Introduction
Welcome back to The Bluffer's Guide to Cryptocurrency - a layman's approach to understanding Bitcoin and Blockchain Technology!
In the previous blog, I introduced you to one of the many "New Music Industry" platforms that are popping up called Choon. If you missed that, check it out here.
Now we'll introduce another platform in the crypto music world called "Musicoin", which I joined at the beginning of 2018.
But hold (or should that be hodl) your horses, it's disclaimer time!
Before I begin, I want to emphasise that this is a highly simplified version of what I have learnt from my own research and I'm sharing my learning with you. If you do know this topic inside out, be nice to those who are still learning about this (myself included) and we can grow together.
Furthermore, this is not financial advice and I am not a financial advisor. I am a crypto-enthusiast and wanted to create a guide to help total beginners understand what this is all about. Please seek financial advice from a qualified professional if you have any doubt about how to spend your money.
So with that said, brace yourselves, you might learn something! Shall we begin?
What is "Musicoin"?
In short, Musicoin is a website where musicians upload their tracks directly, like SoundCloud, except when a track is played, instead of just the "play counter" going up, the musician also receives a cryptocurrency called "Musicoin". And yes, the more crypto sites pop-up, the more you'll hear this familiar sentence in the Bluffer's Guide!
Musicoin squared?
So you see the name has two meanings! It's both the website AND the cryptocurrency that is native to the whole platform. In fact, Musicoin is a fork of the Ethereum blockchain, which has been developed over the last 18 months since it launched in February 2017.
The model is slightly different to Choon as 1.5 million coins are "mined" every day but this rate is due to slow down next year as Ethereum are making some changes on their end. Further information on this can be found in their whitepaper.
Sounds like it's more developed?
Well, being the "first mover" in the crypto music space they have had a bit more time to build the platform, develop the whole undertaking of getting a cryptocurrency created and being able to list their currency on exchanges such as Cryptopia. This means that musicians and listeners are able to exchange from musicoin in to fiat and vice versa.
Having said that, and I try to keep things balanced with the Bluffer's Guide, there are still some bugs with playback and there really does need to be more communication coming from them. Marketing definitely seems to be lacking but the site has got a lot smoother over the last couple of months. However, they do have their own forums on the website so you can interact with the community there, as well as on discord and slack.
What's in it for listeners?
Firstly, listeners can be safe in the knowledge that even just streaming a track will send a musicoin over to their favourite artist, thus building reputation and wallet balances. Furthermore, musicians can be tipped by their fans (up to 1,000MUSIC if they are feeling generous) and vice versa. Comments can be left on the track and those comments can be "liked" as well. By "liking" the comment, a musicoin is sent to the person who commented, which can then be used however they want. This means the cryptocurrency can be moved back and forth between musician and fan.
What other developments are coming up in the roadmap?
Well, according to the roadmap, work is currently ongoing for a mobile app to be released in Q3 2018, a wallet is already set up and the website is going to enable options for download and purchasing tracks so if they can nail that then it would be a cool platform to use. You can see their London Underground style roadmap here and some further details on the roadmap here. Again, there needs to be a lot more communication on developments so those who have invested in the platform know what's going on but looks promising if they stick to it.
Does the platform have royalty sharing?
Yes it does and I have trialled this out already, along with Darkstorm and a couple of other DJs. When I uploaded the Havey's Highlight podcast, I set it up so that any time the podcast gets streamed, musicoins are distributed to all those artists who's tracks I used. If you like Drum & Bass, why not check it out ;)
Who's behind the platform?
The founder of the musicoin project is a man named Isaac Mao and he believes that the Music Industry is ripe for disruption via blockchain technology. I hear ya Isaac! In fact, he spoke at the SXSW conference in March 2018 to explain his vision, watch the video below.
Although it was a little more difficult to find information about their development and marketing team as it's not on their website like most platforms. It would be good to hear more from them as I've already said but they are quietly working away and I'd like to think we'll hear more when they release new features.
Why should I create an account?
If you have been keeping up with the Bluffer's Guide, you'd know that this is pioneering stuff and there's a real change in the air with the advent of crypto music sites. Musicoin has been around for 18 months at time of writing so has "first mover advantage" and it was the first site I heard of that really excited me as a producer and I'd still recommend creating a profile.
How do I create an account?
You can create your account by clicking here. Once you verify your e-mail, that's it, you're in!
Quick Word of Caution
If you are a producer, you are only allowed to upload 100% original tracks or remixes of tracks that are already on the Musicoin network. If you have tracks released on labels already, you will have to check the Ts & Cs of your contract but best bet is to upload what you're happy with, that you own and can upload without issue!
What about the value of Musicoin?
As with most crypto prices, things took a turn for the worse since the beginning of 2018 and musicoin was no different. It's currently at £0.005 but this has been as high as £0.1. Until alternative cryptocurrencies can decouple from Bitcoin, then, unfortunately, BTC will continue to dictate their prices. It's still better than nothing though! As for price speculation, well, you can do your own research on that but remember, this is crypto... you should know that by now from the last 6 chapters ;)
Ok, time for a time out!
So a brief overview of what Musicoin is about here. In part 2, I'll go through a little more detail about the workings of the platform. Next up, we'll be scratching the surface of a "one to watch" as Inmusik has popped up on the radar, with a totally different approach.
If you are enjoying the series so far, I'd love to hear from you! And if you'd like to feel the high energy of my music, feel free to have a listen to my profile on Musicoin here.
Now though, it's your turn.
Did you enjoy the article or find it useful?
I'd love to hear from you and if you learnt something new, feel inspired to do some of your own research or felt I didn't cover something well enough, let me know and when I finalise the pdf, I'll make it right!
For now though, take it easy and catch you soon!
Nicky
Contents
The history and technology of Bitcoin
2.1 How and why did Bitcoin come in to existence?
2.2 How does Bitcoin & blockchain actually work (Part 1)?
2.3 How does Bitcoin & Blockchain actually work (Part 2)?Buying Bitcoin
3.1 Being secure with cryptocurrency & wallets
3.2 How to Buy Bitcoin & How Exchanges WorkBlockchain Platforms for Musicians & Music Fans
7.1 Atom Collector Records Part 1
7.2 Choon
7.3 Musicoin (you are here)
7.4 Inmusik
7.5 Steemit
7.6 Channels
7.7 Sola
7.8 MindsConcluding thoughts
Posted from my blog with SteemPress : https://www.atomcollectorrecords.com/blog/2018/07/29/7-3-bluffers-guide-to-cryptocurrency-blockchain-platforms-for-musicians-music-fans-musicoin/