Commun to Launch Decentralized Social Network

An internal source told UNLOCK that Commun, a social network built on Web3 technologies, has successfully launched its mainnet for online communities. The platform, comprised of Decentralized Autonomous Communities (DAC), serves as a web, Android, and iOS portal where users can form interest-based groups to share, read, watch, rank, and discuss content with like-minded people. In addition to beating Twitter’s Bluesky to launch, Commun has arrived ahead of Voice.com, whose web domain cost EOS $30m alone, and which has been hit by repeated delays.  

Commun CEO Marina Guryeva said: “We’re delighted to have successfully launched the Commun mainnet for online communities. Delivering the network ahead of several well-funded and highly publicized alternatives is a major coup, and it gives us a runway in which to prove the efficacy of the tokenized economy we’ve devised. Now it’s over to the Commun community to make the platform their own way, and to build their own boards upon it, tailored to their interests. We’re excited to discover the concepts they come up with, and to watch Commun grow as a decentralized network whose future resides in the hands of its users.”

Commun is the first Web3 social network to launch since interest in the technology was piqued following an outcry over censorship, de-platforming, and data-selling by social media giants. Launching within days of Twitter’s Jack Dorsey proposing a similar initiative, dubbed Bluesky, Commun is well-placed to lead the exodus towards community-run social networks, or DACs. Billed as a “decentralized Reddit,” Commun incorporates a tokenized reward system designed to incentivize content curation and voting. The network can be accessed via a decentralized application (dApp).

As the backlash against social networks treating their users as a product has grown, demand for user-centric alternatives has intensified. Research has shown that more than 96% of YouTubers earn below the poverty line, while only 14% of bloggers are remunerated for their efforts. Platforms formed of Decentralized Autonomous Communities provide a means for content creators and curators to monetize their work, and eliminate the constant threat of de-platforming.

As a decentralized network built atop a blockchain layer, Commun places control firmly in the hands of its users, disintermediating the means for its architects to censor content or freeze funds. Commun provides a way for creators to control their career, own their content, own their identity, interact with their fans and directly monetize without reliance on third-party processors. It also provides web users with a place where they can interact with individuals who share the same interests, and to have a say in dictating the way their community is run. Communities can set their own rules, and reward users for activities while controlling their data and personal identity.