Why is Blocktrend a public good?
Hi frens,
You might be curious why a paid media, such as Blocktrend (區塊勢), which puts some articles behind a paywall, is considered a public good. How is it able to gather hundreds of dollars in donations on Gitcoin Grants 20, whether through ENS Identity or Hypercerts Ecosystem Round?
I’ve discussed what is a public good, and it extends to anything with positive externality. I’ve seen some further arguments that the community gets to decide what is a public good for them. From these standpoints, I’ve come to realize that Blocktrend is truly regarded as a public good for us.
Blocktrend poses positive externality for our community. For example, Blocktrend introduced Gitcoin Grants to our community, which inspired multiple projects in our community participating in the Gitcoin Grants, including our Web3Matters Weekly.
Blocktrend is regarded as a public good for us. It has been focused on delivering insights from a uniquely Taiwanese perspective, and widely respected by the crypto community in Taiwan. Even some already paid subscribers have actually donated to Blocktrend on every Gitcoin round!
I also had a privilege to directly interviewed the founder of Blocktrend, mnhsu.eth, who also approved my use of his comments during the interview.
Blocktrend has been publishing original articles and podcasts for every aspect of blockchain industry since 2017, which includes building on Arbitrum and Optimism. Inspired by Week in Ethereum, Blocktrend has launched a new and free newsletter “Week in PGF” for our local community, curating public goods funding information around the world every week. For example, I learned about Thank ARB from it, and that inspired me to write this topic.
There were hard times that mnhsu thought about giving up Blocktrend. With public goods funding, the revenue source is becoming more diverse and healthier. With Green Sofa, we’ve launched local rounds and planned to fund more local projects specifically for Taiwan, including Blocktrend, to further enrich our community.
Why do local rounds matter? Because they foster a sense of connection and familiarity in our daily lives, mnhsu said. Without community, crypto loses its value.
Your friend,
Denken