Reddit to Shut Down Community Points Due to Scalability Concerns
Reddit has announced that it will be discontinuing its blockchain-based rewards service called “Community Points” due to scalability issues. The decision was shared in an official announcement on the r/cryptocurrency subreddit on October 17. While Reddit acknowledged the potential of Community Points, they stated that there was no feasible way to scale it across the entire platform. The service, including special memberships, will be phased out on November 8, meaning users will no longer see Points in their Reddit Vault or earn them in their communities.
Background of Community Points
Community Points was initially launched in May 2020 as a way to reward users for positive engagement in specific subreddits and encourage high-quality content. These Ethereum-based ERC-20 tokens were stored in Reddit’s in-house crypto wallet service called the “Reddit Vault.” The points system later migrated to the layer-2 scaling solution Arbitrum for improved scalability. Each subreddit had its own token, such as Moons (MOON) for r/cryptocurrency and Bricks (BRICK) for r/FortNiteBR, which could be used to purchase badges and exclusive items.
Reaction from the Community
The announcement took many by surprise, including the r/cryptocurrency moderator “CryptoMods,” who expressed disappointment upon learning about the decision. It remains to be seen how this change will impact the overall user experience on Reddit and whether alternative solutions will be explored in the future.
Hot Take: Reddit’s Decision Highlights Challenges of Blockchain Integration
The closure of Reddit’s Community Points highlights the challenges faced by platforms when integrating blockchain technology. While blockchain-based rewards have the potential to incentivize positive engagement and improve content quality, scalability concerns can hinder their widespread adoption. This decision serves as a reminder that scalability remains a crucial consideration for any blockchain-based project, and finding scalable solutions will be key to the successful integration of blockchain technology in various industries.
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