If BTC is improved upon significantly enough, the brand name won't save it.
Yes it will IMO, because we're talking about *money* not technological advantage.
Those two things are about as unrelated as "gold as money" and "gold as tooth fillings".
What people grossly underestimate when it comes to things such as money and value is that precedent is everything and technology is nothing. The "low tech" solution starts to be very attractive once it gains acceptance because as far as a store of value is concerned nobody gives a toss about 'functionality' or technical properties - they're not in the market for any of those things.
That's why I made those points about Gox, malleability and ETF's. Bitcoin is advancing in these areas where nobody else is. Nobody else has gone from 'hero' status to 'pauper' and returned again in such a public way as Bitcoin has and nobody will again.
Why do you think that banks and insurance companies were all founded more than a century ago ? Because when it comes to their money, people only care about how long something has lasted. Thats their only indication as to how long it might last into the future, nothing to do with "algos".
The Crimson Permanent Assurance.
I see your point, but I think you're still locked up in old way of doing things. Cryptocurrency is money that doesn't exist without technology. The tech matters. We aren't the rockafellers. We aren't old money bankers.
It falls in line with my airplane analogy when talking to people who say "there's no backing" "there's no central authority" about crypto. I say "Yeah, duh, that's a good thing." Before there were airplanes, all transportation was on the surface... That was part of the old definition. Is an airplane NOT a form of transportation simply because it doesn't fit that old definition?
Your points are valid, but they aren't complete anymore. There's more to it now. Pretend BTC is a bank. The tech matters because Bank of BTC is a bank that anyone gets to see your balance and everything you sell or buy. I don't want a Bank like that no matter how old it is. Especially when the fact that it is old is the REASON it's completely transparent. Add to it the fact that these flaws are known and nothing is being done about it... It's like having a vault that doesn't lock and nobody cares... Is that the Bank you want? I don't...
Zero volume in Mintpal for the past 10-20 minutes...