Topic: What more does it mean mainstream for bitcoin? (Read 992 times)
Bitcoin will be *truly* mainstream when e-commerce sites begin publishing item prices in terms of BTC. Selling goods in fiat and accepting bitcoin at check out page makes bitcoin Yet-Another-Electronic-Payment-System.
Patience is a virtue.
It took PayPal about a decade to get where it is now, offering debit cards and over the counter money cards...and being accepted at major outlets. Last week I paid for a purchase at Office Depot at the checkout counter with PayPal. I was greatly amused to see it but I'd seen PayPal cards on the racks at Family Dollar and other places over the last 3 or 4 years.
Things will take far less time for Bitcoin adoption for the simple fact PayPal has beautifully conditioned the public mainstream to embrace the whole concept of "digital" online transactions. People aren't paranoid about being hacked like The Net anymore when it comes to doing online transactions via PayPal, it's pretty much "doing email". PayPal got too heavy handed though so once it's better established there are alternatives to it, Bitcoin will explode onto the scene. I also think Circle, provided it does business right, will help carry Bitcoin to John Doe and Suzi Homemaker with ease. They don't have to do a bunch of heavy research trying to understand bitcoin...they can consider it just easy digital cash and use Circle to buy, sell, send and receive money in seconds for free, and use it to pay for stuff. Just "fund" their Circle account and have at it.
That is what breaks the barrier for the public. They don't give a shit about Satoshi and they aren't reading two sentences of the white paper and they're not going to take on the learning curve of downloading wallets or any of that and they don't need to - they're the "herd" that makes the ranchers long term gains so handing them Circle (because yeah I'm a total fangirl at this point) they can get on board with ease.
I hope, HOPE Circle can figure out a *card* option, debit or however they'll ultimately do it, or a bitcoin gift card - so people can use it anywhere and it exchanges on the back end. That right there will be the trigger, along with the apps that gets it done.
To those who are legitimately paranoid about the longevity of bitcoin every time the price falls, don't be. Rising and falling is the nature of the beast. Look around at the multimillion dollar businesses who are adopting bitcoin, who are creating and developing tools and utilities and products to get bitcoin on the street, the news and governments who have already legitimized it regardless of the spooky articles, and what you see is INFRASTRUCTURE being established FIRST...and testing and short trials to work through the bugs and issues on a lower scale so that when Suzie Homemaker is introduced to it, she doesn't shrink in horror at the realization she should've paid attention in 5th grade math.
These are real businesses and real millions of dollars are being thrown into bitcoin - these people are in it to win it, they're not about to throw money into a scam of this magnitude and risk losing their entire net worth on a shaky ponzi that comes crashing down, or is at the mercy of the volatility. They're working to overcome it, fix it, find solutions...this was not happening 5 years ago. This is pure positive growth, it's not a scam or a phase or a fad.
This is how you can rest easy that the mass adoption will arrive and the coin you hold today *along with* the coin to use to do transactions whenever possible through the evolution and adoption process, will result in enormous wealth on the long term. Buy a couple and hold it. Buy more and USE IT, spend it, get yourself used to using it every time the opportunity arises.
Its value comes through those who accept and use it. This is happening and growing.
When you see all these businesses bailing out and closing down and rejecting it, THEN worry..but for now, embrace because Bitcoin isn't going anywhere at all.
It took PayPal about a decade to get where it is now, offering debit cards and over the counter money cards...and being accepted at major outlets. Last week I paid for a purchase at Office Depot at the checkout counter with PayPal. I was greatly amused to see it but I'd seen PayPal cards on the racks at Family Dollar and other places over the last 3 or 4 years.
Things will take far less time for Bitcoin adoption for the simple fact PayPal has beautifully conditioned the public mainstream to embrace the whole concept of "digital" online transactions. People aren't paranoid about being hacked like The Net anymore when it comes to doing online transactions via PayPal, it's pretty much "doing email". PayPal got too heavy handed though so once it's better established there are alternatives to it, Bitcoin will explode onto the scene. I also think Circle, provided it does business right, will help carry Bitcoin to John Doe and Suzi Homemaker with ease. They don't have to do a bunch of heavy research trying to understand bitcoin...they can consider it just easy digital cash and use Circle to buy, sell, send and receive money in seconds for free, and use it to pay for stuff. Just "fund" their Circle account and have at it.
That is what breaks the barrier for the public. They don't give a shit about Satoshi and they aren't reading two sentences of the white paper and they're not going to take on the learning curve of downloading wallets or any of that and they don't need to - they're the "herd" that makes the ranchers long term gains so handing them Circle (because yeah I'm a total fangirl at this point) they can get on board with ease.
I hope, HOPE Circle can figure out a *card* option, debit or however they'll ultimately do it, or a bitcoin gift card - so people can use it anywhere and it exchanges on the back end. That right there will be the trigger, along with the apps that gets it done.
To those who are legitimately paranoid about the longevity of bitcoin every time the price falls, don't be. Rising and falling is the nature of the beast. Look around at the multimillion dollar businesses who are adopting bitcoin, who are creating and developing tools and utilities and products to get bitcoin on the street, the news and governments who have already legitimized it regardless of the spooky articles, and what you see is INFRASTRUCTURE being established FIRST...and testing and short trials to work through the bugs and issues on a lower scale so that when Suzie Homemaker is introduced to it, she doesn't shrink in horror at the realization she should've paid attention in 5th grade math.
These are real businesses and real millions of dollars are being thrown into bitcoin - these people are in it to win it, they're not about to throw money into a scam of this magnitude and risk losing their entire net worth on a shaky ponzi that comes crashing down, or is at the mercy of the volatility. They're working to overcome it, fix it, find solutions...this was not happening 5 years ago. This is pure positive growth, it's not a scam or a phase or a fad.
This is how you can rest easy that the mass adoption will arrive and the coin you hold today *along with* the coin to use to do transactions whenever possible through the evolution and adoption process, will result in enormous wealth on the long term. Buy a couple and hold it. Buy more and USE IT, spend it, get yourself used to using it every time the opportunity arises.
Its value comes through those who accept and use it. This is happening and growing.
When you see all these businesses bailing out and closing down and rejecting it, THEN worry..but for now, embrace because Bitcoin isn't going anywhere at all.
Mainstream adoption means adoption by the mainstream. Most places need to accept it and you need to be able to spend it. At the moment there very few places where you can do this.
That's true, however there are far more stores taking bitcoin than ever before. I can now buy cars, computers, almost anything. Bitcoin is going mainstream. What I think is confusing for people is the price. The price is not a good measure of adoption. In the recent past, speculative users drove the price ever higher by hording coins. This is a very weak and relatively unproductive aspect of the BTC economy. When the price crashes down to a reasonable level that is consistent with the use of BTC as a payment system, everyone freaks out and sells. Well, it is just adjusting to the correct price.
If you want further adoption by the public then YOU will need to do something. Buying and "HOLLLLDING!!!" is not doing anything, nor is turning your bitcoin back into fiat. Since there is no bitcoin incorporated, it is up to a grass roots effort to spread the word. We as users must insist on retailers accepting BTC or we must vote with our wealth and spend our coins elsewhere. It was this dynamic that led to the adoption we see today. People used to post about their efforts to convince local businesses, now they just want to get rich "investing" in bitcoin. Good luck with that.
Mainstream adoption means adoption by the mainstream. Most places need to accept it and you need to be able to spend it. At the moment there very few places where you can do this.
mainstream means that everybody know bitcoin and want to use it,and shops don't stop adding it
The proportion of people who are holding bitcoin is stil very low. So the bitcoin is not going to mainstream yet. Although you heard many big merchants accepts bitcoin or doing anything with it, the news grab many attention by public. But it doesn't mean the masses is willing to buy and spend bitcoin.
For i to go mainstream I think you need to be able to spend it on the highstreet or in many places in your shopping mall. Currently you can spend it in about 0/10 places there. If you can spend it in 5/10 or more think that means it's gone mainstream.
Exactly!
People see bitcoin as investment or means to buy or sell something.
This year value of bitcoin is decreasing and it seems ''big'' merchants still didn't accept bitcoin.
Until this situation change, bitcoin will be very fare from mainstream status.
There could be nothing wrong in people seeing bitcoin as an investment, because bitcoin is both a store of value and a medium of exchange , even the IRS recognizes bitcoin as a property.
For i to go mainstream I think you need to be able to spend it on the highstreet or in many places in your shopping mall. Currently you can spend it in about 0/10 places there. If you can spend it in 5/10 or more think that means it's gone mainstream.
Exactly!
People see bitcoin as investment or means to buy or sell something.
This year value of bitcoin is decreasing and it seems ''big'' merchants still didn't accept bitcoin.
Until this situation change, bitcoin will be very fare from mainstream status.
For i to go mainstream I think you need to be able to spend it on the highstreet or in many places in your shopping mall. Currently you can spend it in about 0/10 places there. If you can spend it in 5/10 or more think that means it's gone mainstream.
we got coinbase going global,
We got circle going global,
Bitcoin has been featured in many tv shows..
Bitcoin has been discussed in detail in RT news!
Millions of wallets have been created at blockchain.info
and 2014 has seen millions in venture capital for bitcoin related businesses.
But what else more is mainstream! and if all these does not increase the price yet! What else more will?
We got circle going global,
Bitcoin has been featured in many tv shows..
Bitcoin has been discussed in detail in RT news!
Millions of wallets have been created at blockchain.info
and 2014 has seen millions in venture capital for bitcoin related businesses.
But what else more is mainstream! and if all these does not increase the price yet! What else more will?
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