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Bitcoin is a cryptocurrency, designed to replace the notes and coins in your pocket with an internet based alternative. Ethereum is designed to be a programmatic platform which can be used to build, deploy and enforce smart contracts entered into by both human and computer counter-parties. In order to fund the distributed processing power required, Ethereum has its own internal currency called "Ether". So although both Bitcoin and Ether can be described as currencies, they serve different purposes, with Bitcoin intended to be a general purpose currency, whereas Ether is intended to be used exclusively to finance the internal workings of Ethereum. Whether or not Ether could ever grow into a general purpose currency is an interesting debate, but it's certainly not its intended purpose.
Remember Ether is the currency of the Ethereum platform and when you use Ether to pay the miner fee for a transaction is it called 'gas'.
See this is what I'm having trouble understanding. If I were to word this differently, I'd say it's a blockchain operated by an altcoin they are in denial of.
Is that the case, or is Ether some real estate on the Ethereum blockchain? Can I trade Ether as a coin I can invest in, or does the purchase of Ether merely give me programming rights on Ethereum?
From my understanding, it is a currency, but also much more. I think a lot of the wording is because they are trying to get across the point that Ether is not "just" a currency, but can be used for much more, powering Ethereum applications for one.
Remember all of this is new territory, and with these new "currencies" (using the word loosely) opens up many new and exciting opportunities that did not exist before. The old days of looking at a currency as simply the paper fiat in your wallet are so limiting at what new blockchain technologies are capable of, that I think they are shying away from branding Ethereum, or its Ether, as such.
In essence, we are going to have to rethink what a currency is capable of, or even what it is for that matter. Decoupling old concepts such as centralization, Central bankers, Banks, or even exchanges and marketplaces, contracts, etc., basically every and anything connected to our current way of thinking about money will need to change as these new technologies grown and mature and slowly replace the traditional financial system. This won't happen overnight, but the initial seeds are already being planted, both in practice and more importantly in peoples minds.
