[2019-04-17] Expectations and reality: economic benefits of Bitcoin

[S3cco]

Bitcoin Garden | Expectations and reality: economic benefits of Bitcoin
https://bitcoingarden.org/expectations-and-reality-economic-benefits-of-bitcoin/

While most of the talk about Bitcoin in recent years has been about the fluctuation in its value, making fortunes for early adopters at its peak before falling back in price, there’s been a quiet revolution in  cryptocurrency use in everyday business sectors.

The retail sector has slowly begun to accept Bitcoin as an alternative to traditional currency payments. In Japan, for example, retailers have been allowed to accept Bitcoin for goods and services since a new law was passed in 2017. Even industry giants like Microsoft and travel company Expedia have seen the light to accept Bitcoin for some services. The singer Bjork also accepted the cryptocurrency from fans for her latest album.

These are small steps for the retail sector, however, with the use of Bitcoin yet to enter the mainstream. The Microsoft involvement is so customers can pay for Windows and Xbox products like games, movies and apps. Microsoft put a stop to the service for a time in 2018 when Bitcoin tanked and the volatility got bosses worries, but it soon put it back again. This tentative behaviour does reflect the fact that many big companies are dipping their toes in the water, unsure whether it’s going to be hot or cold....

[NeuroticFish]

Microsoft put a stop to the service for a time in 2018 when Bitcoin tanked and the volatility got bosses worries, but it soon put it back again.

We need more coverage like this. I think that such articles would attract more serious investors than the "overly optimistic" predictions.
I have a question though: is MS indeed planning to accept crypto again in the near future? Is there any post by Microsoft stating that?

[buwaytress]

Microsoft put a stop to the service for a time in 2018 when Bitcoin tanked and the volatility got bosses worries, but it soon put it back again.

We need more coverage like this. I think that such articles would attract more serious investors than the "overly optimistic" predictions.
I have a question though: is MS indeed planning to accept crypto again in the near future? Is there any post by Microsoft stating that?

I've just been forced to buy a Microsoft service, some day last week (sort of like a parental lock or something to the effect). The variety of payment methods offered to me was actually quite surprising (even allowed me to pay by SMS, and they'd charge me some telco bill). But not a sign of anything like digital money beyond Paypal. No crypto or whatever, certainly not Bitcoin.

I've seen this news creep up every now and then. Never seen any actual announcement nor seen it in practice.

[shamc]

We have high hopes for bitcoin to save the global economy once the real credit crunch begins and people realise that the fiat printing machine is a flawed system

[carlisle1]

We have high hopes for bitcoin to save the global economy once the real credit crunch begins and people realise that the fiat printing machine is a flawed system

Indeed though fiat must stay for other form of transactions yet bitcoin must be on top of all currency in the world.hopinh people must realize what they are missing here and most specially is the governments that hindering us to reach the top in all aspects

[Kakmakr]

The problem with most merchants are the fact that most of them do not want to deal with Bitcoin directly, they want to accept Bitcoin through third party payment processors to avoid the caveat of having to deal with Bitcoin's volatility. They do not see any bitcoins, because the payment processors handle the conversion from the bitcoins they receive to the fiat conversion and the fiat transfer into their account. 

The ideal scenario would have been for them to accept Bitcoin directly and then trading some of those bitcoins when the price is better. You can convert some of the bitcoins to cover your expenses and they can see the rest as an investment option. 

[Harlot]

Sadly the article only focused more on Bitcoin being accepted as a mode of payment which doesn't really focuses on Bitcon helping the economy of the country. If the article really build around their headline they should have focused on their bit about trading or in other ways of earning it instead of ways on paying it. The article didn't really add much to what we already know and they just added up a lot of different products without coming to the point of their headline. Don't waste your time with this article.

[Naida_BR]

The reason why more and more companies get involved in Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies is the uncertainty of where this road will lead. Will this be success or fail?
They need to be diversified and do not neglect any possible profitable opportunity. Bitcoin can bring a lot of economic benefits and especially in sharing economy which has started to grow rapidly.

[magneto]

The retail sector has slowly begun to accept Bitcoin as an alternative to traditional currency payments. In Japan, for example, retailers have been allowed to accept Bitcoin for goods and services since a new law was passed in 2017.

The quote makes it seem like that bitcoin acceptance needs legislation in order to actually work, while in reality, businesses are able to transact with and facilitate bitcoin transaction anywhere (as long as BTC itself is not banned in that jurisdiction), regardless of whether there is formal legislation saying that it's legal to do so.

After all, transactions don't have to be carried out in a legal tender currency if both parties agree to an alternative form of exchange. That's a common misconception of most people about BTC transactions, carried out in real life.

I'd agree with the rest of it, though. It's clear that bitcoin is still making its entry into the mainstream and it'll probably be a while until it actually happens, but given the institutional adoption that we've seen from especially investment banks, I think it'll only be a matter of time before retail adoption picks up greatly, as well as acceptance levels.

[CryptoBry]

The problem with most merchants are the fact that most of them do not want to deal with Bitcoin directly, they want to accept Bitcoin through third party payment processors to avoid the caveat of having to deal with Bitcoin's volatility. They do not see any bitcoins, because the payment processors handle the conversion from the bitcoins they receive to the fiat conversion and the fiat transfer into their account. 

The ideal scenario would have been for them to accept Bitcoin directly and then trading some of those bitcoins when the price is better. You can convert some of the bitcoins to cover your expenses and they can see the rest as an investment option. 

I do not see anything with this because it is now accepted for merchants to be using third-party services like Visa or MasterCard in dealing with customers' transactions. This is for merchants to avoid many headaches and hassles and concentrate more on managing the business. In fact, had there been no third-party services, I think many merchants may not choose to accept Bitcoin into their business. Many merchants do not want to expose their business to extreme volatility because they are very much concerned with their margins. This is something many entrepreneurs do understand.

[webtricks]

The problem with most merchants are the fact that most of them do not want to deal with Bitcoin directly, they want to accept Bitcoin through third party payment processors to avoid the caveat of having to deal with Bitcoin's volatility. They do not see any bitcoins, because the payment processors handle the conversion from the bitcoins they receive to the fiat conversion and the fiat transfer into their account. 

The ideal scenario would have been for them to accept Bitcoin directly and then trading some of those bitcoins when the price is better. You can convert some of the bitcoins to cover your expenses and they can see the rest as an investment option. 

I differ from your opinion. If we want to see Bitcoin as a major mode of payment, it is required that speculative activities decrease and bitcoin should flow freely among people. What you suggesting involves holding of profit part by retailers, this will reduce the supply after every transaction hence will contribute to the speculations which in turn increase volatility. Volatility and Remittance cannot go hand-in-hand. Microsoft is the living example of this - they stop accepting bitcoin after it fluctuated drastically. We can't expect Bitcoin to deviate ~(-/+)10% daily and still be used as mode of remittance. Hence, first approach as you are point out which includes 'third party processors' is better one. It will increase the demand of Bitcoin from buyers perceptive while merchants will remain unaffected.

[Naida_BR]

We have high hopes for bitcoin to save the global economy once the real credit crunch begins and people realise that the fiat printing machine is a flawed system

We have hope for many things but we need a plan to accomplish it.
In order to take the next debt crisis and the fiat bubble that it is going to burst in the near future, it would be essential that every individual hold a crypto card that can be used in POS transactions. This way economic freedom is going to be realized and we would never again rely on banks.

[vit05]

The problem is that by accepting Bitcoin as a payment method, you necessarily become an investor in Bitcoin. This does not happen with any other payment method. You have no connection as an investor if you use a credit card, paypal or another payment method.

In addition, the option to accept payments with Bitcoin depends on demand. And those who demand this option are always investors, that is, us.

I think it must be very difficult for a public company to demonstrate that a payment method is also an investment. And that this investment is highly volatile. Many problems still need to be considered for further adoption of cryptos. And most do not involve lines of code.

[figmentofmyass]

I've just been forced to buy a Microsoft service, some day last week (sort of like a parental lock or something to the effect). The variety of payment methods offered to me was actually quite surprising (even allowed me to pay by SMS, and they'd charge me some telco bill). But not a sign of anything like digital money beyond Paypal. No crypto or whatever, certainly not Bitcoin.

I've seen this news creep up every now and then. Never seen any actual announcement nor seen it in practice.

microsoft's acceptance of bitcoin is super limited and always has been. you can't actually use it for purchases in the microsoft online store---only for "games, movies, and apps in the Windows and Xbox stores". source: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/13942/microsoft-account-how-to-use-bitcoin-to-add-money-to-your-account

so you can't even buy windows with it.

The problem is that by accepting Bitcoin as a payment method, you necessarily become an investor in Bitcoin.

I think it must be very difficult for a public company to demonstrate that a payment method is also an investment. And that this investment is highly volatile.

if volume is low enough (ie amazon can't really do this), they can just use payment processors and avoid volatility altogether. at the rates coinpayments or bitpay charges, it's cheaper than credit cards. but there needs to be enough demand from consumers for merchants to justify the time and costs of integrating it.