Reddit launches its Community Points in the form of ERC-20

A popular social news and web content website, Reddit, recently decided to start experimenting with crypto. The company used Ethereum blockchain to launch its own Community Points, which represent ownership of a subreddit.

The new Community Points come in the form of an ERC-20 token. This is an Ethereum token model on which many crypto projects based their own tokens.

What will the Community Points do?

According to Reddit’s current plans, should the experiments prove successful, Reddit users will be able to earn these points. All they need to do is post and comment on numerous subreddits, and they will receive Community Points in reward.

Reddit also plans to allow full transparency of these points, which will be visible to any other Reddit user. However, they will still remain under full control of the user who wins them. The points will have another purpose, which is to serve as a measure of reputation. They will show which users contribute the most to the platform, and whether or not the community appreciates their contribution.

Not only that, but users will also be able to use the coins to buy memberships, vote on weighted polls, and more. They can purchase images and profile icons, emojis, gifs, and alike. However, buying these features will also result in burning the tokens. However, users will always have the ability to buy more with cash.

Of course, the more points a user has, the more influential their vote. The influence will also be gained over time, through mentioned user activities. Reddit spokesperson stated that the company is constantly experimenting with new ways of supporting the community.

A crypto alternative to Karma

Of course, this is not the first time that Reddit has introduced a system that would display users’ influence on the platform. It already has its Karma, a current content contribution rating system.

Karma is delivered via upvotes on posts and comments, and users receive it by contributing valuable or interesting information. Community Points will be similar, but at the same time, quite different.

They will be decentralized tokens, representing ownership of a specific community. The community will determine the use itself, and Reddit will not have control over such decisions. Initially, there will be only 50 million Community Points if the experiment proceeds to launch. Another 50 million will arrive over the course of the first year.

However, the distribution will drop over time, until the platform reaches a total supply of 250 million CPs. Moderators will get a 10% share, while Reddit itself will have 20%. An additional 20% will go to the community.