still servers owned by the company which run the social network instances.
3.) Liberson (2021)
-Features
-Allows you to secure data in personal vault and move it to one’s cloud or host it oneself
-User contents are encrypted
-There is a decentralized app that comes with the vault and it allows connection with one’s friends.
-Liberson has three pillars it focuses on: Freedom, privacy and ownership.
-You own it, you cannot be banned, they cannot see the data, decentralized.
-Social Media Model and what it compares to
-Popular social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and others, have user data in a centralized location. This is liable to deletion and companies do often censor their users. ‘To Liberson, this would be like them breaking into your home, stealing your pictures, looking through your personal belongings, and kicking out any guests they wanted.’
-With Liberson, the user owns their data in their Private Data Storage Vault. Liberson can ban a user from posting in the public forum which is called Liberson Agora, but it cannot delete the content from the user’s instance of Liberson, since the data is being stored by the user themselves. This is done in accordance with the legalities of FCC and what is allowed legally online.
-Protocol in use / languages / systems
Liberson has its own decentralization protocol. Users do not go to a central location to access their profile but rather have their own Personal Data Vaults which are encrypted and Liberson has no access to due to it being stored in the user’s hardware.
-What the project is doing these days:
From their June 18th blog post:
“Social media is broken and we are being bought. Liberson is decentralized and they will not mine or sell data. They are private by design, profile, data, content, actions are stored in encrypted data vault, user owns the vaults just like anything they would own in their own home. We are not a commodity to be sold or profited from. We abandon us that will treat us like commodities, spy on us, and our data should never be sold, banned. deleted or censored. Our tool is decisive and our cause is righteous. We created machines to serve the people, people were never born to serve the machine, together we have the power to reject big tech.”
4.) Pleroma (2016)
-Features
Like other Fediverse instances, independently hosted servers running Pleroma (referred to as “instances”) provide a federated microblogging experience to netizens, similar to Twitter or Weibo.
-620 nodes, 35K users as of 2020.
-As of mid 2020, Pleroma is the second most popular server in the Fediverse, right behind Mastodon, having 13% of share instances and 1% of the users in the Fediverse.
-Social Media Model and what it compares to
-Open and free, compatible with other Fediverse software such as Mastodon, Misskey, Pixelfed and others. It is a microblogging server software that can exchange messages (Federate) with other servers that support the standards of the Fediverse (OStatus and Activitypub). The server can be hosted for oneself and you can engage with others in larger servers. Pleroma is interoperable between GNU Social, Friendica, Hubzill and Mastodon.
Public timelines can be seen by those not logged in and others can be spotted in that timeline posting if you are to follow them in their servers. The servers contain posts from users following and engaging with them, with the character maximum limit being 5000 characters per message, but the server can set it to any number. There is a chat on the side of the screen where users that are in your instance can be in, and the primary timeline consists of posts of those one is following. There are also themes, custom backgrounds and more.
-Protocol in use / languages / systems
Pleroma is interoperable with Fediverse protocols such as OStatus, ActivityPub and Gopher.
-What the project is doing these days
Pleroma continues to be developed, with their latest patch release being 2.4.1, with prior major releases, security releases and more.
5.) GNU Social (2014)
-Features
With the stable release having come out in 2014, this platform has had several names such as Laconica and SatusNet. It implements the OStatus standard which allows interoperability between microblogging federated servers. One of the advantages of federated servers is that you can follow people from other instances like Mastodon. There also exist multiple instances for all sorts of topics, people and purposes. The project was developed in part by Matt Lee, Evan Prodromou, and Mikael Nordfeldth.
-Social Media Model and what it compares to
It shares similarities to Twitter in appearance and it is available in 25 languages, written in PHP.
-Protocol in use / languages / systems
OStatus, OpenID, and some Diaspora support.
-What the project is doing these days
GNU social merged with Free Social and StatusNet projects in 2013 which allow it to continue the GNU social project and to have a highly tested and production quality codebase with features that enable further interoperability with federated social networks. The project is one of the older ones in the federated social network space.
6.) Diaspora (2010)
https://diasporafoundation.org/
-Features
This was created by the efforts of the crowdfunding of four students in 2010. They wanted a social network that would return the power to its users. A Dandelion is the main mascot/logo of the project and it was created as a way for users to macroblog and have separate pods as it were, independent of the encroaching centralization of corporations. Some of its highlights include birthday notifications, follow hashtags, Two factor authentication in the form of TOTP, hiding of contact lists, polls and more.
-Social Media Model and what it compares to
Messages cannot be deleted from the shared servers one has amongst oneself and one’s friends, so one must be careful to not send sensitive information over Diaspora.
-Protocol in use / languages / systems
It utilizes its own protocol, “Diaspora”. It is written in Ruby. At the time of writing, it contains 818,592 accounts, 47,140 people and 184 server instances.
-What the project is doing these days
-Since being nominated for Best Social Network in the 2011 Mashable.com awards, the distributed social network has released numerous versions, with its latest being version 0.7.15.0 on April 18th, 2021. In June of 2021 they moved their IRC channels to freenode network Libera.Chat.
7.) Misskey (2014)
-Features
-Bills itself as a decentralized microblogging platform which exists on the Fediverse, thus making it accessible to other social networks which are connected to each other. It was solely developed by one individual named Syuilo.
-Social Media Model and what it compares to
Some of the functions of the app are similar to others found in social media. This includes posting of text, polls, emojis, videos and pictures. The liking process consists of “Reactions” which are more expressive than the usual. The UI can be adjusted where one can insert timelines layouts as well as introducing widgets on the UI. It includes a Drive system where the user can store their media. It has features of Twitter and Github.
-Protocol in use / languages / systems
Misskey utilizes The ActivityPub protocol. This allows it to federate with Mastodon and Pleroma.
-What the project is doing these days
While their fediverse info page appears to be down https://fediverse.party/en/misskey , their Github is active and work continues on the project.
8.) Friendica (2010)
-Features
This decentralized, microblogging social network created by Mike Macgirving. He was responsible for Hubzilla years later in 2015 after he left the former project. It offers bidirectionality which allows people to post and read on other social platforms such as Twitter, GNU social, Mail, and App.net, Blogger, Wordpress, Buffer (multiple social media management) and others.
-Social Media Model and what it compares to
Users can change themes on their feeds in ways not doable with other more mainstream social media applications.
-Protocol in use / languages / systems
ActivityPub, OStatus and diaspora.
-What the project is doing these days
Friendica continues to get upgrades, with its most recent one being ‘Siberian Iris’ in October of 2021.
9.) Hubzilla (2015)
-Features
Created in 2015, this is a social network that has audio streaming at the center of its focus. Written in Python, it is described as a “platform for creating interconnected websites featuring a decentralized identity, communications, and permissions framework built using common web server technology”.
-Social Media Model and what it compares to
The appearance is similar to Facebook in some of it’s early iterations but it is markedly different due to its customizability and execution. In Hubzilla, every user has their own channel which can feature such things as a personal wall, a bot that pulls content from the web, a brand page, a celebrity page, a group page. Channels can interact with each other and one can create a channel with bots feeding it information (for example, the Freindica channel would pull Github commits, dev group communications and community news in a continuous stream.
-Protocol in use / languages / systems
This application runs on the so-called LAMP stack, namely Linux, Apache, PHP, and MYSQL. There are instructions that a user can access which can guide them on how to set up a Debian based installation.
-What the project is doing these days:
The last update was version 3.2.2 on April 3d, 2018.
10.) Funkwhale (2015)
-Features
Some of the functions involve allowing one to have favorite songs and albums, radios and get recommendations. It allows users to connect with other users in Mastodon, thus expanding the range of its 113 servers/instances. Users can add content to their accounts and put them in channels and libraries. Utilizing MusicBrainz, an open library encyclopedia for metadata and music identification. Tracks can be edited and tagged in the platform. Users of other pods in other ActivityPub instances such as Mastodon see shared content from Funkwhale users.
-Social Media Model and what it compares to
Inspired by Grooveshark and similar to Soundcloud, this social platform aims to allow the sharing of music within its user’s accounts as well as on other ActivityPub instances such as Mastodon and Reel2Bits.
-Protocol in use / languages / systems
Utilizes activity pub. Front end that uses the API is built as a single page application which uses Vue.js and Fomantic AI. The back end uses a REST API developed using Python 3 and Django.
-What the project is doing these days
Development work and suggestions are ongoing since they are done by interested members of their community.
11.) Pixelfed (2018)
-Features
An image sharing platform with social media added. Some of the features include the ability to disable comments, have video loops (like Instagram), can edit metadata/EXIF data, can have hashtags, hide followers, have stories and collections. It also has multiple servers and a mobile application. Some other features include that there are no ads in timelines, properly ordered timelines without manipulative algorithms and it has no 3d party analytics added to it. Security features include 2FA, content warnings, blocking of accounts, disabling of comments, muting of accounts, private accounts, private posts, unlisted posts, reports, etc. You can run your own server or you can join another one. The software is open source and is a community effort. While anyone can donate and sponsor the project, they have received a grant before to help with spending time improving the project.
-Social Media Model and what it compares to
The clear similarity here to Instagram cannot be overlooked. It seems to sport a more plain layout of the user interface.
-Protocol in use / languages / systems
Written in PHP, this platform utilizes ActivityPup, the protocol in use by other platforms such as Mastodon, Pleroma, Peertube, Nextcloud, Friendica, etc.
-What the project is doing these days
The project has numerous contributors which help fund the project on a monthly basis. Some users in some threads have compared getting one’s own instance of Pixelfed running akin to “building a small model airplane” and that is apparent once one sees that there are several parts to getting set up your own server. This illustrates the importance of creating applications and services which are both easy for users to use as well as decentralized and secure, something akin to the Blockchain Trilemma.
12.) Peertube (2015)
https://framablog.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Framatube-au-lancement.png
-Features
This is a free, decentralized, open source and federated video platform. You can watch, comment and upload videos online. Users can have their own Peertube instances which can sync with each other. As they sync, the videos of one instance can be watched by those of the other instance while the files stay on the server of the initial instance. This creates a video network with a shared video catalog that does not require users to pay for more disk space. No data centers are needed to run Peertube, since peer to peer streaming makes it resilient and efficient.
-Social Media Model and what it compares to
Similar to Youtube, Vimeo, DailyMotion and many other video sites, the difference is that the service is not running on a centralized model like it is with those other platforms.
-Protocol in use / languages / systems
Written in TypeScript and utilizing ActivityPub as a protocol.
-What the project is doing these days
Development continues with Peertube as a news section on their website shows.
Popular Decentralized Social Media Networks
Blockchain Based
1.) Steemit (2016)
-Features
This is a social media platform utilizing blockchain technology to help build communities and allow the users to get funds based on their content. The model that Steemit uses is contrary to the model of platforms like Facebook where the shareholders and executives of the company make a great deal of returns based on the content that is generated by said users. Cryptocurrency rewards in the form of STEEM, are given to users for their content. They then can become stakeholders within the decentralized social media platform. Steem boasts the processing of more transactions than the Bitcoin and Ethereum networks and it is utilized by more than 1 million people on more than 324 different Steem based applications. Some of the ways that users can utilize STEEM include content creation, freelancing for other community members, participation in contests and challenges, rent out some of the platform’s tokens [there are 3 on Steemit: STEEM, SBD (Steem Dollars) and SP (Steem Power)]. Some of the more popular exchanges that deal with STEEM include Bittrex, Binance, Huobi, Poloniex. Steem has multiple DApps on it’s platform such as games and social blogging platforms.
-Social Media Model and what it compares to
This platform compares to Reddit in its appearance. Users can make posts and those posts can be upvoted and downvoted. The difference here of course being that users can get paid in the crypto token of the platform and this can in turn be exchanged for other cryptos of the user’s choosing on multiple exchanges. This is a great incentive for creators, especially individuals in countries where a little can go a mile.
-Protocol in use / languages / systems
Steemit is a decentralized application that is built on top of the Steem blockchain and which rewards STEEM to its content creators based on the upvotes or downvotes their posts get. Steem blockchain utilizes “Proof of Brain” social consensus algorithm for the allocation of its tokens. Steam also uses Smart Media tokens (SMTs) in order to encourage DApp development. Some of the features of this blockchain include:
-Fast Block confirmation of 3 seconds
-Free Transactions
-Integrated Token Allocation
-Incoming Smart Media Tokens
-Low entry barrier for new users
-Many DApps built on Steemit with more to come
-SBD as a stablecoin for the platform
-Delegated Proof of Stake Consensus (DPOS)
-10% APR inflation narrowing to 1% APR over 20 years
(75% of inflation to “Proof of Brain algorithm)
-What the project is doing these days
Some of the last development done on their Github shows activity from 2020 and before.
2.) Minds (2015)
-Features
Created in 2015 as an alternative to the increasingly censorious and limiting popular social media platforms, Minds features functions such as offering free and paid accounts, no political bias by ownership of the site, no monetization of user data, has measures to lessen hate speech while enabling free speech, as well as being open source. Users can earn tokens by and spend cryptocurrency commenting, posting, getting upvotes and getting others to join the platform. The platform features Minds tokens which are used via smart contracts to purchase features such as Boost and Wire (decentralized, peer-to-peer payments). Users can tip others for content as well as purchase advertising views. Users that have paid for their account have such features as opening up the possibility of getting verified, accessing exclusive content and ability to banish boosted posts on one’s profile newsfeed. Some of their user base holds stock in the company.
-Social Media Model and what it compares to
The platform bears some resemblance to applications such as Twitter and Instagram. The difference being that there is an emphasis on more freedom of speech and a system of civil discourse whereby posters are not banned but are reasoned with in regards to more extreme points of view. Another difference is that the private messages between users are end-to-end encrypted so staff cannot read it like they can on other platforms. Users also have the option of being able to register anonymously and this is different from popular social media platforms that now even ask for one’s phone number to sign up. Even popular email services now ask the individual for their phone number in order to set up an account. Their CEO has said that his model of running the platform involves not deplatforming people for holding extreme views since this serves to drive them to other darker corners of the internet. He also sees freedom of expression as a sort of antidote to extremist attitudes and tendencies.
-Protocol in use / languages / systems
In the Minds Whitepaper V1, we learn that it is open source, hosted on AWS, and utilizes a full stack that includes MongoDB, Cassandra, Redis, ElasticSearch, Docker, Angular, Ethereum, OpenZeppelin, Truffle, GPLV3, PHP, NativeScript, NodeJS, Socket, MetaMask, TypeScript, DroneCI, RabbitMQ, ZeroMQ, OpenSSL, NGINX, React Native, GNU/Linux and Ubuntu.
-What the project is doing these days
In 2021, the developers introduced an end-to-end encrypted global communications app with video and file sharing capabilities. The company also raised $10 Million from a tech freedom organization named Futo which is focused on technological freedom. Minds also released a feature called MindsChat which federates with the Matrix protocol, a standard for decentralized end to end encrypted communications. The feature has interoperability where users can chat with others in the platform’s own network or branch to other networks like Slack, Signal, Twitter etc.
3.) Peepeth (2018)
-Features
Content is based on the Ethereum blockchain. The data is open, decentralized and immutable as it is stored on the Ethereum blockchain and IPFS. Some features include:
-A “like” per day, or an Enso, as they call it.
-You can pin other people’s profiles posts on your account but not your own, therefore incentivizing promotion of others.
-Can donate $25 for Malaria and this can give you a special badge on your profile.
-Instant, free posts which can be linked to other social media to provide proof it is really you and you can cross post with Twitter. Can earn tips in ETH.
-Had no ICO, has no ads, fees charged for sending tips and for verifying other social media accounts. No complex tokenomics. There is a fee to sign up, which helps to power the Ethereum network.
-Social Media Model and what it compares to
This social network has similarities to Twitter but it is alot different in that it encourages thoughtful content and guards against posts which violate their terms of service, as most of the other federated platforms do in one way or another. This platform also does not have ads, something which has plagued Twitter, Facebook and some of the other large social media conglomerates. The data is permanent and on the Ethereum blockchain. Because of this, the project claims that people will be more considerate of what they say, since it will be permanent and public. This also creates a situation where content on the platform is censorship resistant, since you cannot edit or delete a “peep” after it has been published. This makes the author a lot more thoughtful of what they will post, especially in this area of high social scrutiny on the actions of individuals online. On the other hand, ironically, such a model may also deter individuals that are more free speech centered since the app stresses a policy of being mindful of hateful speech. This is much different than Twitter, where public shaming and trolling can reach viral levels that seep into the real life worlds of targeted individuals.
-Protocol in use / languages / systems
Peepeth uses a stateless smart contract protocol which stores all data on the platform on a decentralized Interplanetary File System (IPFS) data store. User authentication is achieved by an Oracle contract which is then linked to social media accounts. The website, which adds functions not implementable from the blockchain such as social media posting and other digital communication methods, acts as the front end for the smart contract protocol which reads to and also writes from the smart contract. Peepeth’s data center is open source, but the design of availability for most makes Peepeth centralized, meaning that censorship can be an issue, but users can create their own front-end platform and restore all the data that has been saved in the IFPS repository.
-What the project is doing these days
While Peepeth was quite popular in 2018/2019, it seems to have been flying under the radar the last couple of years.
4.) Voice (est. 2019)
-Features
This was supposed to be a decentralized social media network that came and went in less than a year and transformed into an NFT platform. The goal of having a decentralized social media platform on the EOS blockchain which is both private and centralized was a bit perplexing at first glance. Millions of dollars were dumped into this project for it to not succeed less than a year later after inception and become an NFT platform, attempting to capitalize on the newfound NFT craze.
5.) Memo.cash (2018)
-Features
Decentralized social network powered by the Bitcoin Cash blockchain. All memo posts are visible to anyone using the BCH blockchain, with each memot account being associated with a BCH wallet address. Users can get rewarded BCH. Users can post images, text, video as well as buy and sell SLP tokens with BCH. This makes one’s account both a decentralized social media account and a cryptocurrency wallet. Users can earn BCH dividends by purchasing the CST token. You can tip users with BCH. The decentralized social media site offers a trustless exchange system where users can trade their coins anonymously.
-Social Media Model and what it compares to:
The layout bears some similarities to a very stripped down Facebook but only in UI, since it has different functions, one of which is that it accepts cryptocurrency payments in the form of SLP tokens that can be stored once you get an account with a BCH wallet tied to it. Because this social network is powered by a blockchain, all messages made on it are permanent. This is similar to what we find with Peepeth and probably other blockchain based social media websites. This makes it resistant to censorship.
-Protocol in use / languages / systems
Operating on the Bitcoin Cash network, it aims to be decentralized and censorship resistant.
-What the project is doing these days:
The project has an active blog where users can post their stories and articles and get tipped for it, similar to the Steemit platform where users can reward each other with the platform’s tokens. The posts are recent and the blog is active. The website seems to be a place where one can find older members of the crypto community as well as developers.
6.) Member.cash (2018)
-Features
A decentralized public platform for discussion and reputation build using the BCH chain. The model here is similar to Reddit but uses the BCH network to get past censorship and to improve decentralization.
-Social Media Model and what it compares to:
It has some similarities to Instagram and some of the other platforms mentioned on here such as Memo.cash and others.
-Protocol in use / languages / systems
Member.Cash utilizes microblogging protocols such as Memo, Member, Wewo, BockPress, MatterProtocol and Proposals.
-What the project is doing these days
While the platform continues to be operational, there is not too much info online in terms of documentation concerning what they are up to in 2021.
7.) Socialx (2018)
-Features
With a close Beta taking place in 2018, this is a platform that has similar features to Steemit, but with major differences. Followers of a user’s account can like posts and add comments as well as “superlike” posts. SocialX has a reward pool and this allows it to tap into those resources when a user utilizes the “superlike ‘’ function, which is then sent to the person on the receiving end of the super likes. There are more and more projects which aim to give the user rewards for what they post, instead of just taking from them like the big monopolies have done for years. The platform also boasts wallet integration where the user can trade their earned SOCX for other ERC-20 tokens and trade them on exchanges. SOCS allows users to purchase rewards, Buy ads, do e-commerce, engage in referrals and more.
-Social Media Model and what it compares to
This is compared to Facebook and Instagram but it is not centralized like they are, and in turn, is decentralized and runs off of a blockchain where users can earn crypto in the form of SOCX. This platform also compares to the other blockchain based popular platform Steemit. Some of the main differences include encrypted messaging, live streaming capability and media license management system to enable users to buy and sell videos and images within the Socialx ecosystem.
-Protocol in use / languages / systems
Socialx utilizes its own blockchain, the details of which can be found in their Whitepaper.
-What the project is doing these days
Project is in Beta sign up stage, with the roadmap mostly complete, including an old roadmap which they changed from. According to some sources, it was last updated on April 2018.
8.) Sapien (2016)
-Features
Sapien was first founded in 2016 as a Web3 development company in order to promote human autonomy and wellbeing, Sapieen.Network was launched in 2017 built on the Ethereum blockchain. The project has its own community called the Sapien Nation Community aimed at connecting individuals around issues which are relevant to their interests. A new roadmap released in 2021 has the project aiming towards Metaverse goals, since this seems to be an up and coming hot area of development in tech and blockchain in general.
-Social Media Model and what it compares to
In terms of more mass media platforms, Sapien compares to Twitter in that it has topics which can be followed but it does have a wallet and this is something Twitter does not have yet (Twitter does have lightning network payments through its Tips function). In terms of other social media platforms built on the Ethereum blockchain, this Sapien compares to Peepeth.
-Protocol in use / languages / systems
The Sapien Platform is a decentralized social news platform built with Meteor.js which is the recommended framework for Ethereum DApps. The platform utilizes ERC-20 tokens which are called SPN and which can be posting, commenting, voting, purchasing goods on the Sapien store as well as purchasing premium content.
-What the project is doing these days
It does appear that this project has not had any work done since after its inception in 2016. The Github page shows work from 4 years ago and not much recent work done. Their Whitepaper is not found on their page anymore but it is found in this area of their Github. One of the only links to access their Whitepaper is this one, which is V1 and there is V1.3 Some sources do show that the project has been updated as recently as April 2020.
9.) Lbry (2015)
-Features
This platform contains a peer-to-peer protocol with a digital currency, a decentralized ledger, all to enable major publishing houses, self publishers and other content creators to share their creations in a peer-to-peer sharing network where lack of transparency and monetization was an issue before which enabled piracy. Due to the setup of the platform, distribution of content is done in a decentralized manner. A path of a typical user’s interaction to publish their content and have it viewed and paid for by another user, is as follows:
1.) User A wants to release his film on the platform
2.) Content is encrypted, held by many hosts and fragmented into pieces
3.) User A reserves a name pointing to his content, such as “lbry://ernieruns”
4.) User A also submits metadata when reserving location
5.) Another user, User B, searches the network, finds the film, decides they want to see it
6.) User B gives User A payment and then gets the decryption key to view the content
7.) User B’s client collects the fragmented pieces from the host, reassembles them and has the film ready for viewing shortly after.
-Social Media Model and what it compares to
This compares to websites that sell movies, books, games and other proprietary media, with the difference that it does so in a decentralized manner, utilizing a blockchain and a cryptocurrency to do transactions on the blockchain with LBC, Library Credits. Amazon would be comparable, and other proprietary media selling companies but it is unique with its blockchain and its own cryptocurrency. In the near future, we could probably see such a model becoming more popular.
-Protocol in use / languages / systems
LBRY utilizes a proof of work blockchain similar to Bitcoin’s. LBRY associates metadata with a name or a string of characters in a coupling which they then label with a LBRY URL. Transaction data and metadata are stored on separate Merkle trees, which allows for the LBRY URLs to be resolved in a trustful manner.
-What the project is doing these days
Since the start of its public use since June 2016, the platform boasts about 3.3 million digital pieces of content as of 2020, with wallets and browsers available for all operating systems. LBRY’s Odyssey channel has almost 700K subscribers, and so it should, since Odyssey was created by LBRY, with LBRY having abandoned its protocol in 2019 to focus on its newer creations. On March 29th, 2021, the SEC filed charges against LBRY for providing what it said were unregistered securities offerings, labeling their LBRY credits as such.
10.) Society2
-Features
One of the features of Society2 is that it utilizes IOTA’s DID (Decentralized Identity) which is used once and which allows users to utilize their one ID and data across different applications or social networks on Society2. Via the IOTA Streams framework, users can set up cryptographic applications and this can eventually allow them to utilize this as a tool for creating social media platforms to publish content on, opening up great control and diversity in terms of what is available.
-Social Media Model and what it compares to
Compared to traditional social media models, Society2 is focused on privacy, user control of data and freedom. Users only have one identity to manage which can then be used across a range of different platforms utilizing the framework of Society2. Traditional social media is also invasive in terms of one’s information, whereas if something is labeled private by the user on Society2, then that is cryptographically secure. There are ads that can be opted into as well as micropayments versus traditional models where the platform makes money from selling the information of the user. There are different platforms that the user can utilize within the framework of Society2 and which have a different set of rules compared to platforms with heavy rules or no rules at all. Centralized platforms have manipulative algorithms which often control the flow of what one sees. With Society2, the user can view their feeds chronologically without a filter with their own rules set in place.
-Protocol in use / languages / systems
This platform utilizes technologies such as IOTA and IPFS to enable more control for users of their digital identity, communications and connections.
-What the project is doing these days
The platform has some projects which have branched off from it, such as Secrets which is a decentralized messaging application and Flow which is a decentralized social media application which is in the planning phase. Utilizing IOTA’s blockchain and their digital identity, it puts users in control of their content in such a way that they can’t be deplatformed. There are feeless transactions so users can tip their followers and friends. There are also add free options to enable more focus when engaging in tasks. The project has also explored the use of Colored Coins, which are the name that NFT’s were first known as. They wanted to do this in order to explore different uses within their platform in a similar way that Reddit has their own built in credit system.
11.) Hive (2019)
-Features
Hive has several features such as member profiles, messaging, video resources, live feed, iphone and android apps, the ability to attach songs from Apple play on someone’s profile, and more.
-Social Media Model and what it compares to
This application has some similarities to Tableau in that you have different boards for different activities and notifications. It has also been referred to as an Instagram alternative, with the pro being that it allows users to post affiliate marketing links or any links in general to their bio and story, whereas a user has to have 10k followers on Instagram to be allowed to post such links. The app costs 44$ a month for a membership and it seems to be geared towards entrepreneurs that have +1 Million in sales. This is different than other social media platforms in that it has you pay for the membership while providing you with exclusive access to a network of valued individuals. Some have said the app is like having Instagram and Twitter on a single application.
-Protocol in use / languages / systems
Hive is a decentralized blockchain and ecosystem which has fast processing times and fee-less transactions. Some of the apps in its ecosystem include several NFT based apps, social apps, Tools apps, video apps and more. The Hive blockchain has a 3 second block time and REST API interfaces.
-What the project is doing these days
According to their resources page, some of the last activity recorded there was around the 2017–2018 time.
12.) Subsocial (2021)
https://twitter.com/subsocialchain/status/1380770268856082434
-Features
This social media application exists on a substrate blockchain (Substrate is the modular blockchain framework on which Edgeware and Kusama are built, and the foundation for the whole Polkadot ecosystem). One’s Substrate wallet is tied to one’s Subsocial account, and to interact with the network, one needs to spend $SUB tokens. Ownership of the Spaces that users can own can be made as democratic as possible, with a vote system which can be implemented to make decisions. All users of a Space can also be made owners so they can all govern it, but once again, decisions can go to a vote. Users can create Spaces which are somewhat modular in nature in that they can represent different parts of the most liked aspects of other current social media platforms by the customizability of it.
-Social Media Model and what it compares to
The platform is described as a mix of different social media platforms such as Reddit, Facebook, Twitter and others. Users can make their own spaces with owners and followers. Owners can govern how the space is used. They can also mint their own tokens for their own spaces. Users cannot censor other users but they can limit what they themselves see.
-Protocol in use / languages / systems
Substrate and IPFS are the only required parts of the Subsocial protocol. Other parts of the architecture are optional but help to improve the overall UX. These parts include elastic search, PostgreSQL, and more.
-What the project is doing these days
Subsocial recently made the news for becoming the first social network in the web 3.0 ecosystem that will be running on Polkadot’s ecosystem of parachains, Kusama. The latter is a pre-production environment for Polkadot that allows developers to make new blockchains and test out their creations before it goes live on Polkadot.
13.) Flote (2019)
-Features
Flote was founded in February of 2019 as an alternative to popular social media platforms which are stifling freedom of expression. Flote aims to be a platform that encourages open mindedness and a censorship free environment. Users can stream live content without fees and they can keep what they earn. Filtered list of words allows users to filter out spam and trolls which they may not want to see in their live streams. Users can import information from other social networks such as Twitter, Facebook and other social profiles. Posts can be done in different formats such as long form text, audio, video, images and more, while having no censorship. Individuals can earn, trade and tip $FLOTE which is the ecosystem’s token of value for exchanges and other aforementioned functions.
-Social Media Model and what it compares to
While Flote can allow users to cross post and access other social networks within its ecosystem, it has the ability to allow users to gain $FLOTE tokens. These are distributed daily and will follow Bitcoin’s halving schedule with some of the features including free transactions, autonomous smart contract support, built in interoperability, available as an ERC-20 token on Polygon.
-Protocol in use / languages / systems
Flote.app is written in Python as can be gathered from their Github.
-What the project is doing these days
Flote has been working on a V1 release of their platform in 2021. They have been working on numerous projects such as an NFT project based on their ship and maritime theme which will have numerous features such as being usable in the Project Mirage metaverse which Flote is collaborating with. Flote has around 40k users and 13 members of their team, which seems to be growing more and more.
Ending thoughts
This has been a look at the some of the social media platforms which have come in the past, some which are just beginning and some which are yet to come. Social media has been such a prominent part of human civilization that these companies, once just young ideas, are now worth billions and billions of dollars.
With Elon Musk’s recent activities regarding the possible purchasing of Twitter, there will surely be greater revenues to be achieved by the social media platforms which are yet to come and which will surely be more polished versions of their current counterparts.
