Reddit Seeks Scaling Solution for Ethereum-Based 'Community Points'

Reddit announced a partnership with the Ethereum Foundation to find a scaling solution for the site's new blockchain-based Community Points.

AccessTimeIconJun 18, 2020 at 8:03 p.m. UTC
Updated Aug 19, 2021 at 2:39 a.m. UTC

Presented By Icon

Election 2024 coverage presented by

Stand with crypto

Reddit is anticipating big demand for its Ethereum-based “Community Points” system only one month after rolling out the product.

Now the social media site is looking for a scaling solution.

  • Bitcoin Mining in the U.S. Will Become 'a Lot More Decentralized': Core Scientific CEO
    13:18
    Bitcoin Mining in the U.S. Will Become 'a Lot More Decentralized': Core Scientific CEO
  • Binance to Discontinue Its Nigerian Naira Services After Government Scrutiny
    05:10
    Binance to Discontinue Its Nigerian Naira Services After Government Scrutiny
  • The first video of the year 2024
    04:07
    The first video of the year 2024
  • The last regression video of the year 3.67.0
    40:07
    The last regression video of the year 3.67.0
  • Posted in the r/Ethereum subreddit Thursday, Reddit announced a partnership with the Ethereum Foundation to find a Layer 2 (L2) scaling technique for the site’s 430 million users. Community Points are earned by garnering “upvotes” on posts and can be used to purchase specialized GIFs or emojis.

    Following CoinDesk’s request for comment, Ethereum Foundation Executive Director Ayako Miyaguchi tweeted:

    A blockchain for decentralized applications, Ethereum has been eyeing various scaling techniques since its mainnet launch in 2015. 

    The scaling debate has been siloed into two parts: Current work on Ethereum’s Proof-of-Work (PoW) blockchain called Eth 1.x and the future Eth 2.0 update, which promises “unbounded” scaling via two technologies called Proof-of-Stake (PoS) and sharding. Eth 2.0, sometimes referred to as Serenity, remains a highly technical project with no firm timeline, though an initial phase is tentatively slated for later this year.

    Conversely, Ethereum’s Devcon 5 in Osaka, Japan, in October 2019, exhibited product-ready L2 options such as ZK-Rollups and Optimistic Rollups from the Plasma coding group, now operating under the name Optimism. For example, decentralized exchange IDEX currently trades on its own variant of the product.

    However, Reddit is looking for a product that is focused on social media. As the post notes, most L2 solutions have focused on exchanges, which require fast transaction times that most blockchains cannot handle. 

    “Many of these designs don’t take into consideration the costs of obtaining tokens or entering the scaling system, which can be significant,” the post states. “Community Points distributions have cost an order of magnitude more gas than all other operations combined, primarily due to on-chain storage costs associated with onboarding new users.”

    Applicants are asked to submit proofs-of-concept by July 31 with reviews concluded by September. Unfortunately for these Reddit developers, the only reward is notoriety. 

    “This is your chance to earn some fame but, to be clear, there is no prize if your solution is chosen or modified to meet Reddit’s needs. Our lawyer made us write this,” the post states.

    Update (June 18, 21:15 UTC): Updated with comment from Ethereum Foundation Executive Director Ayako Miyaguchi.

    Disclosure

    Please note that our privacy policy, terms of use, cookies, and do not sell my personal information have been updated.

    CoinDesk is an award-winning media outlet that covers the cryptocurrency industry. Its journalists abide by a strict set of editorial policies. CoinDesk has adopted a set of principles aimed at ensuring the integrity, editorial independence and freedom from bias of its publications. CoinDesk is part of the Bullish group, which owns and invests in digital asset businesses and digital assets. CoinDesk employees, including journalists, may receive Bullish group equity-based compensation. Bullish was incubated by technology investor Block.one.


    Learn more about Consensus 2024, CoinDesk's longest-running and most influential event that brings together all sides of crypto, blockchain and Web3. Head to consensus.coindesk.com to register and buy your pass now.