Photo: CFP
21 bit companies company will this week launch a new product-coins "mining machines" (production of coins gold coins of the computer), this is coins in the world one of the most anticipated products by the public. In order to develop this product, 21 company include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel from the well-known investor and Andreessen Horowitz investment company financing of US $ 120 million (about 13.347 billion yuan). According to the financial records of their companies over the years, the financing has been highest in the history.
Therefore, the 21 companies posted a message this week, had many people wondering. Just US $ 399 (about 2535.88 Yuan) users will be able to buy small coins computers equipped with a custom chip, and its production of coins. Of course, to produce a limited number of coins. In fact, according to one calculation, the computer in the case of continuous operation can only produce worth about 10 cents a day (about 0.64 Yuan) currency. In addition, the ability to produce coins with your living environment, the cost of electricity production may be far higher than the production of coins of value itself.
21 company executives think, have the ability to produce coins will become standard for all digital devices in the future, just like today's Wi-Fi chip. Upon the company envisioned in the future, virtual currency will become a major force in electronic transactions, and traditional computers is not enough to support all of this. 21 the technical set up of the company, the computer will make the dream come true of many Internet experts. It can be for small online services and mobile payments with an actual operating system. For example, this technology can automatically pay Jukebox online storage and automatic renewal of camera support.
In order to achieve this vision, 21 companies have developed some pretty compelling technology. But it seems that its virtual currency blueprint envisaged itself does have some flaws, defect I doubt those new technologies that companies will not be able to finally play a role.
Of an electric energy translated into money chips
You may have heard in the commercials is that the talk: send an SMS to a phone number, you can contribute $ 10 donations to specific charities. In the deal, phone carriers acted as the middleman, $ 10 into the donor telephone bills next month. This service will give customers many convenient, when they want to contribute, you do not need from my bag and pulled out a credit card, do not need to worry about your credit card would be unauthorized.
Technical principle of bit computer similar, but more complex. In General, you can think of it as a smart "hacker", which are listed on your electricity bill fee increase. Bitcoin computer contains a "dig" chip, capable of performing complex mathematical calculations to generate new bitcoins. These coins have real economic value, production process but it is not free, however, chip consumes a lot of electricity.
21 coins computer is not for those who want to become professional bitcoin "dig the miners" to people. More mature products already on the market for professional "miners". Conversely, companies believe that coins every day computers have the ability to produce in a few cents worth of coins, which will make the company holds the trump card, opening up unknown new market opportunities in the future.
Automatic pay-Jukebox
21 companies are selling this kind of technical equipment is not the version they eventually plan to open to the general public. In fact, this laptop just 21 technology is proven. Hoping to impress developers, make its chips to create applications that use 21. Over the next few years, 21 expects such chips will become smaller and are surprisingly inexpensive, and can be built into a wide range of third-party devices, like today's Intel chips.
Imagine that when you bought a trumpet as a jukebox, with no advertising. To plug it in after that you can point to any one song, the device will start automatically, and you do not need to find their credit cards to pay for it. Sings the opportunity to play a song automatically generates the required fees and bills transmitted to the hands of the copyright owner. Most consumers simply do not need to consider paying for things, do not even need to understand how the payment mechanism works.
Other products that use this technology will be able to operate in a similar manner. There may be a camera on the market can be in a State of inadequate internal storage automatically buy online storage space to continue to shoot photos and videos; there may also be a Tablet PC, you can automatically detect available Wi-Fi networks, and several pennies worth of coins to buy Wi-Fi access. In addition, maybe retailers as a virtual currency used to come up with some other clever way, make consumers ' lives more convenient.
Meanwhile, with the families and the increasing number of digital equipment in the workplace, 21 companies it could also help to solve the "orphan device" problem. In this case, the original company stopped support and maintenance for some digital devices, while allowing it in worse damage or unsafe condition. If a user for each of these "orphan device" payment of small amounts of coins as a maintenance fee, no matter how long their equipment life, 21 are for the original manufacturers to continue to support the Fund and maintenance equipment.
Practical implementation of online micro-payment
So, you may still be wondering why people bought such a strange "printing money" chips instead of the actual payment of daily trading in the financial system? Here are two reasons:
One reason is that, for some applications, users enter credit card information into a particular digital equipment has a certain level of risk. In light of this, previously mentioned characteristics than the player will not be installed in the keyboard or screen, if users just plug in the power point player to start playing music, it would be much more convenient. Increased participation is tied up this 9 stocks
A more fundamental problem is that the provisions relating to fees in the traditional financial system makes the small deal is not cheap. In credit card spending mechanism, users more small means the trading fees in a larger proportion of turnover accounted. That's why we rarely see in the online store iTunes shops are 99 cents (about 6.29 Yuan) of the song something cheaper. In the economic dimension of less than US $ 1, credit card payment has been unable to perform their duties.
Micro-transactions are 21 companies can play their "magic" field: standard bitcoin network may not be a good micro-payment platform, but it is a very open software platforms. And the company has developed a new technology can make micropayments bitcoin network than any other online payment technology more efficient.
Users may not like paid in coins for small reasons
Technical experts had always dreamed to make small payments more convenient and practical. There are also a lot of people have tried to construct a number of micro-payment system, but so far there is no system can really bring out the operability of micro-payments. 21 the investors behind the company actually made a bet, bet coins will become eventually led to this concept is the key to implementing technology.
Many deep study in this area for a long time, Internet theorist Clay Shirky wrote in 2000, explaining why in the tide of development of the Internet, online small business but will not be able to expand further. Then there are a lot of people on this topic explains, while Shirky has written several articles on the subject also related articles.
In short, Shirky says: the previous micro-transactions system failed because it did not please the user likes. "Determines whether users buy a product of many factors, and the decisive factor was likely to be only a few small details, whether buying sometimes does not depend on the look of the application interface or the time required to download and more is a decision made at the moment of purchase by the user. "Shirky wrote. "Micro-payments, just like any other means of payment, terms of user space is needed. "This one XX value? And values of the YY value? Based on the fact that products are constantly optimized, but users the lowest transaction costs but be consistent.
On the face of it, 21 companies micro-payment technologies may be able to change the user transaction costs. After all, when the user wants to buy a new household appliances when they are unlikely to take too much time to think about home appliance energy use. Therefore, users will not be able to convert power to a new generation of digital devices to worry about money, right?
However, if you think about this digital equipment works in real life, you can clearly see, advancing this technology there is still a great deal of difficulty. Imagine your home in the future was filled with built-in 21 company coins "dig" chip household devices, and at the end of the month you suddenly discover, monthly electricity bill higher than you expected a $ 20 ($ 127.11 million).
May is because month weather hot, you of air conditioning "overtime" run has long; may is you of bit currency equipment suffered has hacker attacks, has bad stole has you of power for they himself production bit currency to has; and may is you in adolescent of son recently new buy has a equipment, the brand is not bit company list Shang, so in production out large bit currency of while also spent has super Yu its by commitment of more power, additional of additional costs are make back has original of manufacturing manufacturers.
The problem is that you never get an answer, nor is there a simple way to find the answer to this question. It's not like your electricity bill details, power used to all kinds of electrical appliances can be listed one by one. If you use the bitcoin device, you will be forced to begin their own measuring room appliance energy consumption, this trouble is 21 companies should consider for elimination.
In practice, few people worry about this issue. Only need a few coins devices attacked story or illegal overcharging by manufacturers, is enough to make the user decided to drop the coins "dig" chip device.
Bitcoin chips will become more and more lack of effectiveness
21 the company's technology is also a very big problem: coins "mining" of hardware will soon be obsolete. And the currency is competitive, all coins of the world "to dig" chips are now competing for the same fixed customer base. When you update a generation, more efficient chips came out, produced by the original slower chip out the old coins will soon start to depreciate.
When you buy a new set of 21 of the company's equipment, it can take the value of 70 cents (about 4.45 Yuan) currency of power produces a value equivalent to $ 1 coins. But a year later, along with the old currency devaluation, also produce valued at US $ 1 (about 6.36 Yuan) currency, will likely cost you a $ 1.2 (about 7.63 yuan) of electricity. Similarly, two years after the battery may have been used to 1 dollar coins worth $ 2 (£ 12.71 million).
Therefore, built coins "dig" chip plant may not need replacement once every few years or older devices but will waste a user more and more power.
Of course, the equipment can be used for several years may also be useful. But in this case, more effective methods may be directly within the device into the pre-built coins or more effective way, that manufacturers provide free coins generator service, users simply pay extra 10 or 20 dollars for the purchase of equipment. In fact, almost all users have a soft spot for transparent pricing methods, cost included in the tariff approach and "transparent" runs counter to the word.
No comments:
Post a Comment