Bitcoin Forum

random btc-e trollbox user quote which name i did not catch because i was not logged in and refreshed the page:

- "5 years ago i payed 900$ for a flatscreen tv it is now worth 75$"


if the value of bitcoin if ultimately the value of the potential use of the blockchain:

im not even a developer or have any idea how bitcoin technically works, i just understand the principle.

but another principle is innovation especially in a unexplored relatively free market environment, likewise of how the internet grew, overrules old less effective content of the market.

so how do any of us expect the bitcoin to rise in value over long term when there is so much innovative competition that could add attributes in a new blockchain which would out-date bitcoin in efficiency in every way?


its seems so obvious to me please enlighten me!

Other people are more knowledgeable to answer your question in more detail, but bitcoin's value is based on supply & demand, on a "currency" that, over time, is growing more and more scarce. (Around late 2016, at the halving, bitcoin's block reward will be cut from 25 to 12.5) That is how it becomes more valuable, over time.

As to your statement about innovation, Bitcoin can be "updated" and "forked" if the community all agrees to do so.
If we needed to upgrade to a higher form of encryption, instead of SHA256, we could.
Most likely, there will be no "innovation" that will replace Bitcoin outright.
Bitcoin will exist as long and people use it and miners mine it.

You might be referring to an Alt-coin surpassing Bitcoin. That is possible, but not likely since Bitcoin basically has a three year lead on all other coins.

Bitcoin is adaptable and will continue for many more years, IMO.

Edit: Also, Bitcoin currently is truly decentralized. Some of the "innovative" blockchain like tech, that is theoretically better then Bitcoin in the future, would most likely be run by a company like google or apple, or maybe even a government. That type of blockchain is not what Satoshi Nakamoto envisioned.

Your point is valid, but it is hard to predict what will happen. Without an obvious successor to Bitcoin, I think your concerns are premature.

decentralized

strength of the network

investment in the infrastructure

tested over 5 years on the public network

bitcoin continues to rise in value compared to all time lows of the past

etc etc etc

to implement a new blockchain you would have to have the miners switch their machines to the new blockchain

as well bitcoin is still evolving and new technologies can be implemented to the blockchain to increase efficiency, e.g. sidechains

It is called the Network Effect.

The key is to reach mass adoption such that they system feeds on itself to grow perpetually. The classic example is the telephone. The more people who own telephones, the more valuable the telephone is to each owner. This creates a positive externality because a user may purchase a telephone without intending to create value for other users, but does so in any case.

Do you think Facebook has value because of the code behind it that lets you post pictures and text on a website? Will Facebook lose value because of all of its competitors presenting better solutions any time soon?

An alt coin can rave about its great advantages over Bitcoin. Which blockchain do you believe will reach mass adoption first?

When Alexander Graham Bell (Elisha Gray) invented the telephone, within 10 years there were over 100 telephone companies in Ohio alone.

Which one of those companies became Bell Telephone?

technology will continue to evolve
there will be more new and old ones will decrease the price though it still remains to be excellent
 ;D

the first one to market it properly to the masses? :)

Bell had the advantage of a patent which allowed his company to be the only telephone company for several years. Being first has huge advantages.

I agree..Being the first one there r some advantages...n who says there wont be any technological changes in the future? we cant say that it wont change for sure in the future.!

It has many things going for it & against it.

Only time will tell where we end up.

Wait, so you are comparing something that needs a big network effect, that has it, thats scalable and original...  with a flatscreen tv?

That guy is a paranoid android.

I think irrespective of the time, the blockchain definitely has many other uses, however there might be a similar thing that might come up in the years, which might replace it.
But for now, its not happening.

You hit the nail right on the head. Bitcoin is already outdated, but it is still the most widespread crypto and the best known brand so it will not suddenly be replaced by something better. Instead it will remain the tactical crypto solution for the years to come while losing gradually its appeal and will eventually be abandonned. Gen 2 cryptos like NXT, BitShares, Ripple and Ethereum are going to gain more and more momentum as strategic solutions but will take some time to displace Bitcoin.

I don't think it's outdated... far from it. I also don't think those alternatives you mentioned offer anything truly exciting. Besides, bitcoin could evolve to implement future changes anyway so I think it'll be a lot harder to kill off bitcoin than you might think.

Decentralized asset exchange: no
Turing complete contracts: no
Market-pegged assets: no
Fast confirmation time: no
Environment friendly distributed consensus: no
Adjustable inflation: no
(the list goes on)

Bitcoin is outdated.

Gen 2 Social Media like Chicisimo, Google+, Yelp are sure to replace the outdated Facebook considering they offer something better.

How much have you shorted Facebook?

betamax was arguably better quality  than vhs but VHS won the war by being mass adopted first .....by the time betamax was ready with 2 hour recording
vhs was the standard format because they had gained enough adoption to win the market .........

features can be added to bitcoin , 6 years of progress and infrastructure  is a huge headstart on anything new that that might be introduced 

of course bill gates would rather make his own coin ,the same with warren buffet who is heavily invested in banking anyway ,thats all the can say for obvious reasons ,if this were a court of law their opinions would be thrown out because they are impartial .........

All of these are being addressed on as we speak and some are at least debatable if they are legitimate objective problems. No other coin will take Bitcoin's spot, sorry to burst your alt bubbles.