How should we launch Counterparty in the press?

I have some press contacts that would be interested in Counterparty

What press story should we lead?

[list type=decimal]
[li]Counterparty and the end of Proof of Burn[/li]
[li]Counterparty and creating your own currency[/li]
[li]Counterparty: Satoshi Nakamoto is back[/li]
[/list]Will the community please share ideas with me? I am curious and seeking new ideas.

I think a group of people willingly burning 2 million USD and being very happy about the outcome is really all you need.

You just say Satoshi Nakamoto is back, XCP is developing by Satoshi’s team, that would be the hot news!!!

[quote author=520Bit link=topic=3.msg59#msg59 date=1391433942]
You just say Satoshi Nakamoto is back, XCP is developing by Satoshi’s team, that would be the hot news!!!
[/quote]

For legal reasons I’d probably say “an anonymous group in the spirit of Satoshi”.

In fact out of all the recent IPOed projects, this (though not an IPO) is the first truly anonymous, trustless launch.

Also, stress the fact that this is a platform for trading financial instruments in a decentralized fashion.

[font=Verdana][size=78%]There are 100 different altcoins, but very few that have a real business purpose behind them. [/size][/font]

[quote author=kdrop20 link=topic=3.msg80#msg80 date=1391474997]
Also, stress the fact that this is a platform for trading financial instruments in a decentralized fashion.

[font=verdana][size=78%]There are 100 different altcoins, but very few that have a real business purpose behind them. [/size][/font]
[/quote]

yes. agreed and all the best points. I think the community has launched a press release already via Patel so the story will be going out.

[quote author=jimhsu link=topic=3.msg75#msg75 date=1391470383]
[quote author=520Bit link=topic=3.msg59#msg59 date=1391433942]
You just say Satoshi Nakamoto is back, XCP is developing by Satoshi’s team, that would be the hot news!!!
[/quote]

For legal reasons I’d probably say “an anonymous group in the spirit of Satoshi”.

In fact out of all the recent IPOed projects, this (though not an IPO) is the first truly anonymous, trustless launch.
[/quote]


This anonymous project and team are doing a really good job, they understand the bitcoin protocol very well so that they can launch XCP so successfully. They have implemented all the functions they promised no matter how many bugs existed right now. Moreover, the issue asset function is really good, there is already a real STOCK issued via XCP platform.

I strongly recommend we tailor any communications we send out for the different audiences out there, and I see three broad groups:

Group 1. Hardcore Bitcoiners / owners of other cryptocurrencies. (People like most of us here)

Group 2. People just arriving or recently arrived and starting to wrap their heads around cryptocurrencies, but who are already enthusiastic even though they don’t completely understand the inner workings and/or the paradigm shift of decentralized systems. (From Joe Rogan, all the way down)

Group 3. Everyone else out there that could possibly want to use XCP. (From your uncle who just blew a week’s pay on Superbowl bets, to FOREX traders, to the artist or inventor trying to crowdfund their next project.)


So, while concepts like ‘burning bitcoins’ and  ‘proof of burn’  are what made me sit up and take notice in the middle of the night and see XCP immediately differentiated from all the other scammy-looking altcoins out there, there were many even in the in /r/bitcoin thread (Groups 1 and 2) who thought it was crazy, that the money should have been given to the devs, to marketing, to charity, and so on. The reasons for the burn and how it gives XCP more validity need to be explained much better.

Another example: when Andreas Antonopoulos (don’t get me wrong – he’s one of the best things that happened to Bitcoin) tells the general public that it doesn’t matter if Bitcoin’s creator is anonymous because “It’s math”, you can be quite sure that falls flat with the man in the street. That sort of concept needs greater explanation on the lines of: just like you can go through your kid’s math homework and see if it’s right or wrong, countless mathematicians and computer scientists over the years have gone through the Bitcoin computer code that is publicly available and have confirmed it works in exactly the way it says it does, and that it is now completely out of Satoshi’s control and by the way, there’s none of that NSA conspiracy crap in there either.

And while we’re on the subject of Satoshi, any insinuation that he is or might be involved in XCP sounds scammy and over hyped and will ultimately work against us, unless he signs a message to that effect with one of his private keys. I like the idea of ‘in the spirit of Satoshi’ or ‘in the spirit of Bitcoin’s original creators’, though. I actually think XCP one-ups Satoshi in the sense that the devs didn’t get a huge hoard of free XCP at the launch, but had to burn BTC like everyone else.


I would focus on utility and progress. I own XCP and follow the threads, but still don’t have a clear idea on many things. Ideally the first articles will be purely informational and have no undertone of promotion or the anonymity of the founders. If I was writing it, or could directly influence whoever was, these are some topics that I would probably include.

1. Why was Counterparty created?

2. Does Counterparty compete with bitcoin or add utility to it?

3. When did development start?
3a. What milestones have been hit and how does this progress compare to other, similar projects?
3b. What is slated next for completion and why are those items being prioritized?

4. What competitive or unfair advantages does Counterparty have vs other alternatives? (as non technical as possible)

5. In a nutshell, what can people expect over the coming months? (under promise, over deliver)


The whole anonymous creator thing will eventually be reported on regardless of what happens. It’s best that that stuff comes from outside, when it can no longer be avoided, as it will get more play. The most important thing for us to do as a community and as a makeshift PR firm is to establish the utility of Counterparty and make sure everyone knows that the dev team consistently hits milestones. Don’t try to sell anyone on anything, just inform people with clear, concise, and correct information.

A blog would be a big help. It would provide a nice place for updates (basically press releases) that show off how awesome the development team is. I’m fairly new to Counterparty so I may be misspeaking but if you guys are sitting on a dev team that actually hits goals, that’s amazing. Nobody does that. Everytime something is done on time or ahead of schedule it should be blogged about in an easy to understand way, with as little technical stuff included as possible.


The blogs should be written in a way that allows news outlets to come in and pick them apart for quotes and useful tidbits which they can use to create content on their own sites in order to drive traffic for their business. Going further, a content map for the blog should be created. It should dedicate a certain percentage of posts to progress updates, future goals, and as the blog moves on, how we see Counterparty being used in exciting ways (PR stuff). This will help prevent content from becoming stale.

This topic is a bit old, but “becherovka?” Are you Czech? :smile:

The best way to promote Counterparty is that it is essentially the same thing as Bitcoin, in the same way that 90%+ of people think HTTP is the internet.

One of my favorite things about Counterparty (the dev team) is that there is zero mission creep. I must admit that did not know what a big deal this has been until more recently. Press and price increases will come as long as the mission, to build the most advanced and secure 2.0 platform on Bitcoin, is maintained. As it stands currently, there is nobody even close to Counterparty and it does not look like that will change anytime soon due to how lean and agile Adam, Evan, and Robby made Counterparty.

I think the advantages that the Counterparty dev team has will become even more apparent as people in the Bitcoin world grew more and more tired of all the smoke and mirrors that other projects are doing their best to ‘advertise’.

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