Web3 social networks are decentralized alternatives to traditional centralized platforms like Facebook and Twitter.
As a user of the social dapps on Hive you already know that.
With the rise of blockchain technology, these new networks aim to provide users with more control over their data and privacy, as well as the ability to earn rewards for contributing to the network.
In this blog post, we'll explore the best web3 social networks outside the Hive ecosystem and their potential to shape the future of social media, decentralized communication and collaboration!
Regular Decentralized Social Networks
1. Uhive
Uhive is a popular decentralized network that is around for some time (early 2019). It has a decent user base ( 3 million downloads on IOS and Android combined) and generates some serious interest. It has already onboarded some well-known brands and media outlets and user engagement is on a steady growth trend. Uhive has an intuitive and user-friendly UX similiar to Instagram and is powered by it's own ERC20 token. What's special about Uhive is the integrated NFT marketplace and it's own metaverse space where users can build their own communities and content is presented in a more immersive way than in regular group sections as we know them from web2 social media.
2. Minds
Minds is one of the oldest decentralized social media sites that launched as early as 2015. Users can earn cryptocurrency for using Minds in the form of Ethereum-based MINDS token (ERC20) which can be used to boost their posts or crowdfund other users.
The website gets 1,57 million visits per month.
3. Diamond
Diamond is a fairly new project but has gained some popularity in the web3 community.
It's the first social dapp on the DeSo (Decentralized Social) blockchain, a scalable chain built specifically for web3 social dapps.
This architecture makes sense, since such data-intensive dapps like social platforms could actually slow down public chains with a lot parallel user activity and adoption. I recommend to keep an eye on the DeSo website where you get information about all the dapps that have been built or are under development in the ecosystem.
4. Twetch
Twetch is another relatively popular social dapp that migrated from Bitcoin SV to Solana a while ago.
It wants to be the best decentralized alternative to Twitter and provides a clean and professional UX. The algorithm works in favour of the regular user. Twetch is completely on-chain and comes with native NFT integration and payments. It has approximately 100.000 users.
5. Showtime
Showtime is a web3 social network built around the idea of free NFTs. Making it easy for creators to drop free NFTs to their community provides them with a way to generate interest in their content. That concept makes it also easier to onboard a large group of new people into web3. A low barrier to entry (free mint) could play a central role in accelerating NFT adoption.
On Showtime you can also sell and showcase your work, both art or music NFTs. It's also a great way to follow other creators and discover their NFTs. Here is my profile.
6. GM
Named after "gm", the crypto space's most famous greeting, you probably can spot what this decentralized social media site is all about: community! Discover communities and interest-based groups in different niches all over the web3 space and/or launch your own brande community to monetize your content creation game and engage with your followers.
7. Flote
Flote is a privacy-focused social network that's completely against censorship. The team is passionate about their vision and is constantly working on improving the app and user experience. They listen to user feedback and adress every issue they are being presented with. Some privacy advocates and educators like Naomi Brockwell and Davide Icke are active on Flote and it seems user numbers are growing (200.000). The latest release of the app (mobile + web) now comes with native livestreaming and crossposting capabilities to empower creators in their content syndication efforts. Flote is a network that I will watch closely.
8. DSCVR
DSCVR, short for DISCOVER, is a decentralized social content curation and discovery platform on the Internet Computer (ICP).
Upvote, downvote, participate and share your best content to get rewarded. DSCVR comes with an ultra-modern look and feel.
The website is currently visited from up to 70.000 people per month.
9. BBS Network
The BBS network is an interesting concept, as it's basically a decentralized form of a bulletin board or forum software capable of being held on any domain of your choice. That means due to it's open-source nature you can either self-host it on your own or some third-party server or build your own customizable forum/community board on top of the decentralized BBS network. After building your reputation through engagement and activity, you qualify for monetization. That's a smart concept (similar to the system here on Hive) as it prevents spam. There are some pretty big forums on BBS, for example a community board by Crypto Banter, a big YouTube channel in the crypto space. Here you find my forum.
10. MAIN
MAIN is a user-owned web3 social platform on the BNB Chain with a sustainable two-token architecture where you can build your own web3 community on decentralized infrastructure. It comes with in-built DAO governance and your own branded community tokens.
UX and UI of MAIN ist first class and the unique feature list makes me want to explore the dapp a little further. What about you?
11. APPICS
APPICS is an EOS-based social media dapp available for every common device. It seems it is marketed especially to influencers as main targeted audience. The dapp looks absolutely amazing and is fun to use, but there are unfortunately not many active users at the moment. But I think it's worth to keep an eye on.
12. Stori
Stori is a decentralized TikTok alternative that tries to jump on the "short-form video content hype train". Seems to be a decent plan to me! It's built on DeSo and isn't launched yet. You can visit the website and sign up for early access. Stori may get a lot of traction, so being early makes perfect sense to me.
Niche Web3 Social Dapps
13. Cumrocket
Cumrocket is, as the name suggests, a decentralized alternative to OnlyFans and aims to provide a secure blockchain-based platform for NSFW and adult content creators. The dapp is built on Binance Chain and is powered by it's on token called CUMMIES.
CUMMIES are used for payment and have utility all over the platform, for example on the built-in adult NFT marketplace or in
DeFi-related offerings. To protect creators from unwanted volatility Cumrocket offers payment and rewards in BUSD, a dollar-pegged
stablecoin issued by Paxos. Cumrocket should have it's place in a decentralized creator economy and the creators seem to have the right strategy, so let's see what the future brings!
Conclusion
There are actually many other social dapps being built during this bear market and I will let you guys know about them early.
Web3 social media will probably play an important role in onboarding new people to the blockchain as it targets such a big audience while offering clear incentives.
In my next blog post i will explore another decentralized social media niche that is actually a big one:
Professional Web3 Social Networks!
Think of them as LinkedIns, but on blockchain! They offer improved experiences for professionals wanting to connect to each other and enable the networking of the decentralized future. So stay tuned!