I’ve noticed a lot of misleading use of blockchain terms like Web3, blockchain, decentralized, metaverse, etc. The semantics of all of this needs to be discussed because I can only expect it will lead to a lot of people losing money.

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It seems to me that with a lot of the content I post especially when I dive into decentralization, Web3, the metaverse, and these terms that have been increasingly used as buzzwords that I need to take some time to clarify the semantics of all of this.

It’s become clear that many people are using words like Web3, blockchain, decentralization, and the metaverse for marketing purposes. They are not accurately reflecting what someone would generally assume they mean.
• Many crypto-monetized platforms are considered “blockchain platforms.”
o SoMee blocked your withdrawals for almost 10 months, DLive and Theta make it nearly impossible to withdraw. Platforms like Minds have you pay to withdraw funds.
o You don’t get a free pass because you claim to be for free speech and are against then fully control my funds. I prioritize financial censorship over content censorship.
o A term that is used a lot is “blockchain-based” which usually just means crypto-monetized and even then it’s usually very restricted.
• Many platforms that are fairly centralized in many aspects are considered “decentralized” because they offer one pillar towards decentralization while all the rest lean towards centralization.
o A DAO isn’t automatically decentralized just because it’s in the name. See Wonderland DAO as a perfect example.
• Many people will use terms like Web3 or metaverse and conflate them with NFTs, a fully centralized entity, or are just simply referring to Web2.
o Almost all “Metaverse” platforms are run fully centralized with only NFTs touching the blockchain and every single other aspect of them is centralized. On top of that, we are seeing platforms like Coinbase launch an NFT platform, Twitter connecting to your ETH wallet to verify your NFT ownership, and essentially the largest centralized entities KYCing you into their databases.
• Many cryptocurrencies will compare themselves to the wrong use cases on purpose.
o Doge is frequently compared against Bitcoin for fees and usage as a digital cash alternative only because it’s up 20x more expensive than other competing digital cash alternatives like Bitcoin Cash or Dash.
o https://bitinfocharts.com/comparison/transactionfees-doge-xrp-ltc-bch-xmr.html#1y
• Many projects will use semantics and obfuscation to tell a narrative.
o Hex isn’t a scam because it doesn’t meet the exact definition of a scam, but it’s full of sketchy problems that would lead most laymen applying common sense logic to conclude it is a scam.

The answer to all this is education and more importantly, calling things what they really are. I’ve already explained previously that everything we have today is basically the Centraverse and Web2. One could argue that projects that integrate blockchain in some ways are Web2.5, but I would 99% are inaccurate labeling themselves for marketing purposes.

I’ve found it problematic for me to make these long videos because then people can go after me on semantics, but it’s very different when you lead people to believe something isn’t what it really is or make poor comparisons on purpose, use logical fallacies, or mislead people to make a profit.

It’s also worth mentioning that you will also get the other side too where they’ll say something isn’t decentralized, it’s just distributed, but it’s important that we don’t get too into the weeds of things too that it’s not understandable by the average person.

Am I wrong about any of these? Did I miss anything? How many projects are just making marketing plays and how many are being genuine? Let me know what you think about this in the comments below and don’t forget to subscribe!

*Disclaimer: This is not financial advice and is purely for entertainment purposes. What you see, hear, or read is my personal opinion, and any statements made are based on my views and should not be misconstrued as fact. My crypto portfolio may or may not be simulated*

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