- FRIEND Token Plummets 26%
- Friend.Tech’s Rise and Fall
- Comparison with Other Decentralized Social Platforms
Friend.Tech, the Web3 social networking platform that allows users to trade tokens for access to influential individuals’ feeds, is winding down just one year after its successful launch.
FRIEND Token Plummets 26%
On September 8, the developers relinquished control of its smart contracts by transferring ownership to Ethereum’s null address, locking the system in its current state. In an official announcement, the team confirmed, “Admin and ownership parameters have been set to 0x000...000 to prevent any changes to their fees or functionality in the future.” Following the announcement, CoinGecko data showed that the native FRIEND token dropped by 26.4%, hitting an all-time low at $0.05748. Investors have also felt the impact, with crypto influencer Machi Big Brother suffering a $16 million loss after investing approximately 5,200 ETH.
Friend.Tech’s Rise and Fall
Friend.Tech launched on Base in August 2023 and quickly gained traction with its innovative model of selling 'keys' for exclusive content from influencers. Despite initial success, trading activity began to decline. A significant blow came when co-founder Racer hinted at leaving the Base blockchain for a new project, 'FriendChain.' Although these plans were eventually abandoned, the confusion led to a decrease in platform activity. Version 2 and token airdrops briefly re-engaged users, but did not sustain long-term interest.
Comparison with Other Decentralized Social Platforms
Other major decentralized social platforms like Farcaster and Lens are experiencing similar issues. According to one analyst, new users on Farcaster have dropped from a high of 15,000 in February to around 650 currently, while daily active users have decreased from 100,000 in July to about 60,000.
Friend.Tech's decision to relinquish control and the resulting drop in the FRIEND token value highlight the instability in the decentralized social platform market. Similar issues with platforms like Farcaster and Lens indicate a need for new strategies to maintain user interest and activity.
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