What is LBRY Credits?
The LBRY network is a protocol where users are able to create apps which can interact seamlessly with all the digital content that is available on the LBRY network. LBRY is, therefore, a place where users can find all kinds of digital content, more like the largest digital library on the internet. It is a library that is available and accessible on all devices.
By design, however, LBRY is not just a single library, it is a decentralized library consisting of different components, all which work in tandem with one another. Users who upload apps on the LBRY platform should be able to do this through different host networks like Torrents, or they can also use a stream or priced download service, something like iTunes. Alternatively, those who wish to can also make their content available for free, like YouTube.
Perhaps one of the best things about LBRY is that the users do not necessarily need to understand the science or tech behind it for them to get the most out of LBRY. It is a project that was created to be simple, and easy for all users to understand.
What is the problem that LBRY Credits Solves?
It is important to understand the problem that LBRY was created to solve before we delve into information on how the naming in LBRY works.
Naming systems are used so that we can have an understandable, and humanely readable identifier attached to an asset, which is better than terms or words that are not easy to remember like ID numbers.
Traditional domains mapped names to numerical IP addresses. However, LBRY does one better than that, LBRY uses a permanent ID that is unique and can be easily identified and remembered.
Coming up with an efficient naming system is not one of the easiest things to do. Besides, the traditional naming systems have their inherent challenges. Most of these are centralized and as a result, they often suffer the scourge of censorship. This is because the top-level provider owns the domain, not even their users.
Looking at some of these challenges, the team behind LBRY were looking to build a solution that would do the following:
- Prevent the extortion of creators by squatters
- Help maintain short URLs which are easy to remember, while at the same time making it easier to locate different content with a single keyword
- Allow creators the chance to register and own a URL for life, without having to pay recurring fees
- Mapping a single word onto content without using a modifier or an extension
How does LBRY Credits Solve the problem?
Before going any further, it is important to highlight the fact that through LBRY, users are able to fully own a URL forever. This is something that is currently not possible with the domain service providers we have.
When using LBRY, URL entries are referred to as claims. A claim in LBRY can consist of any of the following:
- A number of credits
- A name, which is a string of characters that the creator chooses to identify the URL
- Any added data that corresponds to the identity of the publisher or the content they are publishing
All the claims on LBRY are not consumptive. What this means is that you do not lose anything when you spend a given number of credits on any claim, apart from what you spend on transaction fees. Besides, you have full control over the credits you have allocated to any claim. This means that you can send them elsewhere, recover them or use them for any other purpose other than that which was intended. Should you choose to do this, the claim becomes invalid.
There are different types of URL resolutions that are supported by LBRY. These are as follows:
Permanent
This is identified as lbry://<name>#<claim_id>
This URL contains a name and an ID that is assigned randomly. The publisher has permanent ownership and control over this URL. Permanent URLs can be very short because they are created to support temporal ID matching.
Community
This is identified as lbry://<name>
The URLs, in this case, are not owned or permanent because they are controlled by the community. Therefore, resolutions are passed to determine the identifiers that are considered appropriate for the community.
Channel
This is identified as lbry://<@chanel_name>
These URLs are built corresponding to the identity of a publisher. They resolve to the identity of the publisher and the content that they have published. You can specify channel URLs with or without the modifier #. If the URL is not modified, this only returns the channel as determined by the community.
Signed
This is identified as lbry://<@channel_name>/<example>
This URL returns content that has been published by a specific name, <example> within the given channel <@channel_name>
LBRY has a commitment to providing content freedom to all internet users. This is a project that is aimed at making sure that consumers and creators are free to create, consume and monetize their content without the use of intermediaries.
There are 4 important tenets that underpin the way LBRY operates, and this is one of the reasons why LBRY is able to achieve their noble mission. These are as follows:
- Naming
On LBRY, you do not buy a name, you simply reserve it. Therefore, you do not lose credits when you reserve a name. They are instead put on deposit. When you get into an auction and win the name, the credits will be tied to and held on that name until the time you decide to withdraw the credits.
This means that you are not purchasing a name from any individual. Subsequently, the transfer of names yields no profits to anyone either. Perhaps the only cost you will incur is the inability to spend or cash out credits that are used to reserve a name.
- Community Names
The URLs that are controlled by a community barely change instantly, especially if there are a lot of credits assigned to them, and if you have held them for a very long time. A day is added to the waiting period, up to a maximum of 7 days after 7 months, for each month you are in control of the name.
- Consensus
Everyone on LBRY has a say in virtually everything. Let’s say, for example, you claim lbry://bestmoviethisyear and those who watch the film say it lived up to the hype, your content will be kept alive through purchases and tips.
In case the community comes across a URL whose resolution they deem inappropriate, they can rally behind calls to have it changed. As a result, this is a very powerful tool that has helped ward off bad elements from the LBRY network.
- Keywords
Usernames on LBRY are used in the same way keywords and search terms are used. When you search for anything on LBRY, a recommendation engine exists that will suggest all valid claims.
Even if your content does not have a community URL to it, people will still be able to see it. Besides, when users conduct a search, they can also see different types of content associated with the search term.
What makes LBRY Credits better than the competitors?
It is important to address the disparity between LBRY and the competition by looking at some of the differences that exist between individual competitors, as below:
Alexandria/SingularDTV/Decent
The main difference between LBRY and Alexandria is that LBRY already has traction, and is in use. After the release of Alexandria, however, there has not been significant progress since the client went public.
Of the three platforms, none offers a user-friendly discovery mechanism and namespace like LBRY. Beyond the confines of the cryptocurrency niche, LBRY is the only one of these factions that are already enjoying the best reception and backing.
BitTorrent/IPFS
While LBRY has borrowed so much from the concepts behind BitTorrent and IPFS there are some challenges that these platforms face, which LBRY has built upon.
These two platforms offer a decentralized means of accessing unique information. However, what they do not provide is a catalog for all the information available, which LBRY provides.
If you look at the URLs, BitTorrent has very complex magnet URLs. IPFS, on the other hand, does not have an authoritative, namespace like the one LBRY offers.
Both IPFS and BitTorrent accept content but do not provide a means of payment to the owners of the content, or the publishers.
LBRY, on the other hand, offers a platform where content curators can create content and publish it to their networks and get paid for it.
Storj/MaidSafe
What sets LBRY apart from Storj and MaidSafe is that while they are making attempts at being decentralizing platforms to enable many users to access their platforms and perform different uses, LBRY is simply a decentralized protocol that serves a simple purpose.
LBRY, therefore, offers an incredible performance and a fast service instead of offering the same service on top of other decentralized projects. While these projects are in their adoption stage, LBRY is already getting mainstream adoption.
Apple TV/ Netflix/YouTube
These are centralized platforms, and with that in mind, a corporate entity controls these platforms. Because of this, they reserve the right to change their rules and regulations at will. They also reserve the right to censor any content as they wish, according to the demands of their corporate partners or governments they serve.
LBRY is an open-source decentralized protocol, whose control rests on the users. LBRY offers the same services that these platforms offer, just that it is decentralized. It is impossible for LBRY to change the rules at will.
Affordable
One of the main selling points behind LBRY is that it is creating a direct link between content curators and content consumers. By eliminating the role and need of middlemen, access to content on LBRY is cheaper and faster.
As an alternative to YouTube, users only get to pay a few cents and no longer have to deal with ads. All the money that the users pay to access LBRY is sent to the content creators.
Therefore, the creators will be earning more than they currently earn on YouTube, which is an incentive to keep generating quality content. The same applies to iTunes users. As an alternative, LBRY is offering cheaper services, and all the money earned for videos and music goes to the creators.
For users who like to torrent, LBRY is a good alternative to bringing back content that is rare and almost becoming extinct. Through LBRY, you earn by seeding such files on the network, making them available for a while longer.
LBRY is essentially the largest media library you will ever come across at your fingertips. You can literally find any type of content on LBRY, and at the least possible cost. The vision is to make LBRY the one-stop-shop for all digital content, from music to video games, and all this with the power in the hands of the users.
Open Source
LBRY doubles up as a company and a protocol. All users are able to access and interact the protocol without as much of a fuss. Other than being an open-source protocol, users are also encouraged to build apps that can compete within the LBRY protocol, making use of the resources available.
On the part of content creators, this makes work easier because you are able to upload content on LBRY and it will be available to all the apps that can link to it on the LBRY protocol. Corporate models are, therefore, under attack from LBRY, especially in terms of their centralized access.
How can LBRY Credits be categorized?
Just like HTTP, LBRY is an internet protocol. Users can access all the content that is available on LBRY through LBRY names. Therefore, LBRY should not be misconstrued to be a brand name. it is a character string used to lead a set of uniform resource identifiers (URI).
To be clear, LBRY is pronounced as library. It is also not an acronym. Technically, LBRY is a truncated form of library, which essentially identifies with the mission that the team behind it has, to make all digital content and media accessible to everyone, everywhere. LBRY is, therefore, supposed to be the largest media repository on a decentralized network in the 21st century.
What’s LBRY Credits’ vision on Security?
While building a protocol through which all digital media content can be shared is a brilliant idea, this can only stay safe with proper security features in place. LBRY is serious about security, and users are often encouraged to mail any security concern to [email protected] for the relevant team to get on it.
LBRY also uses the power of the community to fight off uncanny behavior from the protocol. The community can vote and push out a user account that does not seem to comply with the terms and conditions of using LBRY. This includes users whose accounts are misleading.
Examples of LBRY Credits use cases/applications
When it comes to the use cases of LBRY, it is an open secret. Anything that you can do on the internet at the moment with respect to digital media content access, you can do it on LBRY too.