Kim Dotcom’s MegaUpload 2.0 Pivotal To Bitcoin
Big news on the Bitcoin front as Kim Dotcom makes his first moves to launch MegaUpload 2.0. The original MegaUpload was one of the most popular file-sharing services active in the early days of the Internet. However, it faced legal troubles when the US government decided it had violated copyright laws.
Even now, Kim Dotcom is still fighting the extradition efforts by the US to have him prosecuted in a US court. Kim Dotcom has not given up on the MegaUpload vision, though, which is why he has announced plans to launch MegaUpload 2.0 with Bitcoin payments.
Bitcoin usage
In hopes of stopping and any censorship or seizure of funds, Kim Dotcom has turned to Bitcoin to provide funding for the project. Using the Bnktothefuture platform, people are invited to invest into MegaUpload 2.0, but they are limited only to Bitcoin investments.
The goal of the funding is to get around $5 million in funding. That is a lot of money. With the many fans of the original MegaUpload, expectations are that a lot of people will be converting their cash into Bitcoin so that they can have a chance to invest. Right now, around $250,000 worth of Bitcoin has already been invested. This is equal to more than 400 BTC. This can potentially raise Bitcoin prices as hopeful investors increase the demand for Bitcoin.
The Bitcoin use will not stop at just the investing stage. Plans for the service are that a basic file transfer will cost the downloader around the equivalent of five cents in Bitcoin, while uploading will be free. The Bitcache platform also promises to go beyond payment for basic file transfers. There will be options for paying to block ads. Advertisements are one of the biggest sources of revenue for sites, so turning them off via ad-blocking software results in a loss for a site.
MegaUpload 2.0 is also a prime venue for content distribution. One of the problems that content creators have is how to monetize their content. With a file-sharing service that is open to microtransactions, many creative people will be able to make money from their hard work in a simple and easy manner.
Increased Bitcoin attention
Right now, it is estimated that Bitcoin users are below the 10 million user mark. That is a lot of people but not as many as it could be. What Bitcoin needs is a service that is attractive to many millions of people and also requires them to acquire Bitcoin. With a service like that, demand for the cryptocurrency increases and the Bitcoin value will go up. This is the reason for integration of Bitcache into the MegaUpload 2.0 system.
Bitcache works by registering transactions on the public blockchain when users are withdrawing funds. Microtransactions will also be handled by Bitcache. The system can potentially handle other cryptocurrencies but the plans for MegaUpload 2.0 are focused on Bitcoin first. It is hoped that the use of Bitcoin in a popular service will only herald good things for the cryptocurrency market.
