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Tag: marketing

What does it take to be an entrepreneur?

What does it really take to be an Entrepreneur?

I think that most people do not fit into the category of Entrepreneur because of their mindset.  A typical person with a typical job is not looking for anything different from what they currently have, so they certainly do not fit into the category of entrepreneur.

If you think along most or even any of the following lines, you may have what it takes to be an entrepreneur.

1) I am looking for something more than what I am doing every day.

2) I am looking for something different than I am currently doing.

3) I would like a new challenge that is more than what I am currently doing.

4) I would like more control over my work life than I currently have.

5) I don't mind working harder than I am currently working, but I would like more freedom to work according to my own schedule.

6) I would like to become more of an owner than I currently am.

7) I would like to profit directly from my efforts instead of sharing my efforts with others in a higher position than myself.

8) I am kind of tired of being just an employee.

9) I don't really see many opportunities for growth in my current job.

10) I want to build something that I could sell for a profit or pass on to a family member when I retire.

If any of these types of thoughts have passed through your mind, you may be someone who would like to become an entrepreneur.

 

Do I have the skills to become an entrepreneur?  If you think you have or are capable of developing these kinds of skills you may have what it takes to succeed as an entrepreneur.  Don't worry if you think you may not have all these skills right now.  Some of them are acquired skills that entrepreneurs discover along the way.

1.  Ability to solve problems by using critical thinking.

2. I can lead when necessary and delegate when it is appropriate to do so.

3. I can think creatively when necessary.

4. I have the ability to manage people or groups of people.

5. I can coordinate with people within as well as outside my company.

6.  I can manage my own emotions and help others to control theirs when necessary.

7. I can exercise good judgment and make good decisions on both a short term and long term basis.

8. I realize that in order to succeed, I will have to put the needs of customers first, and set up mechanisms within my company to make sure that this culture is instilled in all employees.

9. I am able to negotiate.  This means I have to be willing to compromise when necessary.

10.  In dealing with critical issues, I will be able to show flexibility and show empathy within and without my company, rather than insist on my way or the highway every time.

If you can see yourself in the top or bottom ten points listed here, then entrepreneurship may be for you.

Best of success in all your endeavors.

 

John Lombaerde

 https://markethive.com/jonlomb/page/standard

 

 

David https://markethive.com/david-ogden

The Five Steps to Startup Success – Markethive/Deb Williams

The Five Steps to Startup Success – Markethive/Deb Williams

  
     The first social/market network built on blockchain technology

CEO of Markethive Thomas Prendergast announces,

“We are now ready and on the verge of launching the first ultimate Market Network with a social media interface. This has never been done before. Markethive is well versed in identifying its market, and we now offer our experience and expertise to everyone aspiring to build a business online.

We have purposely integrated blockchain technology for your security, privacy and give you the ability to create a universal income all on one platform. What this means is you cannot be shadowbanned. Giving you freedom of speech, your data is your data and cannot be used by the company or anyone else. You can work safely in an autonomous environment with everything you need to achieve your goals.”

The Next Generation – The Next Level

You will now be able to sharpen your entrepreneurial skills with state of the art inbound marketing tools in a collaborative fluid culture achieving the five steps to startup success with Markethive. Even if you have just a slight entrepreneurial itch, you will be able to learn and grow with the system positioned to be the next generation of social/market media. And you get paid to learn!

CEO of Markethive, Thomas Prendergast says,

“Markethive has built and adopted a proven strategy over the last 20 years. The foundation has been laid which puts us in the top 1%. We already have the three pillars of viability: community, technology, and liquidity, all of which are needed in equal portions to have viability in the digital money sphere.” 

  

As predicted by the visionaries of Silicon Valley

The CEO states,

“As predicted by the visionaries of Silicon Valley, the Market Network is the next logical replacement of the social networks. They spoke about the Market Network being the next unicorn of trillion dollar companies over the next 10 years. They were talking about Markethive. We are a marketplace and a network, and we have all the inbound marketing tools for workflow.

We are the ultimate Market Network. Markethive is rising up to be the next generation social (market) network bringing sanity to privacy and universal income to the entrepreneur.”

The early vertical market networks are

1. A marketplace – transactions among multiple buyers and sellers

2. A network – identity and communications

3. Workflow – SAAS, Software as a service

Markethive is an outstanding platform with huge upend potential in both the markets. Revenue generation is solid with income revenue already underway, as well as funding revenue.

  

It’s fully operational as a beta platform

CTO and Co-founder of Markethive Douglas Yates says,

“It’s fully operational as a beta platform. The coin has been created, the blockchain is in place, and every milestone in the white paper has been met on time.”

Tim Moseley, one of the many veteran associates, says,

“Markethive represents the future to me. It offers the most significant opportunity of my lifetime. Because of the vision and hard work relentlessly performed by the CEO Thomas Prendergast and his team, Markethive will launch into the future to become the premier inbound marketing network of our time. I can envision Markethive becoming the standard by which other market networks will be judged by.”

Another satisfied associate, Mike Sheehan, states,

“Having had the opportunity to meet and speak with Tom provided me with the vision that this platform is going to be unique and beneficial. With limited tech knowledge, Markethive gives me a platform where I can learn from both members and the training videos. And finally, given the option to have free access to 75% of the platform or, for only $100 monthly, having access to 100% of the platform, I know that everything is available for me to use without surprises of ‘up-sells’.”

All five steps to startup success have now been executed by Markethive. Now it’s your turn. Join Markethive and be ready to receive the first of many infinity airdrops of 500 MHV coins just for subscribing. And it gets better.

To find out more about Markethive, please visit.

Article Produced By

Deb Williams
I am a freelance writer for the Market Network and crypto/blockchain industry. I’m a strong advocate for technology, progress, freedom of speech, and I embrace “Change”.

My background is in state management, also sales, service and business development consulting in the corporate arena, which involves training and coaching clients from front line through to management in the financial services and real estate industries. For the last 18 years I have been an owner/operator, developing offline and online businesses.

Adelaide, Australia

David https://markethive.com/david-ogden

Markethive expansion seeks professional article writers

Markethive expansion seeks professional article writers

FROM SOCIAL NETWORK TO MARKET NETWORK

As Markethive prepares to become a leading social network for entrepreneurs, next to the vision implementation, developing the marketing and engineering departments is primary in focus.News provided by Markethive,SHELL, Wyo., Aug. 25, 2018 /PRNewswire/ — Douglas Yates CTO of Markethive quotes, "As Markethive's pre-launch crowdfunding has begun to bring funds into the company, the engineering department has been grown to 100s of engineers and significant headway has begun. This weekend Markethive releases it first dashboard upgrade as promised when we released our first Crowdfund draft in April 2018."

He also adds, "Now we are focused on growing our marketing department."

Thomas Prendergast CEO and acting Marketing Director had this to say, "As we prepare to fully launch Markethive's crowdfunding campaign, in preparation, we are building out our Marketing Department like we have built out our Engineering department. We are looking for creative talent. Right now we are putting out this call for creative writers. Writers for articles and press releases. To work in our virtual department under my supervision until we have a fully functioning Market Manager to take the helm."

Thomas also added, "So I have produced this Press Release as a cattle call for talent. If you feel you have what it takes, determination, inspiration, talent and a drive for excellence, then contact me for a full interview, our Marketing Group Telegram link will be found below. Markethive will become a huge success and story and I am offering a handful of gifted talent the chance of a lifetime to ride this train to glory with the rest of us."

Thomas also summarised his statement by adding, "After several weeks trying to contract writers through the various services out there like the text-broker's, free-lancer's, sites that operate from the failed concepts of closed and controlled systems. I discovered issues trying to work with their anonymous writers restrained by their regulations and rules preventing true open collaboration that Markethive needs and represents. Therefore, publishing this press release and our direction to deliver a truly open source commerce platform that allows complete disclosure and freedom of communication has become another facet to our story."

Markethive is a forward-looking enterprise utilizing blockchain to deliver a secure, private alternate solution to today's aged and controversial social networks. Markethive is the next generation Market Network built to become the leading advocate and solution for entrepreneurs worldwide. https://markethive.com

Apply to join the Marketing Team at Markethive via Telegram
https://t.me/markethive_marketing_group

Contact:
Thomas Prendergast
3072549329
ceo@markethive.net

Article Produced By

https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/markethive-expansion-seeks-professional-article-writers-300702399.html

David https://markethive.com/david-ogden

Is The Current Email Marketing Old Technology?

Is The Current Email Marketing Old Technology?

    

After 47 years since Email’s inception,

this technology is still going strong. It’s one of the most widely used and trusted channels for communication today, particularly with entrepreneurs, marketers and business owners. It’s helped many startups grow into multi-billion dollar companies. The unfortunate side of email is spam and although spam filters do a good job of detecting junk and send it straight to the spam folder, many organizations legitimate emails end up in the spam folder. If your subscribers don’t see your emails, they can’t open, click or convert.

Primarily, email campaigns and autoresponders use a capture page opt-in form to collect data, being a name, email and often times a phone number. This takes time and usually a number of steps to complete. You then in some cases need to go to your email to verify it. It is well documented that the more steps in the signup form process, the more likely prospects will be lost for lack of follow through. Email verification can reduce lead conversion up to 50%, delayed verification and delivery to spam folder reduce conversion up to 90%.

Alternatively, there is a capture technology which uses OAuth to capture the data of a potential lead or subscriber. This virtually guarantees the data is legitimate and the email is clean and not from a spam trap often acquired through website harvesting. Autoresponders and email advertising tools are probably the most essential parts of your business. You utilize it to follow-up with clients. To keep individuals returning to your site. To build loyalty. To create sales.

Email deliverability rates can really make or break an email marketing campaign. Here are 5 email and autoresponder tools with prices and deliverability percentages. Although rates can fluctuate over time, there does, however, seem to be some consistency between those that perform the best, and those that perform the worst.

Aweber

Aweber has a free 1 month trial period then priced as shown below. Aweber doesn’t really allow you to add leads from offline sources. Online lists are captured using online opt-in forms requiring name and email address.

Pricing:
Starting from $19/mth for 500 subscribers up to $149/mth for 25,000. Get a quote if over 25,000 subscribers are required.

Deliverability: Main Inbox 71.5% Spam 18.6% Tabs 8.2% Missing 1.7%

MailChimp

MailChimp has a “forever free” plan that allows you to create a list on MailChimp for free as long as your list is under 500 users. Although MailChimp offers a free trial, their autoresponder feature is only available in paid accounts and lists are built through single or double opt-in forms.

Pricing:
It has different pricing plans for Growing Businesses, Entrepreneurs and High volume senders. Grow Membership from $10/mth?—?Pro Membership starting at $199/mth.

Deliverability: Main Inbox 57.8% Spam 13.6% Tabs 24.7% Missing 3.9%

GetResponse

GetResponse is a web-based email marketing system for beginners right through to high-end businesses wanting scalable, high-performance solutions.

Pricing:
Starting from $15/mth for email marketing up to Enterprise at $1,199/mth.

Deliverability: Main Inbox 74.7% Spam 17.0% Tabs 3.4% Missing 5.0%

Constant Contact

Constant Contacts is an email marketing service, created to strengthen email marketing practices of small businesses, associations, nonprofits organizations, etc. It uses templates requiring email data from subscribers. Constant Contact provides monthly plans measured by the number of contacts.

Pricing:
Basic Email starts at $20/mth?—?Email Plus Starting at $45/mth. Both subscriptions are based on the number of contacts.

Deliverability: Main Inbox 86.1% Spam 2.2% Tabs 6.9% Missing 4.8%

Markethive

The Markethive email and autoresponder system are built for beginners through to Entrepreneurs and Business Owners at any level. It has utilized the OAuth technology to capture data via capture widgets through a choice of Social Media Sites situated on your capture pages, blogs and profile pages. Pricing: Free when you subscribe to Markethive. There are no limitations on the amount or size of your list or subscribers and no upcharges.

Deliverability: Main Inbox 99.97% Spam 0.0% Tabs 0.0% Missing 0.03%

The advent of the blockchain adds several new twists and may serve to be the disruption that has been overdue for marketers and advertisers that are looking to take their targeted campaigns to the next level. As we move forward, it will be interesting to see how this new technology could be used as a basis for a distributed email system. We are in for a ride over the next couple of years as technologies like blockchain slip into every facet of our lives. It’s not the strongest who survive or smartest, but the most adaptable.

Article Produced By
Deb Williams

I’m a freelance writer for the Market Network & crypto/blockchain. Stong advocate for technology progress & free speech https://markethive.com/creativemarketing

David https://markethive.com/david-ogden

Decentralized Identity Systems and the Future of Marketing

Decentralized Identity Systems and the Future of Marketing

What if SSI evolved into more freedom for Content creators and influencers that resulted in an Ad-free blockchain internet?

Instagram stories have become intercepted with Ad-spam,

it’s a pretty terrible user experience. As Facebook seeks to monetize Messenger, WhatsApp and Instagram?—?since Facebook’s flagship app is a dying app; the message is clear. Centralized Ads are polluting the internet. Whatever you believe self-sovereign-identity is, blockchain needs to decentralize identity systems on the internet to ensure consumer privacy, control and freedom.

The Emergence of the Next Web Based on Blockchain

A digital identity that’s accountable to human rights, is that so much to ask? Digital creators and influencers need to have full-rights to their creations just as consumers should have full rights to their data, which they can then barter or sell or trade via tokens with advertising platforms. Facebook and Google’s model is all wrong, it’s the past.

I’m following a lot of crypto projects related to UBI and the decentralized identity systems that reward people better. One of the terms I like the most is called “self-sovereign marketing”, where several startups are looking into creating more fairness in content and referral traffic for influencers in a more transparent way.

Everytime I post on LinkedIn, in the back of my mind I’m wondering why I don’t get paid. On Medium, I can put my articles behind a paywall and make a living wage. Why would I ever post again on Instagram or Twitter without some measurable return on investment? I need social media to work for me. If I have 195,000 followers on LinkedIn, that has to mean something.

Human Rights on the Internet

What people do should matter, and their digital rights not just to privacy, but to empowerment is key for how we build the internet and restart it with blockchain. SSI should not just serve Governments in how they track citizens on centralized blockchains. There must be an aspect of decentralization where the peer-to-peer aspect empowers people globally. Imagine if LinkedIn actually worked that way, and wasn’t just a spin-off of Microsoft? Imagine if Facebook stood for something more than a “family of apps” that is just an advertising machine?

SSI should complement existing advertising and government digital identity systems, just as Bitcoin and over 2,000 digital assets already complements how fiat transactions, investment, trading and assets work. Decentralization is about bringing the internet a new era of freedom, stability and alternatives to what’s not working. Let’s be honest, Google and Facebook should probably be broken up. (We don’t need the inventor of the Internet to tell us that). They are too centralized and have become corrupt.

In a future world of decentralized identity,

consumers will have more rights and advertising and
brands will open up a new era of ethical influencer marketing.

The Sociology of Decentralization

As mistrust of centralized tech companies grows, in proportion the movement towards decentralization syncs with our collective values.

At the same time now you have people like JP Morgan saying they are behind Ethereum. We can only assume the rise of digital assets and a token based economy will herald new options and alternatives for consumers on the next phase of the internet. We can’t stay on Facebook family apps and think it’s okay anymore. Consumers will demand better experiences, just like I as an indie journalist need incentives that motivate me and don’t just exploit me for my creativity.

Decentralization is the Key in How we Transition Past Advertising to the Next WebSelf-sovereign identity platforms need to scale with the future of how the internet will work. Their dApps need to empower consumers where new ecosystems of value can emerge that create more level playing fields.Capitalism without trust and blockchain might have trouble sustaining its value based on the old tricks (like vanity metrics for instance).As Instagram itself becomes saturated with stories that no longer have relevance to our fleeting attention, a new generation of apps will take its place.Many of those will have self-sovereign marketing built into them. This is already happening with many micro-video apps, you just might not be aware of it yet.

Self Sovereign Marketing will scale a new model of advertising

and change the internet forever.SSM will Hardcore Opportunity and Authenticity in the next Era of Social Marketing Advertising just like physical retail, needs to adapt to the values of the new consumer. Decentralization identity systems will augment how consumers participate in the future of advertising. Any blockchain startup that’s pioneering better incentives for these apps is ultimately contributing to the future of self-sovereign identity and self-sovereign marketing, SSI and SSM respectively. One day I’ll do a survey covering the main ones.

In a world of cryptoeconomic freedom, social platforms won’t own our data, we will. We’ll be driven by economic incentives to collaborate and create, in an open-source and permissionless manner where we’ll have unparalleled self-governance to explore our interests and abilities online compared to the enslavement of the internet today. Digital assets are pointing to a new model of how the internet of the future will work.

Article Produced By
Michael K. Spencer

Medium member since Apr 2018

Blockchain Mark Consultant, tech Futurist, prolific writer. WeChat: mikekevinspencer

https://medium.com/futuresin/decentralized-identity-systems-and-the-future-of-marketing-c6e1fde04552

 

 

David https://markethive.com/david-ogden

Why Employers Can’t Pay You in Cryptocurrency

Why Employers Can't Pay You in Cryptocurrency

With the help from recent news headlines

chronicling the substantial increase of some cryptocurrencies, more members of the public are discovering what people who’ve dealt with digital currencies like Bitcoin already knew. Although volatility is constant, it is possible to become wealthy with Bitcoin and similar non-physical forms of money. So you might be wondering, why isn’t it possible for your workplace to pay your wages in cryptocurrency? Some employers actually do – we’ll cover those later. But first, let’s discuss four barriers that make widespread adoption of that payment method difficult.

Some laws specify cash or check payments only

One of the main federal regulations that cover employee wages in the US is the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). It stipulates that employers must meet at least some of their minimum-wage requirements by paying workers with cash or checks – as of now, Bitcoin payments don’t apply and the same is true for overtime compensation.

However, outside those federal requirements for minimum wage and overtime, employers and workers can agree on other forms of payment if desired. Employers could theoretically pay employees partially with cash or checks, then give them supplementary amounts made up of cryptocurrencies. The system isn’t so straightforward in certain states, though. For example, Delaware and Texas are two of several states where wages can only be comprised of US currency.

Cryptocurrencies may be deemed securities

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued a statement about cryptocurrencies to remind people that investments associated with them can quickly cross into other geographical boundaries without owners’ knowledge, which increases the possible risk. Also, the SEC may ultimately decide some cryptocurrencies are designated as securities. In that case, employers would have to comply with additional laws for securities in addition to the wage-related rules mentioned above.

 Employers could feel wary

The rapid fluctuations in value associated with Bitcoins and other cryptocurrencies may make employers balk at the idea of paying their workers through these non-traditional means. Similarly, they might feel that not enough merchants accept cryptocurrencies as payment yet,  even as the number grows.

However, a BitPay debit card allows people to convert amounts from their cryptocurrency wallets into dollars in minutes. People can then use the more widely accepted currency anywhere that accepts Visa. This capability takes care of the potential issue of someone having cryptocurrency but not being able to spend it. The card also offers a safeguard if cryptocurrency holders learn about market conditions that signal a likely, sudden drop in value. In such a scenario, people could quickly make conversions using the card to avoid holding onto large amounts of cryptocurrency that could lose substantial worth in a few days or less.

The tax implications vary by country

If an employer regularly hires remote workers who are legal residents in one country and pay taxes in other, the different ways countries view cryptocurrencies for tax purposes could also be a barrier to adoption. In Canada, for instance, the country views cryptocurrency earnings as barter transactions. Companies based in the US have to convert cryptocurrency values to dollar amounts for the IRS on the dates payments occur. Similarly, employees must report all earnings in dollars, even when earned as Bitcoins or another currency.

Depending on the respective countries, reporting cryptocurrency earnings for tax purposes could be a straightforward process. However, companies with large percentages of international workers may decide that figuring out the logistics requires too much time-consuming research. If that happens, workers who strongly desire cryptocurrency payments could offer to find out the details and report back to their employers.

Some companies do pay employees with cryptocurrency

Despite the challenges we’ve presented, pioneer companies do exist that pay their employees in cryptocurrencies. Notably, none of the businesses are within the US, so some of the issues you learned about above may not apply to them. Geographical differences aside, if a growing number of companies around the world conclude that cryptocurrency payments for employees make sense, it could encourage other entities to follow suit.

Starting in February, GMO Internet, a Japanese company, will give portions of employee salaries in Bitcoin.  Employees will be able to receive the equivalent of $890 per month in Bitcoins. A representative of the company said the move to offer Bitcoins as salary was intended to make the company at large more literate about how cryptocurrencies work. Another business to consider is Buffer, a company associated with social-media tools that save time and grow traffic. It pays one of its developers, who reside in South Africa, a portion of his salary in Bitcoins. In this case, the employee is a big believer in the potential of Bitcoins. As such, he wanted to receive five percent of his wages in the currency.

The man approached a payment associate that works with Buffer and began a dialogue, later completing research to find a company that specializes in payroll services related to cryptocurrencies. He’s a good example of an employee who was proactive and got positive results even though the company was not offering widespread cryptocurrency payments. If a business is already in the cryptocurrency market, they might even ask employees during the hiring process whether they’ll accept non-physical payments. That situation happened at Bitedge, a sports betting establishment based in Australia. The company’s web developers receive 100 percent of their income in Bitcoins.

The future is bright

If you’re eager to explore the possibility of getting paid in cryptocurrency, it’s crucial to be aware of the volatility associated with cryptocurrency values, as well as the possibility that employers may not be up to speed about digital forms of payment. They might require you to research the specifics and provide guidance. As cryptocurrencies become more prominent, finding ways to overcome these and other challenges get easier. You can strengthen your stance as an early, in-the-know adopter and get involved in what could eventually revolutionize the way employers give compensation.

Chuck Reynolds


Marketing Dept
Contributor

Please click either Link to learn more about Bitcoin.
Interested or have Questions, Call Me, 559-474-4614

David https://markethive.com/david-ogden

General Manager of BIS Wants To Prevent Crypto From Joining ‘Main Financial System’/More

General Manager of BIS Wants To Prevent Crypto From Joining ‘Main Financial System’

Augustín Carstens, the general manager of the Bank for International Settlements

(BIS), called Bitcoin a “combination of a bubble, a Ponzi scheme and an environmental disaster”  and asked central banks to more closely regulate cryptocurrencies during a speech at Goethe University on Feb. 6. BIS is known as the “bank for central banks,” for it only provides banking services to central banks and other international organizations. In August 2017, when Carstens was the head of the central Bank of Mexico, he argued that Bitcoin is not a currency but a commodity and warned against its potential use for cybercrime.

Carsten’s recent comments Tuesday morning come after both the traditional and crypto markets have been experiencing a large drop since Monday, Feb. 5. Also this week, several large banks, including Lloyds Banking Group and J.P. Morgan Chase, banned credit card purchases of cryptocurrencies. In Carsten’s opinion, the global interest in cryptocurrencies is just a “speculative mania” and thus strict regulation by

central banks is needed:

“If authorities do not act pre-emptively, cryptocurrencies could become more interconnected with the main financial system and become a threat to financial stability.”

Carsten considers it “alarming” that some banks are releasing Bitcoin ATMs, for he considers Bitcoin’s potential use for illegal transactions too high to allow the currency to be associated with mainstream

financial institutions:

“If the only ‘business case’ is use for illicit or illegal transactions, central banks cannot allow such tokens to rely on much of the same institutional infrastructure that serves the overall financial system and freeload on the trust that it provides.”

The Foundation for the Defense of Democracies and Elliptic, a Bitcoin forensics company, released a report in late January that showed that less than one percent of all Bitcoin transactions represented money laundering.

Chuck Reynolds

Marketing Dept
Contributor

Please click either Link to learn more about Bitcoin.
Interested or have Questions, Call Me, 559-474-4614

UAE Issues Warning On ICOs, Says Investors Should Assume Full Risk

A new document issued by the UAE Securities and Commodities

Authority (SCA) on Sunday, Feb. 4 warns investors about the risks of Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs). In the document, the SCA emphasizes that investors involved in ICO fundraising campaigns have to assume all associated risks, given that digital token-based fundraising activities are not regulated by the UAE, and no legal protection can be provided in cases of fraud.

The major risks, as pointed out by the SCA, include high volatility of ICO tokens on secondary markets, misleading or unaudited details in ICO offerings, as well as common unawareness of potential costs and gains shared by most retail investors. Moreover, the SCA mentioned the risks of investing in foreign ICOs, commenting that it may be difficult to verify the proper regulatory compliance of such fundraisers and track the invested money as it leaves the UAE.

This is the second time that the country’s government warns its citizens about the risks of ICOs as back in Oct. 2017, Abu Dhabi's Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) issued its guidelines on both ICOs and cryptocurrencies.

Chuck Reynolds

Marketing Dept
Contributor

Please click either Link to learn more about Bitcoin.
Interested or have Questions, Call Me, 559-474-4614

David https://markethive.com/david-ogden

Crypto Has What it Takes to Break the Flawed Financial System

Crypto Has What it Takes to Break the Flawed Financial System

Bitcoin, when it first hit the presses in its own white paper,

was heralded as this peer-to-peer cashless system that could revolutionize the financial world and break the shackles of banking hegemony. However, as the cryptocurrency market has evolved, it has attracted a new crop of investors and speculators who have strayed somewhat from its original purpose, rather happy to cash in on the unprecedented gains which attracted them in the first place. Really, those entering the crypto economy should be doing so for the right reason, reveling in the potential it holds to be a disruptive technology, rather than a quick get rich scheme.

The flawed financial system

A look at the generations shows how today’s generation is sitting under the yoke of a financial service sector that was set up by the baby boomers, who still run the central banks. The end of the Second World War in 1945 sparked a new revolution of banking, but that system still remains nearly totally intact.

This system of banking and finance is dated and obsolete, and not even functioning properly, with a number of major crashes sending the globe into dire straits on a few occasions; the 1987 crash, the 2000 dotcom bubble burst and 2008 global financial crisis all down to a broken system. There is huge amounts of skepticism that has been born from being put under the financial quash that was built by generations before. Millenials are now starting to fight back and ask why things are the way they are, and what can they do to change it.

Blockchain revolution

The technology of the Blockchain is revolutionary, not only in name but in nature too. Those who understand the technology behind Bitcoin know what cryptocurrencies can become. But, those who only understand that Bitcoin has a chance of doubling its value every three months, are pushing it into bubble territory. The evidence is there though, the threat that Blockchain and cryptocurrencies pose can be seen in the way in which most central banks and regulators are reacting to it, knowing their monopoly is under threat.

But as it stands, even with the exponential expanding of the crypto community, which is also an intellectual expansion, there needs to be a balancing out of the financial speculators, and the technological innovators. When Bitcoin was chugging towards making fiat currency obsolete, it was doing so with a much lower number of users who were more focused on the technology. Now, as the network has swelled, the direction of Bitcoin, as the lead example, has changed, and the community is a different demographic.

Useless digital gold?

Bitcoin is in a precarious position. It is the most popular and well known, and thus the most likely to be disruptive in any sense of the word, but it has gone down a pretty useless path in terms of revolution. The fact that Bitcoin is an asset, a store of value – digital gold – because of its scaling issue and other reasons, makes it much less of a revolutionary, more of a bloated get rich quick scheme. This is not the fault of the coin, the technology or those driving its development, and it is the fault of those who use it for the wrong reasons.

Chuck Reynolds

Marketing Dept
Contributor

Please click either Link to learn more about Bitcoin.
Interested or have Questions, Call Me, 559-474-4614

David https://markethive.com/david-ogden

Samsung’s now making chips designed for cryptocurrency mining

Samsung’s now making chips designed for cryptocurrency mining

An ethereum mining rig in South Korea.

  Samsung’s semiconductor business is booming, with the company recently overtaking Intel as the world’s biggest chipmaker. But the South Korean firm is not resting on its laurels, and is currently looking to expand into the buzziest contemporary market for processors: cryptocurrency mining.As reported by TechCrunch, Samsung has confirmed it’s in the process of making hardware specially designed for mining cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum. A spokesperson for the firm told TechCrunch: “Samsung’s foundry business is currently engaged in the manufacturing of cryptocurrency mining chips. However we are unable to disclose further details regarding our customers.”

These chips are known as ASICs, or application-specific integrated circuits. ASICs are processors that have been specially designed for a single computational task, as opposed to the multi-purpose processors we use in computers and phones. As the valuation of cryptocurrencies has shot up, so has the demand for these sorts of chips. In the case of bitcoin, the currency is created by solving mathematical problems, with these calculations also maintaining the integrity of bitcoin transactions. As more bitcoins are mined, these math problems become increasingly difficult. This has led to miners moving on from using normal integrated graphics cards, to GPUs designed for gaming, and now to specially built ASICs.

It’s not clear exactly what sort of products Samsung will be making, but according to reports from Korean media, it’ll be working with Taiwanese firm TSMC. The company currently supplies chips for a number of firms set up solely to mine cryptocurrencies, including the China-based Bitmain. Meeting the demand for these chips has added around $350 million to $400 million to its quarterly revenue, says TSMC. That’s nothing to be sniffed at, but it’s a small sum compared to the $69 billion revenue generated annually by Samsung’s chip business. Mining cryptocurrencies is buzzy, but that doesn’t mean it’ll be extremely profitable for those selling the silicon shovels.

Samsung made a special chip for mining cryptocurrency

Maybe don't expect GPU prices to drop anytime soon, though.
 

Samsung has a chip designed specifically for mining cryptocurrency.

Rather than repurpose a GPU to do the dirty work, Samsung made an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), which is a specialized processor that is more efficient at mining than, say, an NVIDIA 1080 card. The company has entered into a distribution agreement with an as-of-now anonymous Chinese partner for distribution. As TechCrunch notes, this is significant for at least one reason: This gives the Korean company a way into the Chinese ASIC market, where local firms dominate. It's too early to tell what sort of impact (if any) this could have on Samsung's bottom line, or how it could affect cryptocurrency and China's local players.

Chuck Reynolds

Marketing Dept
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UK: Cryptocurrency Trader Robbed ‘At Gunpoint’, Amount Stolen Unknown

UK:
Cryptocurrency Trader Robbed ‘At Gunpoint’, Amount Stolen Unknown

Four masked robbers have broken into the house

of a cryptocurrency trader in Moulsford, Oxfordshire and forced him to transfer all of his bitcoins to them “at gunpoint”, The Telegraph reports Sunday, Jan. 28. According to The Telegraph, this is the first case of cryptocurrency robbery in the UK. The criminals entered the house of a crypto trader and forced him to transfer his entire Bitcoin stash. The exact amount of bitcoins stolen has not yet been specified. Fortunately, the incident did not cause any serious injuries to anyone. The police immediately launched an investigation into the case, however, no arrests were made as of press time.

The police have also asked for help from local citizens:

"Officers are particularly interested in speaking to anyone travelling through [Moulsford] on the A329 Reading Road between 7.30am and 10.30am on Monday who has Dashcam footage or anyone with mobile phone footage.”

Due to their relatively anonymous nature, cryptocurrencies are becoming an increasingly popular target for robberies. Back in December 2017, Cointelegraph covered another case: the managing director of the cryptocurrency exchange EXMO Pavel Lerner was kidnapped in Kiev by an group of unidentified people. Fortunately, Lerner got out safely just two days later, albeit having to pay a ransom of $1 mln in bitcoins. Another robbery has taken place in neighboring Russia in mid-January, in which a locally famous cryptocurrency blogger was deprived of $425,000 worth of bitcoins. The latest news shows that cases of Bitcoin robbery aren’t limited to Russia and surrounding countries, as even the citizens of UK can be targeted by the criminals.

Chuck Reynolds


Marketing Dept
Contributor

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