Bitcoin never took off with mainstream users despite years of media attention. Entrepreneurs haven't built the applications that would drive mass adoption. Silk Road and Wikileaks demonstrated that bi
Bitcoin never took off with mainstream users despite years of media attention. Entrepreneurs haven't built the applications that would drive mass adoption. Silk Road and Wikileaks demonstrated that bitcoin serves transactions governments can't restrict, but founders want something bigger. Now some are testing whether bitcoin can work as a rewards mechanism for user engagement.
Several startups are running these experiments. They're betting you'll use their app or contribute to their platform if they pay you in bitcoin.
How do user rewards function? The concept is simple: developers offer bitcoin to people who engage with their application. You might write reviews, answer surveys, upload data, or return to the platform on a schedule. Google Opinion Rewards follows this model but pays in Google Play credits instead.
Who's currently using bitcoin to reward users? Unlike other celebrated bitcoin applications, this one exists outside theory. At least five companies have active programs:
Snapcard partnered with Tango Card, which runs the largest rewards-as-a-service platform in the world. Tango Card had issued e-gift cards for years. The partnership lets them offer bitcoin to customers for loyalty, engagement, and referrals. "Our mission is to help other businesses build successful reward programs," said Scotty Greenburg, senior marketing manager at Tango Card. "We are excited to bring bitcoin to hundreds of enterprise programs in the near future."
Xapo connected with Taringa!, an Argentine social platform sometimes called the Reddit of Argentina. The site receives over 75 million visitors each month. Users earn bitcoin by posting useful content.
Joystream reimagines file sharing as a payment system. People seed files and get paid by downloaders who want faster speeds. No middleman takes a cut.
Parkt offers discounted parking at partner retail locations. Users accumulate rewards points while shopping and can convert them to bitcoin.
Oh Crop! targets gamers. Players climb the leaderboard and collect bitcoin for their rankings.
Why does bitcoin work for rewards? Volatility, which people cite as bitcoin's main problem, doesn't matter when the reward is immediate and users have no reason to hold the currency. Current reward systems impose payout delays and spending caps. Bitcoin removes both obstacles. Some developers have mentioned decentralized reward systems for content creators modeled on Reddit—more experiments are coming.
Long-term viability remains unknown. But bitcoin moved from theoretical exercise to actual use in 2015, and the reward space might prove more receptive than previous applications have.
