Exploring the Path of Diverse Web3 Social Applications: a flash in the pan or the next mass application?

1. Introduction: What is Web3 Social?

The recent popularity of friend.tech has once again sparked people's attention to Web3 social. By attracting many people's attention and pursuit through a gameplay that assigns KOL influence to price, the subsequently emerged Bodhi has also gained widespread attention by realizing data value return through assigning value to content. In the field of social networks, Web3 social seems to be undergoing some new changes and explorations. With the development of blockchain technology, it is redefining our understanding of social interactions and providing a series of innovative solutions. Whether it is social finance or decentralized social, Web3 social is actively exploring the possibilities of future social networks.

Looking back at the development of social products, Web2 social products like Facebook, X, Instagram, and WeChat have provided users with unprecedented convenience for sharing, interacting, and communicating. However, this convenience also hides some issues. Web2 social platforms typically concentrate control over user data, lacking transparency and privacy protection, and platform governance and decision-making are often controlled by a few centralized entities. Additionally, creator incentives are also a contentious point for Web2 social products.

At the same time, Web3 social is redefining social networks in new ways. Web3 social emphasizes decentralization, user data privacy and control, as well as the incentive mechanisms of cryptocurrency economics, giving rise to protocols and products such as Lens, CyberConnect, Farcaster, Phaver, Debox, and friend.tech. Concepts like social finance integrate finance and social interactions, reshaping the landscape of social networks. Meanwhile, decentralized social focuses on building a decentralized social ecosystem to eliminate many issues present in Web2 social networks.

Although the social track has long been expected to be the next large-scale application, it has not produced any large-scale applications since its inception. What will the future of Web3 social look like? Are the endless social products a flash in the pan or the next large-scale application? This article will delve into the core concepts and solutions of Web3 social, analyzing its current development status, advantages, and challenges. We will return to the essence of social interaction, examine the Web3 social field, reveal its advantages and challenges, and discuss their roles in redefining social networks.

2. Why do we need Web3 social?

1. The essence of social interaction does not change with the development of history.

As mentioned in Tom Standage's "A Brief History of Social Media," we often think of social media as a new concept that emerged with the development of the internet and digital technology. However, in fact, humans have always engaged in socializing and information dissemination in various forms. From ancient letters and coffeehouses to modern social networks, the essence of social media has not changed; it has merely evolved in form and technological tools. Social media is an extension of human characteristics, a way for us to continuously pursue connection and communication.

Observing from different historical stages, technology has had a significant impact on the development and evolution of social media, serving as an important driver of change.

1. Ancient and Traditional Media Period: In ancient times, letters, postal services, and other methods were the primary social media. With the invention of printing, books and newspapers became the main tools for information dissemination, but the scope of social interaction was limited by geography and communication speed.

2. The Era of Telegraphs and Telephones: From the end of the 19th century to the beginning of the 20th century, the emergence of the telegraph shortened the time for information dissemination, and the popularity of the telephone changed the way of long-distance communication, allowing people to exchange information more rapidly.

3. The Era of Broadcasting and Television: The broadcasting and television media of the 20th century changed the way mass communication occurred, allowing information to be disseminated more widely and shaping cultural, political, and social ideas.

4. The Internet and the Web 1.0 Era: From the 1990s to the early 2000s, the emergence of the Internet made information dissemination more widespread and instantaneous. The Web 1.0 era was mainly composed of static web pages, with content primarily being a one-way transmission from official sources to users, and users were unable to actively participate in content creation, resulting in low interactivity.

5. The Rise of Web 2.0 and Social Media: Since the mid-2000s, with the rise of Web 2.0, more interactive and user-participatory social media platforms have emerged, such as Facebook, X, and YouTube. These platforms provide more user-generated content and social features, becoming the main tools for daily communication, sharing, and interaction.

6. Web3.0 and Decentralized Social Media: Recently, with the development of blockchain and cryptocurrency technology, social platforms that focus more on decentralization, privacy protection, and user control have emerged. These platforms aim to address the issues existing in Web2.0 social media, such as data privacy, algorithmic filtering, and information authenticity, providing a safer and more transparent social experience.

It is easy to find that human beings have had the need for social interaction since ancient times. However, at its core, whether it is face-to-face communication, sending messages by carrier pigeon, or inscribing them on tablets for others, the essence of human social needs has not changed significantly with the passage of time. The core needs can be summarized in the following four points:

1. Maintain connection and sense of belonging: Socializing gives people a sense of belonging, meets emotional and psychological needs, builds intimate relationships, and provides support.

2. Information learning and exchange: Through social interactions, people can share experiences, knowledge, and information, promoting learning, development, and personal growth.

3. Cooperation and Mutual Assistance: Social interaction helps people to collaborate, cooperate, solve problems together, and achieve common goals.

4. Social identity and self-expression: Socializing is a way for people to showcase themselves, establish identity recognition, and gain acknowledgment.

2. Web2 social solutions meet the demands of "fast, good, and economical."

After the mid-2000s, Web2 social media began to thrive. Facebook became a pioneer among them, offering users the ability to share information, photos, videos, status updates, and more, allowing users to build social networks. Subsequently, various social platforms such as X, YouTube, and LinkedIn emerged.

Each platform has its own unique features and functions. For example, X has become an important platform for information dissemination and discussion due to its unique instant messaging and social interaction methods. Its 140-character limit allows for rapid information sharing, making it a hotspot for news and topic discussions; YouTube, as a video sharing platform, has changed the way people watch and share videos, becoming a widely popular content creation and sharing platform; LinkedIn focuses on professional networking, providing a professional network for users to establish career connections, share work experiences, and expand their network; Instagram, with its powerful image sharing capabilities and social interactivity, has attracted a large user base, becoming one of the main platforms for photo and video sharing.

During the Web2 phase, there was an emphasis on user participation, interaction, and content generation. Websites transformed from static information displays into more dynamic and interactive social platforms, enabling users to create and share content, ranging from simple text and images to richer videos, blogs, and personal profiles. With the development of mobile internet and the popularity of smartphones, people can access social media platforms anytime and anywhere, facilitating and increasing the frequency of social activities.

As the user base grows, social media has gradually become the main platform for business activities and advertising promotions. Companies and brands utilize social media to attract users and promote products, and the market value of social projects has been climbing steadily. The leading company Meta (formerly Facebook)) has seen its market value soar since its IPO in 2012, surpassing 1 trillion dollars in market value in 2021.

Looking back at the development history of Web2 social networks, the essence of social needs has not changed; the core change is to provide faster, more convenient, and cheaper services. Facebook allows people to meet friends and share information faster, X enables quicker access to trending news and interactive discussions (compared to newspapers and television), and LinkedIn transforms workplace networking from only offline introductions to rapid online professional networking... Essentially, Web2 social products address the "speed, quality, and cost-effectiveness" of social needs.

3. The Dilemma of Traditional Social Industry

However, Web2 social also brings some problems, which can be summarized in two aspects: data ownership and centralization.

1. Data Ownership: In Web2 social products, users do not own their data; it belongs to the platform, which can lead to many issues.

• Privacy Leakage: User data is being extensively collected and utilized, leading to the risk of personal privacy leakage. The platform may abuse user data or sell it to third parties, resulting in privacy leakage and data abuse issues.

• Value does not benefit users: Users' data allows social platforms to conduct targeted marketing and advertising activities, yet users cannot gain benefits from the revenue, resulting in users' data being exploited by the platform.

• Unable to cross platforms: Because users' data belongs to the platform rather than themselves, registering on different social media often requires starting from scratch. Personal social cards and other information cannot circulate across multiple social platforms, making each social platform an island.

In the Web2 social environment, many creators report that after generating most of the value, they receive little to no compensation, or only a very small portion of it. They can create their own IP on social media platforms, but they have no ownership or control over the data and value generated from their content. Once X or YouTube deletes a profile, all accumulated content data is lost.

2. Centralization: In Web2 social products, the platform has unlimited rights to use the content.

• Weak censorship resistance: Since Web2 information is stored on centralized servers, freedom of speech cannot be realized in many countries' apps due to political, cultural, and other influences, and the right to express freely is, to some extent, deprived. Whether it is the ever-changing rules of X, account bans, or platforms like Facebook, TikTok, and WeChat, there are too many centralized restrictions and constraints in centralized platforms, forcing users to dance under shackles.

Although there are applications like Mammoth making efforts in decentralization, there are still many unavoidable issues. While it is decentralized overall, users still face risks of despotism, abandonment, and exclusion from the providers of specific servers.

3. Analysis of Web3 Social Industry Products

Facing various issues existing in Web2 social media