Tag: networkMarketing

Generation Z, Personal Data and Digital Trust: Unlike Any Before

Generation Z, Personal Data and Digital Trust: Unlike Any Before

  

Solve this riddle:
I am always connected?—?but avoid social situations.
I demonstrate a firm attention to detail?—?but have the attention span of a goldfish.
I freely give out personal information?—?but demand it be protected.
I distrust corporations?—?but communicate to them as if they were family.

Who am I?

If you guessed a Millennial, you’re on the right track. But these characteristics are more appropriately attributed to members of Generation Z?—?the first generation of digital natives, born beginning in the mid-90s through the 2000s, set to bloom into the consumer market. And, given that they are to make up a whopping 40 per cent of all consumers by 2020, [1] with $44B in buying power,[2] this is one group your organization needs to prepare for?—?especially when it comes to data protection.

How does Generation Z share digital information?

As digital natives, Gen Z’s do not know life without being connected to the digital world. And, since most of their life is already online, some even making their first digital selfie appearance via an uploaded ultrasound from the womb, they are much more comfortable with having even their most intimate details available at the click of a mouse. They are ‘always on,’ with some members of Generation Z checking their social media a hundred times a day or more, and this is reflected in how they share digital information.

According to Echoworx data, the level of comfort which Generation Z share personal information online is at-par with or even exceeding those same metrics for Millennials. For example, 56 per cent of Generation Z are not opposed to publishing their credit score on social media. This same metric is considerably lower for Millennials, with 44 per cent being comfortable, and continues to decline through older generations.

Are Generation Z gullible? Or just faster?

The average attention span of a member of Generation Z is 8 seconds, according to data from the Digital Marketing Institute. And, as digital natives, they crave instant gratification for the price of personal data?—?without much consideration for long-term consequences or questioning what their details are being used for. But, on account of their low attention spans, Gen Z’s are experts at filtering and retaining information presented to them.

So, are they gullible? No. But this doesn’t necessarily mean they are responsible. And their lightning quick digital speed can lead to sloppy practices when it comes to protecting their data. For example, according to Echoworx data, nearly half of Gen Z’s change their digital passwords regularly. Compare this same figure to Millennials, where nearly three quarters of them regularly update their online login credentials.

Are Generation Z reckless with their personal digital data?

In order to understand the point of view of a Gen Z, you need to look at things from their perspective. For example, would you trust your parents with your SIN? Would you ask your sister for advice on the best way to peel an apple? If you answered yes, simply substitute your family member with an online influencer or one of your favourite brands. If you are always on, you live online. And you trust people you care about to point you in the right direction. This is why Gen Z’s are so comfortable providing details for or taking advice from brands or influencers.

When you look at it from this perspective, readily divulging personal information online is not as crazy as it sounds to older generations. And older generations are not perfect either. According to a recent Gallup Poll, nearly a quarter of Americans were victims of cybercrime in 2018. This is despite the claim of 71 per cent of poll respondents who worry about cyber crime and the two thirds of Americans, according to data from the American Bankers Association (ABA), who are taking measures to protect sensitive data.

Digital trust is a fragile game to play

Unlike its offline equivalents, digital trust carries its own hubris of sorts in that if it is easy to get, it’s even easier to lose and nearly impossible to get back. In fact, according to Echoworx data, over three quarters of Generation Z consider leaving brands after a data breach. So how do you play the game?

Easy. You protect them.

According to Deloitte, consumer expectations online are at an all-time high and your customers demand control over their personal data. And a full 69 per cent of customers do not believe organizations are doing everything they can to protect their data. But, according to data from the ABA, nearly half of Americans continue to trust traditional industries, like banks and healthcare.

While some might view this newfound fascination with personal data collection to be detrimental to conducting business?—?your organization should view it as a competitive differentiator. If your brand goes all-out in a quest to protect customer data, employing best proactive practices, such as a personalized and cusotmer focused encryption experience for sensitive documents in transit, your customers will take notice.

Article Produced By
Echoworx

100% encryption focused. Believe encryption doesn’t have to be cryptic. Protecting millions of digital assets, globally.

https://medium.com/@Echoworx/generation-z-personal-data-and-digital-trust-unlike-any-before-e4378677562b

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

The Five Steps To Startup Success – Markethive

The Five Steps To Startup Success – Markethive

The First Social/Market Network Built On Blockchain Technology
 
5 steps to Startup Success
5 steps to Startup Success
 
Spread the Word

Listed Under

Tag:
• Marketnetwork

Industry:
• Marketing

Location:
• Shell – Wyoming – US

Subject:
• Projects

SHELL, Wyo. – Jan. 2, 2019 – PRLog — 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 being 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 and Co-founder of Markethive, Thomas Prendergast says:

"Markethive has built and adopted a proven strategy over the last 20 years. The foundation has been laid which makes us in the top 1%. We already have the 3 pillars of Viability being Community, Technology, and Liquidity which need to be equal portions of  to have the viability in the digital money sphere."

The early vertical market networks are
1. A Marketplace – Transactions among multiple buyers and sellers
2. A Network – Identity and Communications
3. Work Flow – SAAS, Software as a service

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 trillion dollar companies over the next ten years. They were talking about Markethive. We are a Marketplace, 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"Markethive an outstanding platform with huge upend potential in both the markets and revenue generation is solid and are already generating income revenue as well as funding revenue.

 

CTO and Co-founder of Markethive Douglas Yates quoted:
"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."

One of the many veteran Associates, Tim Moseley says:
"Markethive represents the future to me. It offers me the most significant opportunity of my lifetime. One of which I am totally confident, that because of the vision and hard work relentlessly performed by the CEO Thomas Prendergast and his team, will launch Markethive forward into the future to become the premier Inbound Marketing Networks 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 gives me comfort 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 our Blog https://markethive.com

Contact

Thomas Prendergast  CEO
219 Main St, Shell WY  82441
Office: (307) 254-9329
ceo@markethive.net
Markethive: https://markethive.com
 

Contact
Deborah Williams Market Manager
***@markethive.net

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

PR management firm Cision is acquiring Falcon.io to expand into social media marketing

PR management firm Cision is acquiring Falcon.io to expand into social media marketing

  

Social media has become a primary conduit for getting the word out,

in some cases proving to be an even stronger force for publicity than more traditional media outlets and paid advertising, and so today, a company that has grown its business around public relations services has acquired a social media management company to make sure it has a foothold in the medium. Cision, which provides press release distribution, media monitoring and other PR services to businesses and the media industry, has acquired Falcon.io, a startup founded in Denmark that lets companies post, manage and analyse their presence on social media platforms.

Terms of the deal are not being disclosed, the companies tell me, but the whole of the Falcon team, including CEO/founder Ulrik Bo Larsen, are joining the company, where they will continue to operate its existing product set as well as integrate it into Cision’s wider business. The last valuation noted in April 2017 at the Danish Companies House was about $52 million (€45 million), but they have been growing very rapidly, and one source tells us that the price paid was around $200-$225 million, while Danish publication Borsen says it’s 800 million Danish kroner, or around $122 million. I’m still trying to get more detail.

Falcon had raised around $25 million according to PitchBook, and it has never disclosed its valuation. Cision — well-known to many journalists — is publicly traded and currently has a market cap of just under $1.6 billion. For some context, two other prominent social media management firms that compete with Falcon, Sprout Social and Hootsuite, are respectively valued at $800 million and anywhere between $750 million and $1 billion (depending on who you ask).

The latter two are bigger firms — Falcon has around 1,500 businesses as customers that use it to manage their social profiles and read social sentiment across platforms like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn, while Sprout says it has around 25,000 and Hootsuite counts millions of individual users — and both have raised significantly more capital, but their valuations underscore the demand that we’re seeing for platforms and user-friendly tools to target the world’s social media users — estimated to number at upwards of 2.5 billion people globally.

Kevin Akeroyd, who came on as Cision’s CEO after long stints at both Oracle and Salesforce, among other places, describes Falcon as a “top five” social media marketing and analytics firm, and in an interview he said that the new acquisition will form a key part of the “communications cloud” that Cision has been building. As with Salesforce, Oracle and Adobe (which also use similar cloud-themed terminology to describe their product suites), Cision’s strategy is to build a one-stop shop for customers to manage all their communications needs from one platform. Falcon itself may be smaller than its competitors, but the idea is that it will be cross-sold to Cision’s customers, which currently number 75,000 businesses.

“We’re seeing too many of our customers using one application for content, another for something else, and so on. There are too many apps,” Akeroyd said. “We have always believed in earned media” — that is, media mentions that are not in the form of paid advertising — “and the role of influencers alongside paid and owned marketing. We believe we could provide the first solution for businesses across earned, communications services and public relations, helping to build a better data stack to measure and attribute what you are doing in comms.”

As social networking companies like Facebook and Twitter build more of their own tools in-house to serve the social media needs of organizations that want to better manage their profiles and interactions on these platforms, this has led to some consolidation and shifts among social media management companies. Some are merging or getting acquired, and some are shopping themselves around.

And in that wider trend, it’s not too surprising to see public relations firms get in on the action. Social media has completely changed the landscape for how information is disseminated today, sometimes complementing what traditional media organizations do — there are many examples of how newspapers and other news outlets leverage, for example, Facebook to grow and communicate with their audiences — and often replacing traditional media altogether. (Pew last month said that social media outpaced newspapers for the first time as a news source in the U.S., although TV and radio are still bigger than social… for now.)

Given that public relations management has long been the connecting link between organisations and media outlets, they have had to take a bigger step into social media in order to provide to their clients a more complete picture of the media landscape. Cision is not the first to have done this: Last year, Meltwater, another media monitoring firm, acquired DataSift to add social signals and traffic to its platform mix. “This consolidation has to come because there is just too much value for the user,” Akeroyd said. “CMOs and CCOs do not want their own islands, they want something bigger.”

Article Produced By
Ingrid Lunden

Writer

Ingrid is a writer and editor for TechCrunch, joining February 2012, based out of London. Before TechCrunch, Ingrid worked at paidContent.org, where she was a staff writer, and has in the past also written freelance regularly for other publications such as the Financial Times. Ingrid covers mobile, digital media, advertising and the spaces where these intersect. When it comes to work, she feels most comfortable speaking in English but can also speak Russian, Spanish and French (in descending order of competence).

https://techcrunch.com/2019/01/03/pr-management-firm-cision-is-acquiring-falcon-io-to-expand-into-social-media-marketing/

 

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

MARKETHIVE – One Company That Is Bucking The Trends

MARKETHIVE – One Company
That Is Bucking The Trends

   

Centralized Social Media platforms,

like Facebook, Google, LinkedIn to name a few, have been paramount and prevalent in our lives for nearly 2 decades so many people are unaware of the technology that is available to us now. The upcoming platforms classed as Market Networks are a sovereign way to develop online communities giving the power back to the people. With the onset of Blockchain along with Cryptocurrency, this absolutely levels the playing field. What this means is complete privacy, autonomy, and freedom of speech as well as the ability to earn an income. There are a handful of new Blogging Community Platforms that have already risen using crypto by way of their own tokens as an incentive to use the platforms.

The Social Media platforms we have today are ultimately accountable to their shareholders and staff and as an enormous amount of users utilize these platforms predominantly for free, forthcoming profit will not come from user engagement or user growth. It comes by other means which has been and is detrimental to the community at large. Centralization has also created tension within the communities due to algorithmic partisanship, rules that keep changing, banning and deleting of accounts wiping out all the effort and results entrepreneurs have implemented to establish an online presence.

A NEW ERA IS HERE

There are now new systems and platforms being built that have much better outcomes for humankind in every aspect including economic benefits and privacy. Now everyone can enjoy all the benefits of a social media environment along with all the marketing and blogging tools and portals. Below are the vertical platforms we have now, all centralized. One organization, in particular, has incorporated all the different types of social media and eCommerce, all on one interface:

• Social networking (Facebook, Google+ Webtalk).
• Microblogging (Twitter, Tumblr).
• Photo sharing (Instagram, Snapchat, Pinterest).
• Video sharing (YouTube, Facebook Live, Periscope, Vimeo).
• Networking Business & Employment (LinkedIn)
• eCommerce (Freelancers, Coin Exchange)
• Content & Blogging (Medium, Quora, Steemit )

    upload(148).png

Markethive is recognized as the next phase

that has evolved from Social Networks. Having commenced over 20 years ago as an Inbound Marketing platform via Veretekk, it now has the technology that is capable to combine the scalable network effects of Facebook or LinkedIn with the lucrative revenue models of Saas and marketplace hubs like eBay and Amazon. It has vertical platforms like freelancers and coin exchange, also a collaboration niche for commercial artists, writers, voice & video services. It is 20 years of proven technology, merging with the blockchain. It's built on a higher generation blockchain to make it possible to handle large social groups.

Thomas Prendergast, Markethive's CEO stated:

"Markethive was built on the foundation of 20 years of proprietary technology and has been running live with 1000s of subscribers in beta for nearly 4 years. Markethive's mission is to create a universal income for entrepreneurs, using our multiple platforms built for the entrepreneurial markets. Markethive has a working product, starting out 20 years ago as Veretekk, then segwayed into what is now Markethive which is launching on the blockchain.”

To find out more I spoke to some of the members who have been in long-standing:

David Ogden, Markethive Entrepreneur said:

"Markethive is no flash in the pan marketing system, it was born out of Veretekk, developed by Tom Prendergast, who is a master in marketing. I joined Veretekk around 2000, The system produced endless quality leads and an email system to communicate with them. The system was free and could be used to build any business. The rise of the Blockchain offers more security with a distributed network.”

Dennis Roeder shared:

“I first became acquainted with Thomas Prendergast back in 1988. There was always open communication and direction on what was in the development stages and what to expect. Mr. Prendergast had a divine vision to produce a system that would be entirely free for members to use the marketing tools. Veretekk slowly evolved into a company named Markethive which was designed to be a 'free to members' platform. Then along came the Blockchain and Bitcoin, and that gave a reason for Markethive to be the 'go to' Market Network for entrepreneurs. Members will have free access to the tools plus as they use the system they can be paid using a new term called Universal Income.”

WHAT IS UNDERPINNING MARKETHIVE TO ENSURE ITS VIABILITY?

Markethive's innovation is producing Mining Hives that create massive surplus electricity built on total 100% green energy. Along with Hemp/Medicinal Cannabis cultivation, it's sure to be a winner in the blockchain space and crypto industry. With its own coin exchange, ease of liquidity and underpinned by a plethora of Inbound Marketing products for its End Users, it's a complete Ecosystem for Entrepreneurs, Bloggers, and Commercial Artists. This is a platform to keep an eye on as it comes up through the ranks. This is going to disrupt Social Media and all forms of marketing as we know it.

Mr. Prendergast said:

“We produce the coin to give as an incentive to sign up in Markethive as PayPal did. We are not using the coin to raise money. It's not speculative but has the ability and potential to become very valuable due to many products and services that are in high demand. So pump and dumps won't affect the company or its revenue. It’s not dependent upon speculation of their coin. We are dependent upon delivering services and products people want whether the coin is up or down, which in turn will increase the value of the coin despite the markets.”

The era representing the rise of the entrepreneur has arrived, while other organizations, inbound marketing providers, blockchain implementers, and cryptocurrencies are still frozen in time. With Blockchain, cryptocurrency, inbound marketing, and decentralized database technologies, Markethive has constructed a social market network that provides a “Universal Income”. Markethive’s culture is one of innovation and the ECO-SYSTEM is part of the New Revolution. It is 27 years of proven technology, merging with the blockchain. This will result in a flotilla of money machines driving the basic platforms while creating an eco-center for entrepreneurs, where they can create and maintain a livable income while turning their ideas and concepts into reality.

Markethive Entrepreneur, Richard Mathiason said:

“I have been with Thomas Prendergast since Veretekk. I enjoyed being a Trainer at that time and using Veretekk to gather Leads. Thomas has always been ahead of the times in regards to marketing. The free marketing tools that he has developed over time have been amazing.”

Richard went on to say:

“Technology has finally caught up with Thomas's Grand Vision. We are now able to correct some problems that all social networks have. We are moving the Network to a Blockchain to showcase our Privacy Policy, decentralize the platform to make it harder to hack, adding 4 levels of Security and creating a Wallet that will only allow You to have control of your network. The best part is that Thomas is a good friend and he will drop everything to help someone out. Thank You for being my friend and for Markethive, the best social/market out there.”

CONCLUSION

It’s just a matter of time until nearly all independent professionals and their clients will conduct business through the development of tight-knit collaborative Market Networks within specific industries.Starting NOW, there will be many more forward-thinking entrepreneurs stepping forward, with their sights set upon creating increasingly innovative, highly synchronized business models and solutions to doing business in the 21st century and beyond. Those who will be most successful will not only keep up with the speed at which technology continues to change, but they will align themselves ahead of the curve at all times. Market Networks will have a massive positive impact on how millions of people work and live, and how hundreds of millions of people buy and sell better services.

    upload(147).png

Market Networks will have a massive positive impact

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, change and freedom of speech.

 

 

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

Cryptocurrency Developments to Look Forward to in 2019

 
Cryptocurrency Developments to Look Forward to in 2019

2018 has been an eventful year in the crypto industry.

The market experienced a severe price correction to the extent that some are beginning to doubt the future blockchain promises. Still, in spite of all the losses and FUD, the fundamentals continue to grow, and 2019 is promising to be an exciting year in terms of project development as well as cryptocurrencies edging toward the mainstream.

Institutional bodies are getting more interested in cryptocurrencies.

One example of this is the U.S. state of Ohio accepting tax payments in Bitcoin. Merchants accepting cryptocurrencies as payments have also grown in number, with several people testifying on social media how they paid for goods and services with cryptocurrencies such as BTC, ETH, and BNB. Notable merchants that accept Bitcoin include Overstock, eGifter, Expedia, Shopify, and others. Another metric that expresses the growth of the industry is the amount of talent that has been attracted to blockchain. Research carried out by Glassdoor reveals a 300% rise in blockchain-related job openings in 2018 (as opposed to 2017).

This metric defies the downtrend in Bitcoin price, as can be seen in the chart below:

      

Despite the heavy price downtrend of 2018,

many would still agree with investor Anthony Pompliano that Bitcoin is the best-performing asset of the decade. This matters for long-term crypto investors as they look beyond the immediate state of the industry to the impact it will have on the future world economy. As 2018 draws to a close, it’s time to look forward to what 2019 has in store, in terms of growth and development for the industry.

The Launch of Financial Products on the Stock Market in 2019

2018 was filled with rumors of institutional investors buying into cryptocurrencies, especially Bitcoin. This has not brought about the uptrend in valuation that many expected to accompany it. Several times, the Bitcoin ETF proposal was rejected in 2018. But the sentiment is beginning to change, as a SEC commissioner has stated a Bitcoin ETF is “definitely possible.”

In 2019, some fresh momentum in crypto gaining acceptance in the traditional finance world is expected. Nasdaq is reportedly working with the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) to launch Bitcoin futures in Q1 2019, and the report has just recently been confirmed. Also, Bakkt Bitcoin Futures is scheduled to launch in January 2019, after being pushed back from their original launch date of December 12, 2018.

Developments to Expect From Crypto Projects in 2019

 

Bitcoin

The Bitcoin blockchain continues to develop despite the bear market, the most notable aspect of development being the Lightning Network. Bitcoin currently processes about 7 transactions per second. This low transaction speed is the major technical argument against Bitcoin. The Lightning Network is a solution created in late 2017 to help Bitcoin scale and achieve a high transaction speed. The Lightning Network has witnessed steady progress over the course of 2018, gained adoption from a payment processing startup known as CoinGate, and recently grew by 300% with support from over 4,000 nodes. A full-version release of the Lightning Network is expected in 2019. The success of it will then be based on adoption, which will take some time.

 

Ethereum

Since its release in 2015, the Ethereum blockchain already has so many dapps and games on its network that concerns about scaling have been raised. Ethereum boasts over 2,000 dapps on its platform, and developers have been hard-pressed to create a solution to its scalability issues. Even smart contract functionality must be constantly upgraded, as the blockchain industry keeps evolving. Ethereum’s next upgrade is coming up in January 2019. The update, named Constantinpole, is designed to improve the efficiency of the blockchain, reduce block reward for miners, and make the blockchain more ASIC-resistant. Much later in 2019,

Ethereum plans to have a second upgrade, which will include implementation of the Casper protocol and sharding. Casper will move Ethereum from a Proof-of-Work (PoW) protocol to a Proof-of-Stake (PoS). PoS solves the problem of large mining operations having too much power over the course of the blockchain. Sharding will enable the Ethereum blockchain to attain higher transaction speeds by partitioning network resources such that a single node doesn’t have to process every transaction in the blockchain history to make a new transaction.

 

Litecoin

Litecoin is solidifying its status as the silver to Bitcoin’s gold. With Bitcoin becoming a store of value, people might be reluctant to use it in everyday transactions, preferring instead to store it. Litecoin is an alternative created to enable everyday payments. The Litecoin Foundation already has a campaign that encourages this, paywithlitecoin.co, which basically showcases the benefits of paying with LTC, such as high-speed transactions and low fees. LTC fees are expected to go much lower with the release of Litecoin Core 0.17. This update was announced in October 2018, and will likely be released early in 2019. However, it is unlikely that the Lightning Network becomes a fully functional product in 2019, although significant development is expected to be completed on it. Also, Litecoin is looking towards enabling more anonymous transactions on its blockchain to increase fungibility. This was hinted by Litecoin Founder Charlie Lee on the popular crypto TV show, Magical Crypto Friends, and could be among Litecoin’s priorities for 2019.

 

Cardano

 

Cardano is expected to release the features of the Shelley phase in 2019, starting with delegation and stake pool testnets. Shelley is the phase in the development of Cardano aimed to make the project fully decentralized and autonomous. Also, Cardano is expected to deliver on advanced smart contract capabilities suitable for enterprise usage, especially with reference to transaction speed.

 

TRON

TRON launched its mainnet on June 25, 2018, and has been growing ever since. Recently, Tron surpassed Ethereum in dapps usage, as well as in the number and volume of transactions put through these dapps. In a recent interview, Justin Sun, CEO of the Tron Foundation, says that Tron will adopt zk-SNARKS into the network. Expected to take place in Q1 2019, this means the transfer TRX tokens can be anonymous and private to a larger extent. Also worth mentioning is the acquisition of BitTorrent by Tron in July 2018, which is a move to foster the mainstream adoption of Tron. Tron will use its network to build BitTorrent more efficiently in 2019, a development known as Project Atlas.

 

OmiseGo

The OmiseGo project is bringing financial services to the world’s unbanked, focusing particularly on Asia. OmiseGo is built on Ethereum as a peer-to-peer payment system as well as a decentralized exchange. In 2019, the project is expected to reach a milestone on their roadmap — creating a scalable PoS blockchain and decentralized exchange.

The completed, current, and upcoming stages of the development can be seen on the roadmap below:

                                      

Hyperledger

Hyperledger is an open-source, non-profit, and independent smart contract platform originally launched by The Linux Foundation. Hyperledger is focused on building a platform suitable for large organizations, such as IBM and Intel, interested in blockchain and smart contracts.  On October 1, 2018, Hyperledger announced a partnership with Enterprise Ethereum Alliance (EEA), each becoming an associate member in the other’s organization. This is expected to trigger a collaboration in 2019, which would likely result in the interoperability of the Hyperledger and Ethereum blockchains.

 

 

Qtum

Qtum is a notable dapps platform with a Proof-of-Stake (PoS) system of verification. The mainnet was launched in September 2017, and a number of developments have already taken place on the platform. Qtum plans to launch its enterprise version QtumX in Q1 2019. In Q2 2019, Qtum is expected to release its first public testnet with x86 smart contracts, and mainnet integration of the x86 Virtual Machine is scheduled for Q4 2019. Qtum also plans to introduce Lightning Network in 2019. This will help the blockchain platform scale and achieve faster transaction speeds. The plan is to have a public testnet of the Qtum lightning network in Q2.

 

Zilliqa

Zilliqa is a blockchain platform for hosting decentralized applications similar to Ethereum. The notable advantage Zilliqa offers is a transaction speed many times what Ethereum currently offers. According to the website, the platform is able to do as many as 2,828 transactions per second. The mainnet launch of Zilliqa was previously scheduled for Q3 2018. However, it was rescheduled due to concerns about the readiness of the code.  January 2019 has been announced timeframe for the Zilliqa mainnet launch.

Other Upcoming Crypto-Related Products and Services in 2019

IOTA and Volkswagen have scheduled the launch of a digital car pass for Q1 2019. This would be the first working product for IOTA. This is expected to be the first of many, as IOTA already has partnerships with other companies with whom they have plans to create products with their Tangle technology. Recently, Coinbase began offering an over-the-counter (OTC) trading desk for institutions to get crypto exposure. Binance has also started testing a fiat-to-crypto exchange in Singapore. The full launch will be expected in 2019, with many more exchanges and trading tools also in line to get introduced into the crypto market.

Conclusion

The crypto industry has shown great resilience in 2018 despite the bear market. Throughout 2018, the industry was haunted by regulatory rumors that contributed to FUD regarding the future of crypto. Now that there is a glimpse of what regulations will look like for the industry, the focus will be back on efficiency (through development) and adoption (through marketing efforts) in the new year. The impact these developments will have on the valuation of cryptocurrencies is yet uncertain. While there are arguments for a bull run, the short sellers may still impact the market for a more prolonged period of time.

In spite of all that has happened, there are a lot of things to look forward to in 2019 — the above are only a selection of some of the developments we can look forward to in the new year. 2019 will definitely not be like 2018, nor will it be like 2017. What the year will turn out to be lies in the hands of the developers, business managers, marketers, and various stakeholders in the industry’s ecosystem.

Article Produced By
David Olarinoye

https://www.investinblockchain.com/cryptocurrency-developments-2019/

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

Evolution, The Shift: Social Networks Are Now Becoming Market Networks.

Evolution, The Shift: Social Networks Are Now Becoming Market Networks.

 

SEIZING THE FULL POTENTIAL OF THE RAPIDLY EXPANDING
MARKET NETWORK ECOSYSTEM.

TRENDING NOW: an emergence representing the evolution of Social Networks, combining social interactions with transactions between multiple buyers and sellers in a 360-degree pattern. Social Network + Marketplace + SaaS (Software as a Service [aka Workflow]) = Market Network.

Collaboration is appearing front and center as the new necessary component to businesses achieving and maintaining a competitive edge. It wasn’t long ago that the concept of an open market networking movement was a mere dream. The dream is fast becoming reality wherein an ecosystem has arisen around open networking, offering clients not only choices in the networking hardware and software they run to meet their specific needs, but also in how they obtain it. Companies of all sizes are now able to reap the benefits of open networking in a way that works best for them.

Market Networks are not just seen as a type of business, but rather as a strategic capability for any organization: the ability to orchestrate networks of service in a well-orchestrated, yet reproductive manner. This is one future of doing business that leads to solutions plus possibilities for development of additional organizational models that not only can increase variety, but also distribute innovation while supporting a richer framework of services, moving commerce towards new models in the global IoT marketplace.

Opportunities for Market Networks exist wherever there are groups of service professionals supporting industry verticals. Organizing business operations in this way can potentially produce a powerfully significant outreach which subsequently influences hundreds of millions of consumers. While still seen as in its infancy, it’s become obvious that social media really had no choice but to become widespread with an emphasis on facilitating doing business, which meant evolving into commerce-friendly Social Market Networks or risk becoming irrelevant. Market Networks combine the best elements from social networks (such as Facebook) with top qualities of marketplaces (such as eBay) plus a portfolio of software tools (SaaS), as with Adobe.

Comparison of 3 Market Networks:

  1. DotLoop provides SaaS tools and marketplace solutions, connecting millions of real estate brokers and agents with clients (from anywhere and even while on the go), through a paperless transaction platform to simplify getting deals done. This equates to providing more time driving growth versus chasing paper. DotLoop replaces form creation, e-sign and real estate transaction management systems with a single end-to-end solution while helping to streamline doing business with real-time visibility into transactions. Brokers and agents are also able to seamlessly integrate DotLoop into their workflow with apps they already use with one-click sign-on and with their accounting and CRM systems with flexible APIs.

    With DotLoop. Brokers and agents can recruit, integrate, brand and simplify compliance with a complete 360-degree paperless solution. This results in higher ROI and a much-increased financial bottom line for the brokerage as well as their agents. Compliance is done right the first time, saving massive amounts of time and headaches for the brokers, agents and their clients. Brokers are able to recruit, and more importantly, retain top agents. A broker can power their entire business suite, from CRM and lead generation to accounting and commission reports, all with one-and-done, automated data syncing. They now have the ability to integrate with 40+ software platforms. Last, but certainly not least, there is the ability to brand their brokerage. Their tagline, logo, and colors automatically appear before co-op agents and customers with every document shared.
     

  2. Contently is designed for freelance writers to connect with clients and potential new clients. It’s a marketplace where companies can “shop” to find writers who will create content such as articles, eBooks, and other kinds of marketing collateral. It’s a SaaS tool that helps content marketers with organizing and streamlining their editorial calendars, also with managing the writers’ work, plus tracking performance through analytics.

    Contently’s end-to-end content marketing platform is engineered to surface actionable insights at every stage of each of their client’s processes. Contently provides clients with the ability to find talent on demand. Clients can scale their content program with an expert talent network they can only find at Contently. With the achievement of a much faster time-to-benefit, developed from Contently’s work with hundreds of the world’s best brands, their services and methodologies improve every aspect of a client’s content program.

    Customer experience has become critical in the digital age, yet keeping your content aligned across different product lines, channels, functional teams, locations, and campaigns is no easy task. Marketers need more quality content than ever, but the way they manage the content lifecycle is stuck in the past. Without the right resources and infrastructure, scaling is incredibly difficult. The competition for attention is fierce. Since 5 percent earns 90% of total consumer engagement, marketers need a data-driven content strategy to generate business results.
     

  3. Markethive is an innovative Ecosystem designed specifically for forward-thinking business people and Entrepreneurs. With a user-friendly “familiar” Facebook-like look and feel, Markethive is easily navigated, being simple enough for novices while at the same time powerful enough for individuals or groups with advanced skills, knowledge, experience and capabilities. Of the utmost importance is that Markethive is a private network, being built on blockchain assuring security, privacy, and reliability from political manipulation. This means neither you nor your information is tracked nor profiled, and your personal information is NEVER SHARED with anyone.

    Markethive’s culture is not fixed. It’s a decentralized, autonomous, fluid environment which includes manifestations of intellectual achievements, social habits, innovation, music, literature, technology, commerce, and the arts. A central “hub”, albeit a “decentralized” platform, system and framework built using blockchain technology, is designed to encourage “reciprocal interchange” of ideas, knowledge or skills as well as providing for exchange, sales or purchases of goods, services and commodities. This futuristic model is here now and fully prepared for the future, truly representing a prime example of the next generation = Market Networks. Markethive has the roadmap and is the blueprint of where things are headed.

    Markethive’s collaborative community is founded for, as well as built, run and used by entrepreneurs and is self-governing, independent and sovereign by design. Markethive’s continuous objective and mission is to provide a social environment, complete with an arsenal of technology, that champions the rise of the entrepreneur.
    Integrated with state-of-the-art blockchain, cryptocurrency, and inbound marketing technologies, Markethive has constructed a social network that provides a “Universal Income” created exclusively with entrepreneurs in mind. Because Markethive is self-governing, sovereign and controlled by its entrepreneurs and holders of Markethive, its coins (MHV) share in Markethive’s profits and benefit greatly from ultimate success.

    Markethive’s culture is one of innovation, the DNA of their entrepreneurial ecosystem, inspiring and fueling its entrepreneurs through excellence. Although times, cultures, technology, politics, people, and economies change, the entrepreneurial spirit endures. Markethive’s focus is upon providing a user-friendly social network environment which nurtures a true collaborative business community. Markethive is already seen as a leader in the Market Network realm. Their mission and objective is to pioneer “Universal Income” worldwide. It is already being predicted that Markethive will soon be the gold standard, to which all others will compare.

What Is A Market Network?

Market Networks are hybrids: part social network, part marketplace, part SaaS. [1]*

  • Social Network.
    An online service or site comprised of a connected interpersonal network of individuals, such as friends, acquaintances and coworkers. Social networks are designed to connect people with others who are a part of the network. This environment nurtures the building of relationships, providing the necessary stepping stones for the growth of “virtual online communities”. Social networking websites offer the ability to stay connected with existing friends, plus opportunities to meet new people.

    Think of a social network as a dedicated website or other application that enables users to communicate with each other by posting information, comments, messages, images, etc. Think of a social network as a 360-degree spherical connection where individuals can share personal information with others in their own network. Some networks even offer private messaging services to provide the ability for real-time communication between members or the ability to leave messages privately. As a general rule social networks are not particularly business-oriented or commerce-friendly by design.

  • Marketplace.
    The term market comes from the Latin mercatus (“market place”). A marketplace is a location where people regularly gather for the purchase and sale of goods and services. Marketplaces allow for transactions between multiple buyers as well as multiple sellers. A marketplace is an arena of competitive or commercial dealings; the world of trade.

    Fast forward to the realm of the Internet of Things (IoT), and now a marketplace is more commonly seen and represented as highly accessible, streamlined commercial transactions being conducted electronically on the Internet, with an outreach that has no boundaries or limits. An online marketplace literally has the ability to expand the borders of even a local business to that of a nationwide outreach, or even worldwide exposure. With the advent of computers, the internet and networking, anyone can do business 24/7 from the comfort of their home or from anywhere, provided they have a computer, laptop, tablet, SmartPhone, and WiFi.

  • SaaS Tool.
    SaaS tools are for making your job easier. SaaS is the modern way to run software and integrated tools to enhance, leverage and assist the subscribers’ success to achieve targeted goals within the construct of a particular sphere. Software as a service is a software licensing and delivery model in which software is licensed on a subscription basis and is centrally hosted. It is sometimes referred to as “on-demand software”. Reduces complexity, helps to keep pace with innovation, and provides access to experts for support to provide a clear path for your day-to-day tasks and projects.

    One of the most popular forms of cloud computing is SaaS, defined as a software distribution model in which a service provider hosts applications for customers and makes them available to these customers via the internet. The era of installing software from a CD or from a data center’s server is coming to a close, as Internet-delivered software makes applications available anywhere, anytime.

*[1] Market Networks focus on more complex services; the types of services that are not easily scalable and require more human collaboration.

Just as brick and mortar businesses have been and still are falling by the wayside to make room for much bigger and better ways in which to do business online without borders, traditional social networks will need to either evolve into being much more business- and commerce-friendly or get left behind.

In today’s economic and technological cultures, what had been seen previously as traditional jobs and long-term employment are now things of the past. Statistics have shown that employees and laborers now work on average for only 4 years or less. More and more, the faces of this new paradigm shift are entrepreneurs. Reid Hoffman founder of LinkedIn is quoted as saying, “All human beings are entrepreneurs.” Hence, the impetus for designing a platform that will ultimately create real Universal Income that is available for everyone. It should be noted that Universal Income has become a new focus of elites, such as Elon Musk, and a subject for a more in-depth analysis in another article.

Attributes of a Successful Market Network.

If you recall from history, back in the days of the Gold Rush, it turned out to be those who provided the tools and resources for the miners who benefitted the most financially. In a Market Network, a many-to-many transaction pattern is key. A Market Network often starts by enhancing a network of professionals that exist offline. Many of them have probably been transacting with each other for years using various offline methods of doing business: phone calls, fax, checks, and overnight packages. When moving all these connections and transactions into software, the creation of a Market Network makes it much easier for professionals to operate their businesses and for clients to get far better service.

  • Market Networks target more complex services.
    The highest value services are neither simple nor normally objectively judged. They can be more involved and longer term. Market Networks are designed for these types of services.
  • People matter.
    A Market Network is designed to acknowledge that as a core tenet while providing the best possible solution.
  • Collaboration happens around a project.
    The SaaS at the center of Market Networks focuses the action on a project that can take days, months or even years to complete.
  • Market Networks help build long-term relationships.
    For years, social networks like LinkedIn and Facebook have helped build long-term relationships. However, until Market Networks, they hadn’t been used for commerce and transactions.
  • Referrals flow freely.
    The Market Network software is designed to make referrals simple and more frequent.

Market Networks increase transaction velocity and satisfaction.
The Market Network grows the closing ratios on proposals and expedites the payment process. The software also raises customer satisfaction scores, reduces miscommunications, and makes the work appealing, with outstanding results.

 

Conclusion

It’s just a matter of time

until nearly all independent professionals and their clients will conduct business through the development of tight-knit collaborative Market Networks within specific industries. We’re just really witnessing the beginnings of this now. Each Market Network will have different attributes that make it work in each vertical, but the principles will remain the same.

Starting NOW, there will be many more forward-thinking entrepreneurs stepping forward, with their sights set upon creating increasingly innovative, highly synchronized business models and solutions to doing business in the 21st century and beyond. Those who will be most successful will not only keep up with the speed at which technology continues to change, but they will align themselves ahead of the curve at all times.

The potential payoff is predicted to be huge. Market Networks will have a massive positive impact on how millions of people work and live, and how hundreds of millions of people buy and sell better services.

Article Produced By
Deb Williams

Writer at Markethive

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 Sales, Service & Business Development Consulting, and have trained and coached clients from Front Line through to Management in the Financial Services Industry. I have been owner/operator and developed offline and Online Businesses.

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