As if a hivemind site like reddit (that's already littered with blatant advertisement posts) wasn't enough, this one proclaims, "Let's just skip the bullshit...you can buy all the top posts!" Seriously people, what actual beneficence will this bring to the table?
Having readers tipping histories encoded in a blockchain could make it easier to filter out spam via network analysis algos. Large chunks of money coming from brand new addresses wouldn't carry as much weight as old wallets with similar patterns as your own.
One can put in all the safeguards they want, but you really underestimate how far private entities with seemingly-bottomless coffers will go to get a message across, especially if its traffic is lush with its target demographic. I'm not trying to be pessimistic; this shit happens everyday on reddit, and a variant of this scenario that went too far sent Digg to the grave.
I haven't given it much thought, but that seems like a reason to support a blockchain based voting system. If votes are transparently logged then end users can rely on their own readers/clients to find relevant content. As you upvote and downvote you can train the client to learn which wallets/tips are credible/relevant and which aren't.
edit: I'm basically describing pandora for content based on blockchain data -- where anyone is free to modify the learning algos. Can someone please make that happen? Thanks.
I think you're raising great points, and I think this is a really valid concern.
However, I'd counter it thus: I think the shilling that happens on reddit is primarily acheived through the use of sock puppetry. I think casting upvotes with Bitcoin is a decent way to try and counter this effect.
When upvotes cost money it ends up costing a lot more to get a post to the top. On reddit you can can create accounts and upvote all you want for free.
When you upvote yourself (via a sockpuppet account), you're paying yourself, and therefore it's basically a free upvote. So yes, upvotes are free unless you're upvoting somebody else.
