Podcasting 2.0 will be next for Lightning Network. This statement could be viewed with suspicion, but Kevin Rooke:This is a very good case. Get ready to get the boost you need to create your podcast. Technology is still in its early stages, but people have begun to get comfortable using it. However, the logic behind Rooke’s argument stands.
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His opening statement will be a surprise to no one. “The Lightning Network’s architecture allows creators to earn directly from their biggest fans, in new ways that aren’t even possible on a fiat payment system.” That much we can admit. Additionally, closed platforms allow for greater convenience and reach a larger audience. However, “Apple takes a 30% fee on in-app payments, YouTube takes a 45% fee on ad revenues, and Facebook keeps all their ad revenue without paying their creators a penny.”
On the other hand, “Email, websites, podcasts, and Bitcoin are all examples of open platforms.” They don’t offer an already captive audience, but, “anyone to plug into fully-formed networks of content and users with full interoperability between competing products.” This helps a lot. However, creators using these open platforms, “still rely on closed monetization platforms like PayPal, Amazon Affiliates, Patreon, or Google Adsense to earn income.”
The Lightning Network Saves The Day
This is something you already know: the Lightning Network permits micropayments almost for free. Anyone can use it, and it’s approaching mass adoption by the minute. “Not only can creators now plug into an open monetization platform with hundreds of millions of users, they can even access a New type of monetization that was never before possible.” Those New types are, “real-time payment streaming, micro-tipping, and other monetization strategies that simply aren’t possible on fiat payment rails.”
So far, so good. “Real-time payment streaming” via the Lightning Network is what Podcasting 2.0 is all about. However, it’s easy to miss WhyThis is crucial. Crucial, even.
“Advertising is directly at odds with other monetization strategies like paid subscriptions. If only a small fraction of your listeners are willing to pay subscriptions for your content, any gains made from subscription revenues will cannibalize your ad revenue, as your total listeners fall by 95% or more.”
That’s the problem with Patreon or similar services. You can monetize your biggest fans’ support, sure, but advertisers won’t pay for that small audience. Podcasting 2.0 offers both the best and worst of both worlds.
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We’re Still Early. Podcasting 2.0: The Dawn
Let’s check the stats out. That’s always fun.
“There are 4,434,920RSS podcast feeds are available online today. But only 2,947 RSS podcast feeds are currently on Lightning. Put another way, only 0.07% of all podcasts on the internet can earn Lightning tips right now.”
The Lightning Network has been used only by early adopters in El Salvador and other countries. Only a small number of people in that group will pay real-time tips or money for The Lightning Network content. However, “there is zero downside to enabling Lightning tips, and the upside can be a meaningful contribution to total revenue. It’s only a matter of time before the other 99.93% of podcasters figure this out.”
And that’s not all, the Lightning Network enables a type of interaction that was not possible for the podcasting medium. The creators will be able to see the precise moment when their listeners tipped them.
“Podcasting 2.0 apps also let listeners send messages and tips to creators while listening to a show, providing direct feedback with timestamps attached to every comment. This innovation represents a shift to a more social podcasting experience.”
It’s okay, you could already give feedback in YouTube livestreams. YouTube is an closed platform. The feedback stayed with them and wasn’t available for people consuming the podcast through other apps. That’s not the case with Podcasting 2.0.
“Since RSS and the Lightning Network are both open platforms, comments are also interoperable across Podcasting 2.0 apps, so any creator can receive feedback from any listener using any app.”
Conclusions about Podcasting 2.0
Podcasters also have the advantage of this standard being platform-independent.
“Since RSS and Bitcoin are complementary open standards, podcasters don’t have to risk alienating their existing listeners or worry about migrating their content to a new platform.
All podcasters need to do is flip the switch and their Lightning tips and messages will seamlessly integrate with their existing RSS feed.”
Kevin Rooke ends his masterclass this way:
“As Podcasting 2.0 apps continue to build easy interfaces for listeners to tip their favorite podcasters, Lightning tips could even become a primary revenue source, without cannibalizing or interfering with a creator’s existing ad revenue.”
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Is it possible to see the difference now? Is he really exaggerating? In any case, the Lightning Network doesn’t have to provide a “primary revenue source.” If Podcasting 2.0 provides a secondary one that wasn’t possible before, plus audience interaction, that’s more than enough.
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