I have a Disqus account for commenting on various websites. While browsing their main site, I began to wonder whether Steemit could be adapted to serve as a competitor. It could offer a number of advantages. In no particular order:
- Instead of using advertising for funding, it would support the Steem network organically at no cost to anyone. It could even provide an alternative funding model for websites in place of (or in addition to) ad revenue and affiliate marketing programs.
- Users would be encouraged to participate in discussions through the Steem cryptocurrency earning incentives.
- The Steem blockchain maintains comment records even if the original site eventually goes down.
- Comment visibility can be automatically flagged for moderator approval based on steem power as a potential spam prevention measure.
- It could provide wider visibility for Steemit, adding value to the system.
Obstacles would include the market share currently held by Disqus and similar services in a potentially overcrowded market, and the lack of public familiarity with blockchain technology in general, not to mention the peculiarities of Steem itself. Additionally, since I am not a programmer, I don't know what obstacles there could be to designing such a program and integrating it into websites.