Decentralised society and its enemies: Can DeSoc replace X, Facebook and YouTube

In May 2022 a paper, “Decentralised Society: Finding Web3’s Soul”, by Vitalik Buterin, Glen Weyl and Puja Ohlhaver set out the idea of soulbound tokens (SBTs) and called for the creation of a decentralised society (Decentralised Society). The term is widely thought to have entered public discourse then.

As the crypto community embraced the idea, its name evolved. Messari analysts use “Decentralised Social” in their reports; in CoinMarketCap’s token categories “Communications and Social Media” is used; on Coingecko it is “SocialFi”.

Ethereum has taken a more systematic approach, focusing on the structure and coherence of the concept and proposing the term “Decentralised Social Networks”. This piece delves into the field, whose growth since 2023 has been forecast by leading funds and analysts.

How DeSoc works

Decentralised social networks are a system of blockchain-based decentralised applications (dapps) and their infrastructure protocols that let users publish and distribute content without censorship and with the possibility of monetisation.

These dapps also let users take part in building social platforms and their evolution via DAOs, including physical infrastructure—much as in DePIN.

DeSoc should not be conflated with decentralised social media. The latter are the interfaces with which users interact.

Social interaction in DeSoc is enabled by a variety of infrastructure protocols:

• user identification and reputation;
• messaging;
• content monetisation;
• founder-economy tooling.

In a report on openness and transparency in social networks, Messari’s analysts argued that the cryptosphere and blockchain are a civic category, not merely a new kind of finance. To describe DeSoc they proposed a four-layer model.

Data Layer

This can be divided into smart contracts and content-management systems. The former act as a project’s back end, with contract code serving as the server side of applications—storing and computing transactions and defining business logic. The latter are often standalone L1 and L2 networks designed for storing and managing data. They typically use decentralised storage protocols such as IPFS.

Social Primitive Layer

Here lie the basic elements and concepts that underpin social connection and interaction—the heart of DeSoc. Primitives include links between participants (friendship, subscription, following), interactions with content (likes, comments, reposts) and various forms of virtual and real-world influence (reputation, status, rewards). As links between primitives are established, a social graph emerges. For instance, in Lens Protocol, content and follower data are represented as NFTs, and any user profile can form a DAO.

Algorithm Layer

Moderation and content-policy governance take place here. Once the social graph is created, the information it contains is handled by algorithms that, in DeSoc, are relatively democratic, transparent and community-governed. Owing to lower speed than in TradSoc, results can be less efficient.

Front-end Layer

This is where the end product is built, assembled from various protocols across the stack. In practice it is a dapp with its own interface—the surface users touch.

An essential component of modern Web3 to add to this social stack is user identification. In DeSoc it is enabled by dedicated protocols such as Galxe, Layer3, ENS and universal crypto wallets (such as MetaMask), which can be treated as passports that let users port data to other applications at will.

Also relevant are the possibilities of SBTs, where the “Soul” refers to the account and wallet of the owner of this non-transferable NFT. Their functions and prospects for DeSoc include:

• users (“Souls”) hold SBTs that can be non-transferable, potentially revocable and initially public. Later, the researchers believe, private use-cases will become more realistic;
• SBTs can track affiliations, memberships and credentials such as educational documents, employment history, or hashes of texts and artworks;
• SBTs may be issued by the user, and can also be attested by other participants in the social graph who are counterparties in those relationships;
• if a holder attempts to recover lost SBTs, other participants can vouch for their identity and community membership.

Many DeSoc platforms issue their own tokens, providing monetisation in the absence of advertising revenue and unlocking extra features for users—from in-app purchases to tipping influencers.

In sum, DeSoc platforms offer several notable advantages:

• crypto-native orientation. DeSoc offers improved monetisation for creators via NFTs and crypto payments without resorting to advertising;
• open source. Unlike TradSoc, DeSoc code is transparent and can be audited and improved by any enthusiast, aligning the interests of builders and users;
• DAO and SBT integration. This brings more order to social networks and shifts governance power to user-led organisations;
• no single point of failure. Thanks to blockchain, DeSoc is harder to attack, protecting accounts from hacks and other malicious actions;
• privacy. Authentication via, for example, ENS ensures a sufficient level of anonymity. Instead of handing over information easily linked to your real identity (phone numbers, email), DeSoc uses identification features and social primitives.

DeSoc projects at work today

Lens Protocol. A social graph launched in 2022 by the Aave Companies team on Polygon. Its distinguishing trait is modularity, enabling the portability of all user data as NFTs across platforms and allowing the creation of diverse decentralised social networks on top. Apps built on Lens include Lenster, Lenstube, Memester and others.

Each account created on Lens is an NFT that stores the history of all posts, comments and other content. A ProfileNFT can be minted on the official Lens Protocol website—the analogue of registering an account on X or Facebook. Users can trade their Lens Protocol Profiles (LPP) on secondary markets such as OpenSea.

Development is ongoing. In April 2023 the team released the Bonsai beta—a DeSoc scaling solution—and in July launched the protocol’s second version, which includes the ERC-6551 token standard and various smart-contract improvements. The Lens Protocol team also built an encrypted messaging module based on XMTP.

On 27 February 2024 the project removed its registration queue and opened to all, triggering an influx of new users. By April their number exceeded 250,000.

Farcaster. A Web3 social network akin to X. Founded in 2020 by former Coinbase employees, it runs on OP Mainnet. Farcaster uses a hybrid architecture, storing user identity on-chain while keeping posts and interactions off-chain. With active support from Vitalik Buterin, the platform has grown rapidly; Farcaster Frames, which turn posts into interactive experiences, have helped popularise it.

Thanks to OP Stack, building apps atop Farcaster is straightforward; around 20 exist already. One of the most popular is Warpcast. According to Dune data, in April 2024 the average number of daily “casts” on Farcaster exceeded 400,000, with the user count nearing 290,000.

Mask Network. A DeSoc platform on Ethereum whose key functions are peer-to-peer crypto-asset exchange and “masks” that protect privacy online. The MASK token’s market capitalisation is valued at over $500m.

CyberConnect. According to the team’s documentation, the project is building the first L2 network for future social media and aims to offer simple access to Web3 tools. The Cyber network is developed with tooling from EigenLayer and OP Mainnet in partnership with AltLayer. The CYBER token’s capitalisation exceeds $150m.

DeSo Protocol. A layer-1 blockchain purpose-built for decentralised social networks, offering a broad toolset to build and run all elements of DeSoc. The developers claim the lowest transaction costs among blockchains: as of 21 March 2024 they were about $0.000017. The project’s DESO token has a market capitalisation above $300m.

Dtube. A decentralised video-sharing platform that mirrors YouTube’s functionality while prioritising privacy, security and freedom of speech. In 2022 it transformed into a DAO. It uses the Steem blockchain and supports IPFS, BitTorrent and Skynet for data storage and distribution, ensuring content is not centrally controlled and is resistant to censorship.

Dmail Network. A DeSoc platform that provides secure email communication between different Web3 identifiers, such as blockchain addresses, crypto wallets and DID. Its main application, Dmail DApp, lets users create an email account based on a Web3 identifier (for example, a network address) and exchange messages with Web3 and Web 2.0 mail services. The platform also offers products for influencers and marketers to engage audiences more effectively. The project’s DMAIL token has a capitalisation of about $26m.

Beyond the platforms above, others also merit attention: Friend.Tech, Bluesky, Mirror, Minds, Mastodon, Ethermail, Hive.

What holds DeSoc back

Privacy-focused platforms and decentralised networks are promising, but they still face hurdles:

• user experience. The complexity of blockchain-based apps can deter mass adoption. People steeped in Web 2.0 and TradSoc do not always grasp Web3 technologies;
• feature gaps. DeSoc still lacks some attractive features compared with centralised peers;
• market competition. Social-network giants dominate, making it hard for DeSoc platforms to attract newcomers;
• scalability and costs. High transaction fees, especially on networks such as Ethereum, become a serious issue during congestion;
• market volatility. DeSoc platforms with their own cryptoeconomies can be exposed to risk. Market swings can quickly affect creator rewards and the overall stability of a social network;
• regulation. DeSoc may face regulatory challenges, as there are still no global standards for blockchain.

Conclusions

Censorship in traditional social networks is pushing users to alternative platforms where they are willing to pay for unfettered expression.

As large platforms chase profit and shift to entertainment-heavy models, users face a lack of content diversity and independent voices. That is spurring the emergence and adoption of privacy-oriented DeSoc. The rise of such platforms signals a shift in the social paradigm towards open interaction.

With broad functionality and a layered, fractal system, DeSoc has ample potential and can address many of the problems that beset traditional social networks.

Text: Sergey Golubenko