So how is Google going to counter this?  I have seen some say that Google should jump into Bitcoin and pull the rug out from Apple.  Apple is touting reduced credit card fees and Google could up that to discounts + zero fees.  They could run all this via Android and Chrome + G-NFC devices.  Any thoughts?

I guess ripple is on track to be the first trillion dollar coin.

Great stuff man, going through it now.

Hi All,

As much as I would love to develop/code this I am spread too thin as it is.  So I am putting this idea out there to see if anyone wants to run with it.  I am happy to lend a hand in some way if possible but can't guarantee a huge commitment.

It's a bit rough at this stage, but the concept involves a BTC reward system for those who are able to convince local retailers to accept Bitcoin.  As far as I know I do not see anything like this, but could be wrong.  The website would allow for a profile creation and special code assigned to the Bitcoiner who registers with the system.  That Bitcoiner then does the rounds at local shops or even larger on line retailers to promote Bitcoin and use of it.  The goal is to educate the retailer, inform them of available tools/methods to accept Bitcoin and get a "Bitcoin Accepted Here" sign on their shop front or website.  Our system can provide all materials needed to educate the shop owners.  If someone is successful in converting a shop, the Bitcoin community congratulates the Bitcoiner and donates to him some BTC for his much valued efforts.  The donation size could correlate to the shop size and popularity.  Converting a local flower shop is good, converting a chain of convenience stores is better (the rewards could reflect this).  The Bitcoiner can have his own map highlighting his prospects, shops in progress, achievements, total BTC earned (to encourage others).  There needs to be some way of verifying the Bitcoiner's success with the shops.  I am unsure of the best way to do that.  We don't want fake success stories and fraud here.  There should be a clever way to do this, possibly having the shop owner register on the site too (which can also serve as a directory) and supply the "referral code" of the Bitcoiner that helped them get set up.  If this took off we could end up with a street team of 1,000's canvasing local business and bringing them onboard.  How do we pay the street team for their efforts?  We get big sponsors to contribute to their efforts and fuel the movement.

What do you think?

Yeah we need much more usage and adoption vs. speculation.  Once real world use outstrips speculating this should stop?

Interesting that you bring this up with the recent news in the US over Police brutality.  I wonder if Police brutality in the USA will make the population even MORE weary of their government overlords.  Hey... maybe we should use Bitcoin so the state can't afford to fund an army of militarized brutal police?

I could be wrong but I get the feeling some companies like Ebay are attempting to secure their existing market place.  So the way I see it is that Ebay has two choices.. they get onboard early or they fall to a competitor.  Imagine if a VC startup pumped $100 million into a full blown Ebay style system that uses Bitcoin.  Miniscule selling listing fees, no more transaction fees, etc.  Ebay might be thinking "we get in now and it will put off other companies from bothering".  Something like that.

Hi Guys,

For the sake of argument we'll call my product "widgets" and they will be custom created online by the customer, then ordered.  I am investigating the best mechanism to have the customer purchase what customization they want + pay via bitcoin.  I then need to know customer x has purchased 2 widgets with x customizations and paid via bitcoin with x bitcoin address.

I am somewhat familiar with shopping carts but have been out of that loop for a few years.  Maybe a shopping cart using bitpay integration would help me keep track of a custom order + payment for that order?  Maybe there are already modules I do not know about with tight bitcoin cart integration into say wordpress or such?  I don't want to end up with a heap of orders and not being able to clearly see 'yeah I did get bitcoin from that customer'.

Even better would be a system to keep the customer updated on their order progress and mail tracking.

Thanks!