ICONLOOP, VisitMe, and Zoom
Welcome to this week’s edition of RHIZOME Wire!
ICONLOOP borrows from the Zoom “model”
Over the past few months, as the COVID-19 crisis began to spread and continues to dominate our daily lives, it’s likely you’ve used Zoom at least once. Either for business, or as a way to catch up with friends who you can’t physically hang out with.
While Zoom was already a successful and growing company, COVID-19 brought a significant surge of users who now needed a service like Zoom.
One of the most important strategies that has allowed Zoom to capture this growth was their “freemium” business model. Anyone can sign up for a free Zoom account — although you’ll be limited to 40-minute meetings with a maximum of 100 attendees.
Inevitably, many of these users will never sign up for the paid version. However, many will — especially those companies that have seen the benefit that remote tele-conferencing can bring, even in times when we aren’t in the midst of a pandemic.
And that’s what drives the success of Zoom’s business model: giving away something for free, but in a limited fashion.
And that brings us to ICONLOOP and “VisitMe.” Here’s the news, re-posted by ICONLOOP, but originally reported by Yoo KyeongSeok for Daily Today.
On the 18th, the CEO of leading blockchain company ICONLOOP announced that ICONLOOP will be launching a campaign to offer free use of their VisitMe e-guestbook service in effort to prevent the spread of Covid19.
For those who aren’t aware, here is what VisitMe is (as reported by The ICONist in February):
Incorporating ICONLOOP’s decentralized ID (DID) protocol, VisitMe eliminates the hassle involved in visiting an office, typically requiring visitors to fill in a guestbook and turn over your ID card. And importantly for ICON, VisitMe operates on the ICON public chain.
With the service, users simply make reservations to visit the office using an app available for iOS and Android.
After confirming your name, phone number, place of work or other basic information, the service sends you an invitation through the app. The invitation includes a QR code.
When you arrive at the destination, simply show the QR code to the scanner at the door and voila, you’re let in immediately. No wait. No fuss.
Of course, with COVID-19, such a service has additional benefits — namely, the ability to sign-in and out without having to worry about passing germs between pens or guest pads.
So, just like Zoom, ICONLOOP sees opportunity for growth:
ICONLOOP plans to provide free VisitMe visitor management services to all buildings and businesses across the country that apply for the service until the end of Covid19.
This campaign is expected to be particularly helpful for small businesses that are unable to respond promptly to quarantine guidelines such as having to write an entry list of all their business’ visitors.
Now, put yourself in the shoes of one of these business owners. You have a problem that needs a solution. A possible solution is presented in the form of VisitMe. That solution — at least for the time being — is free.
There is likely no better way to start the snowball of mass adoption by giving away your product for free — with the clear caveat that it won’t remain free forever. Businesses will have an opportunity to try out this new technology (in a relatively risk-free manner) in order to solve a problem. Over time, they’ll be able to evaluate whether or not this technology provided a benefit for their company or not, and whether or not that value is worth paying for.
Will every business decide to pay for VisitMe? Of course not. But, a lot of businesses who never would have tried it to begin with if it had come with cost, may come to learn its a service they can’t live without.
Already, a number of businesses have implemented the technology:
Currently, convenience stores, cafes, and hospitals in major commercial districts in Seoul (Gangnam, Apgujeong, Hongdae) and Gyeonggi Province have already implemented the service. Including Uijeong Freshville branch of GS25, FIESTA7, Jireh Alchan Orthopedic Surgery, Reageau Dermatology Clinic, and Gel Plastic Surgery Clinic, among others.
This list isn’t massive by any means — but now that the product is (temporarily) free, it will be exciting to watch as the list grows.
News from ICON World
A new P-Rep announcement channel has been created
Applicants for the P-Rep Delegation Pilot Program must resubmit applications on the forum
ICON vote monitor gets a new update
Developmental Expertise: The Ibriz-ICONOsphere Paradigm
The ICON network has passed 100M total transactions
Atomic Wallet integrates ICX!
MyID Alliance partners have increased from 62 to 68
Blockchain Industry News
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Donald Trump Told Treasury Secretary to ‘Go After Bitcoin’ - Cointelegraph
The Treasury Secretary backed Trump’s position in the media following the July 2019 tweets, saying the White House was “looking at all of the crypto assets” and subsequently claiming that BTC and other cryptocurrencies are used for money laundering more often than cash is.