Problem

The problems that merit the creation of SO-COL are components of paradigms that we are moving away from with web3 technologies but are also externalities of shifting towards a new paradigm.

Web 1.0 limited us to static pages, content being served from a server’s file system, and required frames and tables just to position and align elements on a page. This is not exactly what one would describe as a content creator’s paradise. Web 2.0 (web2) brought about many innovations that made a digital content creator economy possible; the ability to create and build dynamic content, develop APIs, and more sophisticated information flows birthed a number of platforms that provided an avenue for content creators to showcase their content. However, the structures and business models deployed by web2 social media platforms are hyper-centralized. The ownership of these platforms and the content that lives on these platforms are primarily owned by these platforms with creators limited in their tools for monetization, mechanisms for fan engagement, or incentivizing collective action. Content and information in web2 are not portable and many web3 social media platforms take a cut from the revenue generated by content creators. Moreover, the cost users pay to use these platforms come in the form of their data. Hence, it is no surprise that alternatives would be sought out and that Web 3.0 (web3) based technologies would be looked to as a means for providing a more creator-audience orientated social experience.

From the creator’s perspective, they do not own the content they generate on web2 platforms and they are limited in how they can choose to directly monetize on their content. For platforms like Instagram, Twitter and TikTok, creators need to rely on selling ads, products, and merchandise. This has seen many creators move to membership-based platforms such as Patreon and OnlyFans, as it allows them to monetize their content directly through subscriptions, albeit with a high commission. Moreover, this move does not do anything to address the transactional, one-way flow of value relationship between creators and audiences that is facilitated by web2 platforms.

From a fan’s perspective, the existing platforms and systems for engaging with content creators devoid fans of any notion of ownership. They are mere ‘viewers’, ‘followers’, or ‘simps’. The time and attention given by a fan are not rewarded, incentivized, or valued to the extent they should and can be. Furthermore, interactions between the creator and the fans tend to be passive, ad hoc, and one-directional.

Web3 technologies provide us with a multitude of tools that allow us to innovate what social experiences we can have. With web3-based technologies, we can develop incentive models that allow creators to monetize on their creations. Whilst fandom has existed in web2 and way beyond that, this energy has not been previously leveraged or channelled in a productive way, as is possible now. Audience could be united into a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO)/community and be incentivized to organize and coordinate by owning a stake in the community through an NFT.

However, web3 is not drawback free and especially not in such an early stage of its development. Web3 tools and the space at large are not easily accessible to the vast majority of people. There is a steep learning curve associated with the web3 space that is hindering it from achieving widespread adoption alongside lackluster user experiences. More specifically, DAO tooling and models are fragmented and hard to piece together but are currently necessary for the creation and facilitation of a DAO. Hence, why SO-COL is a bridge between web2 and web3. SO-COL addresses the shortcomings of web2 and web3 in a number of ways. Web3 is largely considered inaccessible due to the expensive nature of some required actions for engaging with web3 technologies and poor user experiences and interface. Ultimately, good technology does not need to be understood for it to be used. Thus, SO-COL provides options for users to choose how they want to engage with the platform, whether that be more web2-centric or web3-native. It is safe to say that there are glaring issues with web2 based platforms and structures. However, SO-COL recognizes that there are some aspects of web3 that need to be innovated on for SO-COL to achieve its mission.