We all know the issues with the traditional social media companies. One of the biggest is the ability to close an account on a moment's notice. At present, people are underestimating exactly how crucial that is.
For the vast percentage of people who find themselves in this position, it is a major pain in the rear. Often, there is some type of business tied to the social media account, meaning that years of work vanish instantly. All posts that were carefully put together are wiped out with the click of a mouse.
Some realize the magnitude of the power this is giving social media companies. This is, however, really just the beginning.
In this article we will explore how this is only going to become more vital as we progress forward with technology.
Most of us heard about Oculus™. This is the leading Virtual Reality headset. What many do not know is that it is owned by Facebook, having purchased it back 6 or 7 years ago.
At this moment, the headset is the most cost effective as well as advanced on the market. Many theorize that Facebook is subsidizing the cost, taking a loss on each headset sold. They are doing this to get people locked into their ecosystem, something that worked very well with their main site.
To activate the headset, a Facebook account is obviously required. This is the account management system that is utilized. While it makes sense from the company's perspective, it creates a host of problems for the users.
What if one wants to delete his or her Facebook account. That is fine except the headset no longer works. Again, one needs an active Facebook account to use the product.
Yet this even goes one step further. Part of the allure of VR is the fact that we will be able to see the combining of our real and virtual worlds. With NFTs, we should be able to acquire different assets as we enter the different realm. As we are learning, these could have significant monetary value.
Guess what wallet system the headset will utilize. This means that is the account goes, so do all the assets acquired.
Now we see how the account closure could potentially have monetary consequences to individuals. Imagine if one is running a business in the VR world and Facebook suddenly closes it down. There could be hundreds of thousands of dollars in assets wiped out in an instant.
As bad as that is, it can get even worse.
How would you like to be eliminated? Consider for a second the idea that you never existed. Every record of anything pertaining to you is now gone. The only way to find anything about you is based upon what others say. Even the record books are cleared of references.
In other words, you are instantly dead.
Physically, we all are going to die. When death occurred historically, the only remnants of that person's life, usually, was in the minds of others. As the ensuing generation died off, so did those memories. Hence, a few photos and entries on pages were all that was left.
When we encountered the digital world, things changed. Today, we each are creating a historical record of ourselves. Much of what we do is being recorded. Collectively, we take trillions of pictures and make billions of videos. There are text entries too numerous to count. Everyone has platforms to share their thoughts, visions, fears, and dreams.
We are also going to see the emergence of our digital lives. Notice that it is plural.
Presently, we have a "persona" online that may, or may not, mirror our physical one. People can literally become completely different personalities in the digital world. This is going to expand rapidly with the advancement of AI and VR.
When those two really take form, in the later part of this decade, we are going to be able to create many digital lives. This is going to be an important component of us. It will tap into our creativity and ability to innovate. Through the use of avatars and other breakthroughs, we will be at the point where we are "multi-person".
Some of these will be intentionally contoured while most will be accidental. Either way, they will be a part of us and have value.
Of course, here is where the problem with the likes of Facebook, and other social media companies, becomes obvious. Down the road, as we become more "digital", they have the ability to eliminate us and make it as if we never existed. When an account is erased, there goes that "person". The problem, so does everything tied to it.
Hive provides a vital service to people. It provides account ownership that is exempt from getting shut down. Viewed through today's eyes of social media interaction, this is a worthwhile endeavor but hardly Earthshattering.
However, if we project ahead towards the end of this decade, we can see how this could take on much greater meaning. As we move towards the Metaverse we are going to see account protection become more important.
Essentially, Hive is not protecting one's account but, rather, one's digital life.
In other words, the footprint is always there. No matter what is put up, video, text, audio, that is preserved. Over the next few years, we are going to see new storage systems that protect all this data. Blockchain already does a wonderful job of making text immutable. This will stop the possibility of having our digital lives "killed off".
The point is we are going to move from account ownership to the owning of one's digital life. This is going to include a lot more than just keeping an individual's posts safe. There are financial ramifications which protect the assets we amass. At the same time, as we develop social relationships in this realm, those can be ongoing without permission from Facebook or any other entity.
Finally, there is a biological, real world aspect to consider. We are already seeing the different "worlds" merging. More of our everyday lives are online. If we are under the management system of a major social media company, they we are at risk of not receiving medicine or having one of our medical devices upgraded. Again, if they close an account, all that is tied to it stops working.
As the Internet becomes spatial, this is something to consider. Hive is presenting an account management system which puts the ownership and control in the hands of the individual. Since it cannot be closed down, all the scenarios mentioned in this article cannot take place.
Right now owning your account isn't the biggest deal in the world. However, over the next decade it will take on much greater importance. It is crucial that we realize it will not be about protecting our account but our digital life.
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