As a UI/UX designer and researcher I have been spending the year exploring the idea of journalism, fake news, and new future possible user experiences. In short, I think Publiq is great, and I would love to get the word out on this service.
Publiq is a not-for-profit peer to peer distributed network that seeks to reward authors for creating accurate and meaningful content while at the same time building an ecosystem around smart news, and advertising in the hopes to give readers a way to get the most out of digital news. This media ecosystem is based on blockchain combined with a smart analytics system and AI. The goal is to fight fake news and clickbait misinformation. Today many news articles are duplicated or pirated and shared online, making it hard to trace the original content and author. This makes the ability for the writer to earn royalties more difficult.
Publiq is comprised of 3 layers. The first layer is a sharing layer which allows anyone to securely post a news article and story. Then there is a transactional layer including a transfer and reward distribution mechanism. Lastly, there is a reputational layer that evaluates the authors reputation via the readers opinion. As mentioned before, publiq uses blockchain as a source of distributed trust. Specifically, it uses a proof-of-stake consensus algorithm, also briefly discussed in this paper. The blockchain will hold all account related info as well as metadata, similar to the proof-of-evaluation. Content is given a hash ID. Hash data is stored in the blockchain so any corruption of data will be detected right away. Publiq also introduces its own token into this environment, named the PBQ token. The platform is sustained via ‘nodes’ or individuals contributing to the PBQ mining process. All owners of PBQ can become a node if they decide to participate in the process.
Next, Publiq utilizes a distributed storage infrastructure. Storage consists of participants who will lend their free storage space to the Publiq ecosystem in exchange for tokens. The tokens create the rewards mechanism for the author. Authors receive merit based tokens. The ecosystem relies on smart contracts. When a reader wants to support an author, rating their work positively will result in improving their score — resulting in a larger amount of PBQ into the authors wallet. Their score is a weighted average of the different feedbacks given to every single author — such as views, feedback, stories, and days. The total number of tokens are limited to 500,000,000.
A typical workflow goes like this:
- Author spends minor amount of PBQ to post
- Reader can like, share or raise a flag
- Smart contract updates analytics engine and updates score
- Another smart contract credits authors wallet with an amount of PBQ in relation to their Publiq score at the rewarding batch taking place every 24 hours.
- Author can use PBQ received to post more articles or exchange them (“Publiq Whitepaper, n.d.).
Layered on top of the blockchain technology is an AI assistant. This helps match ad providers and also provides meaningful story recommendations. AI is implemented to interpret and analyze content. Additionally, it can help in the searchability of content — aiding in grouping and distributing content. The recommendation engine is built to help users find content based on what they like to read — such as topics, length, style, language, country of origin, etc. Advertisement is also placed via AI.
It predicts relevance of advertisement to show the user via decision trees. AI determines which ad may interest readers. Revenues made from ads are redistributed to the ecosystem. The content ad providers generate is like all other contents on Publiq. The ad must be registered on blockchain. To start a campaign, an entry on the blockchain must be created that has a PBQ amount associated with it and a filter on the target audience. Publiq’s business model combines the commercial component of advertising with the robust neutrality of a distributed organization. Advertisers buy PBQ in order to place their ads. A subscription model is available le for ad-free content. Ultimately, in the Publiq model, the readers the leaders of free thought.
Implications
It is clear that an ecosystem such as Publiq has a wide array of positive implications. The blockchain technology allows for accountability and for proper incentivizing of content creators. People can trace origins and track the exchange of content as well as advertisement. In this ecosystem, an idea can be treated as an asset. However, there are many weaknesses associated with this idea that still need to be assessed. The largest of this is that cryptocurrencies and blockchain are still not widely accepted. Only niche communities utilize blockchain currently, and there is no overall state acceptance for this. Secondly, it will take some time before larger media organizations adopt to this type of model. Although it is more ethical in nature, it may be more expensive short term to set up and begin. This may put media companies off and give them reason to stick with their traditional advertisement system. Another issue is the potential volatility of the cryptocurrency market. It is unknown how strong it will last over time or if another viable option develops. The overall strength of cryptocurrency is dependent on the usage it gets from the people. The more it is adopted and utilized, the more it can be sustained.
Check out their whitepaper at: https://publiq.network/en/white-paper/
