Mining the Bitcoin Innovation

There has been a lot of talk concerning Bitcoins lately. Nobody seems to know really what they are, whether they can be used as real payment, and why (in the case the latter is true) my local grocery stores still don't accept them. Perhaps the most pressing issue is how this even can be legal, since it for all intents and purposes are money being made in your own basement.

Inshort Bitcoin is a peer-to-peer digital currency that is not issued by a central authority. The concept was introduced in a 2008 paper by a pseudonymous developer known only as "Satoshi Nakamoto". Who he really is has not yet been unearthed.

In 2012, The Economist reasoned that Bitcoin has been popular due to "its role in dodgy online markets," and in 2013 the FBI shut down one such market, Silk Road, which allowed the sale of illegal drugs for Bitcoins. So far, seizing the funds have come at no or little success, since the FBI apparently just dont have the knowledge of how to seize electronic currency.

Bitcoins are increasingly also used as payment for legitimate products and services. Notable vendors include Wordpress, OkCupid, Reddit, and Chinese Internet giant Baidu.

The creation of Bitcoins are done by so called "miners". These are computers engaged in the upkeep of the Bitcoin transaction system. However, new Bitcoins are created at an ever-decreasing rate, and once this reaches zero, the number of Bitcoins will remain static. At this point the sole incentive for miners will be the transaction fees.

So why is this important? Well, at the current moment, judging by the rate of transactions and production, the Bitcoin will overtake the USD in amounts used by 2069. That is, by 2069 more people will be trading in BitCoins than in USD. In June of 2013 a single Bitcoin was worth approximately $128.

Still confused concerning Bitcoins? Luckily the Bitcoin community recently released a video explaining the whole situation. Watch and enjoy the birth of possibly the next gen currency.

Digging a Digital Grave

In this day and age messing up on the Internet can have irreparable consequences. One day you’re in, the other day you’re out, and the results of one missed step often spells doom for an entire online enterprise. One of the key factors when running an Internet venture is the number of users you have; this determines amount of ad-spots you can sell which in turn governs you´re revenue.

That is why I cannot, for the life of me, understand SVD.se´s latest Internet move. What it says, in short, is that if you´re not a subscriber (to SVD´s paper issues) you´re not allowed to read the articles on their webpage. It sounds in theory as a sound move, however if SVD.se keeps this up, it will surely be the end of the online venture. Here´s why:

1. In Sweden we have a few different news sources, DN.se, aftonbladet.se, expressen.se to name a few. Minute differences in wording may set them apart, but not enough for anyone to have a unique USP. That is, whatever SVD.se is reporting on I am sure to find it on DN.se. SVD is not unique enough to support this move! 
2. Even if I actually was a subscriber I doubt I would spend time finding my subscriber account, nor would I create it. It is simply too easy just to go to DN.se! 
3. When you have made one user turn away, you will never get the user back! 

It’s quite simple; SVD.se are digging their own grave, and for some reason they seem not to understand it. A months subscription will set you back 273 SEK. Currently SVD has about 600 000 paper subscribers, compared to DN who has about 900 000. To add insult to injury, SVD already tried and failed with an SVD-app for mobile devices, which collapsed miserably after just a few months of service. Additionally SVD.se - last year - passed DN.se, with about 1 587 000 unique weekly viewings, compared to DN.se´s 1 500 000 views per week for the month of May 2012. I hope SVD publishes the same survey for May 2013. The numbers will NOT be as favorable.

So, SVD.se please put away the shovel before it’s too late. If not – you may not have a website to publish to by the end of this year!