Note: This article is intended to contribute informative content to you. I present this, based on my opinion. I’m not responsible for your gains or losses. When you’re done reading, do your study and invest at your own risk.

Introduction

In about 40,000 BC, the human being had as one of his entertainments the rock paintings, an artistic representation of the history of man. They consisted of paintings and drawings engraved on cave walls and ceilings. The artistic expressions in the caves were represented by large wild animals, in an attempt to try to reproduce the hunt in the most realistic way possible.

With the rapid technological development, the forms of entertainment and recall have improved, as an example, we have the video platforms that have grown a lot. We can say that we have a monopoly on one platform in particular: Youtube, with about 2 billion active monthly users and billions of videos published, globally…

However, there are many complaints from YouTubers, mainly regarding demonetization and constant changes in the platforms, as a way of “censoring” content. Content must necessarily fit the term family-friendly to be monetized and recommended. That is, without swearing, without hate speech, obscene gestures and things like that. Who dictates the content are the advertisers who have the power to control what appears or not on the platform.

Some YouTubers manage to get through demonetization. Using crowdfunding and support platforms, such as Patreon, for example, in addition to creating their brand and selling T-shirts, mugs and other accessories. This makes it possible to survive, through these monetization methods without depending on the platform itself.

Fortunately, we also have alternative platforms. Even one of the biggest YouTube channels of Swedish PewDiePie started using a live platform that uses Blockchain: Dlive! But, in this particular article, I would like to talk about LBRY.

What is LBRY?

In short, LBRY is a digital content marketplace, where the community controls it. It can also be understood as a peer to peer protocol that allows a decentralized network of publishers who post their content, whether image, audio, video or text.

The name LBRY refers to the word Library, living up to the vision of the platform that is to create a massive repository of media for the 21st century, built in a decentralized network governed by the users themselves. And because it’s an internet protocol just like HTTP, channels, and content in LBRY are accessed similarly to URLs when we browse: “lbry://thisisotherexample”.

Unlike Youtube, where content is stored on servers centralized by Google. At LBRY, content is stored in a decentralized manner, where each viewer of the network shares a part with others.

Regarding monetization, followers can make micro-donations directly to their favorite creators. Best of all, no intermediaries, that is, no fees. Meanwhile, other platforms take up to 40% of their actual gain for their work.

There is also LBRY’s rewards system, where the more participation in the network, completing daily tasks, watching and creating content, the more LBC you earn. LBC or LBRY Credits is the currency used in the platform for the monetization system. This cryptocurrency is already listed on major exchanges such as Coinex and can be exchanged for BTC, another altcoin, or even fiat money if it is your preference.

Mining

LBRY Credits can also be mined. This process is used to confirm transactions by adding them to the LBRY blockchain. Also, it is through this that new LBC is generated in the network, being rewarded to the miners who manage to solve the complex mathematical calculations. You can use GPU or CPU to mine, however, due to network difficulty, you will hardly achieve anything by mining with CPU. LBC mining is dominated by GPU and ASICs.

Platforms

LBRY’s team of developers has whimsical and made the protocol available on several platforms: Web, Windows, Linux, Mac, and Android. Particularly, I prefer the Lbry.tv, the web version of the platform, as it is practical and very intuitive. The desktop version, despite being more stable, in my opinion, requires storage space of your computer, because as you watch content, they are downloaded to your hard drive, but you can simply delete the file after viewing it.

Youtube Partner Program

As a way to encourage and facilitate the migration of Youtube to the LBRY platform, this partnership program was created. Through it, you can sync all your new and old Youtube videos, causing them to be posted on the LBRY platform.

Besides, you also earn LBC annually, depending on your number of Subscribers on Youtube. Views of verified accounts in lbry.tv and followers also count into the rewards program, receiving a varied amount of LBC.

Privacy

In terms of privacy, LBRY collects some data as a way to optimize the platform and channel analysis such as engagement and audience. Also, it seeks to prevent fraud in the reward system. This data is stored in LBRY’s database securely and without sharing your data with third parties. Vpn usage is allowed, but this makes it impossible to participate in the rewards program. You must be at least 13 years of age or older to create an account on the platform.

Pros and Cons

Pros

Technologically decentralized

Non-invasive KYC when needed — The LBRY platform does not require KYC for its use. However, it is necessary for the release of the rewards program feature. If even after the extra verification measures, you are still retained, information such as social networks, names, and other questions will be required to verify that you are a real person and are not trying to circumvent the system. Rest assured, it is a very user-friendly process, not requiring documents and guide you well through Discord.

Safe

Easy to use

Active development

Multi platforms

Participatory community

Thoughtful support — Any questions or issues regarding the rewards program and the LBRY platform itself can be answered in Discord and the FAQ. The community is very participatory and can help you with education.

Cons

Centralization of wealth — In the world of cryptocurrencies, it is even common to see many with this point that I highlight, due to the premine used for various purposes. In the case of LBRY, in the beginning, there were 400,000,000 LBC for Community, operational and institutional purposes according to the image below extracted from the FAQ.

By the time of this article, you can check in block explorer that by adding up the 5 addresses that LBC holds the most gives approximately more than 55% of the existing amount. And of those, only one of them belongs to LBRY’s funds.

It’s not eco-friendly — Due to the type of mining used, energy expenditures are required to maintain the operation of the network in general. Of course, compared to the energy expenditures needed to maintain the Bitcoin network is no big deal, but it’s something to think about. And as you know I value this point a lot in my reviews.

— Due to the type of mining used, energy expenditures are required to maintain the operation of the network in general. Of course, compared to the energy expenditures needed to maintain the Bitcoin network is no big deal, but it’s something to think about. And as you know I value this point a lot in my reviews. Lack of more customization and themes — The LBRY platform has a famous dark mode. However, it could have more themes like a Midnight Blue or other shades of different colors, although the standard green is pretty much. Regarding interface and productivity, you can customize your recommendations by following the only content that you want to receive. I miss a playlist function to organize the content I’d like to watch or read.

Alternatives

As alternatives to the LBRY project we have:

BitTube.tv — Successor platform of bit.tube that was released in mid-2018. It has its cryptocurrency, $TUBE and subscription services that allow you to unlock more upload features and privileges. You can choose between Plus, Content Creator and Power User…For more information click here.

BitChute — Peer to Peer video hosting and sharing platform, with a similar proposal of free expression, but it is necessary to follow the guidelines of the community. Unlike the ones mentioned so far, it does not use its blockchain-based monetization system, but rather outsourced services such as Patreon, SubscribeStar, CoinPayments, and Paypal… For more information click here.

Dtube — Video platform that works on the Steem blockchain. This platform is ad-free. No hidden algorithms are controlling the visibility or monetization of certain videos…For more information click here.

Conclusion

Review: 7/10

Yes, I would recommend LBRY to anyone who is looking for alternatives to Youtube. There is still a lot of news to come this year according to Roadmap 2020 and with the competent team of developers, I believe that much of what is proposed, will be fulfilled. What do you think of LBRY? Are you already using it? Do you like it? Leave here in the comments.

Official Links

Website: https://lbry.com/

Platform: https://lbry.tv/

Social

Telegram: https://t.me/lbryofficial

Discord: https://chat.lbry.com/