The Debate Across 20 Years

ONEROOT
ONEROOT
Sep 5, 2018 · 3 min read

On Aug 5, 2018, ONO founder Xu Ke ,born in 1990s, and ONEROOT foundation chairman Sun Yingjun, born after 1975, presented as star mentors in [Hey! Welcome to the Blockchain-Centered Debate], both taking their own debate team with them. The topic of this debate,which is held by District 45, is “Is current blockchain the equation of internet in the 1990s?”

This article will summarize the views of both sides in the contest.

Functional Difference

Throughout history, there’s progressiveness among telephone&telegraph network, the Internet and Blockchain. The blockchain is based on the Internet, while the telegraph network is the basis of the Internet. By comparison, we can clearly understand: the telegraph&telephone network is a simple network, the Internet is a complex network, while the biggest feature of blockchain is that it can transmit value information. From complex information to value information is a complete overturn of production relations. The Internet makes it happen that disseminating information with high-efficiency and low-cost. The blockchain mainly solves the problems of “value transfer” and “credit”. As Sun always says: Blockchain is the largest value migration in human history.

Environmental Difference

In early days of Internet, the environment was not mild. Due to the rejection of e-mail by global postal services, Internet almost became the first dinosaur to fall. By contrast, blockchain is much more fortunate, hitting the financial industry directly from the moment its product — digital currency — was well known. Financial industry has gathered a group of smartest people in the world, who are keenly aware of a dangerous opportunity in blockchain technology. Therefore, instead of rejecting to change like the traditional postal system, they choose to embrace the change and even lead the change, making more people familiar with the blockchain.

In addition, thanks to the Internet as the foundation, the response speed of the group has been improved, and any innovation will produce instantaneous transmission and feedback. Therefore, for the blockchain industry, technology accumulation will increase in an accelerated way.

Financing Approaches Difference

The Internet is only an extension of shareholding system, while the blockchain is to subvert it and establish new production relations. Traditional emerging industries tend to raise funds through VCs and PEs, while blockchainhas brought a new way called ICO.

As for financing enterprises, they are fully self-sufficient in financing without contacting traditional investment institutions, which greatly accelerates the iteration of technology across the industry. Blockchain companies finance without any consideration of existing business rules and established models,which has overturned many people’s original thinking about business system.

For investors, this financing model is kind to more people for participating. Under the ocean of commerce, the Token mechanism also makes individual lighting possible.

User participation difference

In the traditional Internet, users mainly participate in the industry by sharing and transmitting information; for blockchain, community is the soul of all. The creation of communities is consensus formation, in which everyone participate in the design, development, marketing, and dissemination of products. In the case of ICO, the founders tend not to keep a lot of equity shares, but to give the majority of equity to investors who participate in crowdfunding. In this way, in order to appreciate the tokens that they hold, everyone will automatically become a volunteer promoter and accelerate the promotion of the project .

As one of the debaters said:

If the Internet in the 1990s was a child, the blockchain is now a child too. While the difference is that it has two wings inserted. In my opinion, it is a totally different species.

Finally, we would like to thank the three debaters on our part: @猫姐, @大禹, @AD