With blockchain technology, sports stars, celebrities, and creatives have found unprecedented, more powerful ways to monetize their work, build stronger ties with the communities they admire, and become fully independent.
However, in New Money With Spencer and Solo, Spencer Dinwiddie and I quickly discovered that existing Web 2 structures were no longer readily supporting creatives in their career goals. Our guests described feeling a significant imbalance between the amount of content they were creating and its respective value and the amount they were earning. They spent a lot of time and money delivering material that satisfied both audiences and algorithms.
Solo Ceesay, COO and co-founder of Calaxy
Because the fickle features of Web 2 algorithms were not publicly available, creators had to vie for a prominent place at the top of social feeds. It was therefore impossible to understand how to maximize the monetary value of the content created, which meant that creators' revenue streams were unreliable. How to run a successful business under these conditions?
Web 2 has given the small groups that develop the social media algorithms and advertising features the ability to monopolize these protocols and determine which creators make money, by what means, and in what amounts.
The way these brands interact with a platform in turn reinforces this tyrannical power dynamic. Social media companies rely on brands to generate advertising revenue. Meanwhile, brands rely on social platforms to showcase themselves and leverage the followings of social influencers. Digital creatives become pawns exchanged by social platforms and brands. It's a win-win for the big companies involved, but the value creatives receive is low.
Web 3's open access eliminates the power hierarchy and allows creators to take control of their companies. Spencer noted that "our conversations about the new money have taught us the urgency of creators being able to make money directly, without the interference of a third party," and that newly developed, decentralized platforms offer more efficient ways for transactions between creators and fans.
Career stability
Content creation on Web 3 looks very different, as creators can determine how much to charge and on what terms. This model makes social media a stable career choice and removes the unpredictability that fuels fears and discourages participation. Creators have a greater say than under previous payment models, and fans may view paywalls with disdain.
But most fans and creators have yet to understand how Web 3 provides easier access to content and creates more sustainable business models than other approaches. Now, developers have a unique opportunity to quickly close that gap and permanently take power from the big corporations.
Correcting mistakes
Web 3 allows us to correct some of the biggest wrongs of current social platforms. Unfortunately, we have witnessed numerous incidents where Web 2 algorithms discriminate against marginalized communities.
Indigenous American activists found that their Instagram posts were censored, and black creators have sued YouTube for automatically removing their content based on alleged racial bias. Critics of TikTok have railed against the "filter bubble"-style algorithm, which allegedly displays videos from the same group of people and has caused many black artists to leave the app.
Direct engagement, which is central to Web 3 platforms, allows creators and fans to bypass the possibility of algorithmic discrimination and ensure that minorities have an equal opportunity to shape their careers.
Lessons Learned
New Money has taught us that creators still have fundamental questions about how to access and use Web 3. They are used to the closed, centralized monopoly of our current Web infrastructure.
For example, creatives need practical guidance on how to download and use a crypto wallet to purchase and store digital assets. Even some of the biggest tech giants and international brands have yet to embrace these tools, so such information is hard to come by.
There is no step-by-step guide for social media influencers. Our guests at New Money, the Victor Twins, felt underpaid and lamented the lack of resources they could learn from to fix this problem.
Many of our guests were unaware of the many ways Web 3 can help advance their careers, even if it's something as important as non-fungible tokens (NFTs). Influencers, artists and others are creating NFT collections seemingly on a daily basis. A number of professional athletes and politicians have converted their salaries into cryptocurrencies.
How can people incorporate such technologies into their businesses? How can they adopt something if they don't have the right tools or knowledge to use them?
The most important lesson learned in the 12 episodes is that Web 3 projects need to launch comprehensive education initiatives that reach diverse communities everywhere. "There is a need for education about current forms of monetization and the benefits of content creation on Web 3," Spencer said.
Spencer and I see New Money as a starting point. We will continue to eagerly learn from the conversations and look for ways to incorporate a true decentralized Web 3 philosophy into our work. We are aware of the gaps in knowledge that still exist that could transform business in creative fields, and perhaps every other aspect of daily life.
Our exhibition also provided a rare opportunity to observe the broader crypto landscape. What we found was encouraging: a world with enormous potential if developers and others involved in innovation take the right steps - steps that will ultimately lead to a digital economy with more equitable revenue streams and a world of new money.