Move-to-earn has been making lots of headlines in the crypto industry, but not all of them are positive. The concept is similar to Play-to-Earn video games, rewarding people with crypto and NFTs for engaging in physical activity.
The idea is that you can earn crypto simply by walking or jogging as an incentive for living a healthier lifestyle. It’s an admirable goal because not only do users become healthier, but they make money while doing so.
However, the move-to-earn space has come in for some heavy criticism, with countless accusations that their app economies are unsustainable, or even downright Ponzi schemes. Such accusations are not without merit. Let’s take a look at Stepn, one of the most popular move-to-earn apps. Its model is based on the idea that cash flow is constantly coming in as people purchase NFT sneakers required to participate and earn rewards. By buying sneaker NFTs and upgrading them, users can earn more crypto each day. However, the value of Stepn’s GST and GMT tokens is dictated by market forces, and who is buying those tokens? New users that aim to acquire and upgrade NFTs. As such, it seems clear that Stepn is dependent on new users signing up to inject new cash into its economy.
That might work for a while, but the moment demand for its sneakers and tokens stalls, prices will inevitably begin to decline. It will result in a negative feedback loop, critics say, though the app’s creators insist they are taking steps to counteract what looks to be seemingly inevitable.
Not every move-to-earn app is based on the same model, though. Sweat Economy is the creator of the Sweatcoin app that was founded in 2015 as a traditional fitness application. The vision of Sweatcoin is to build a virtuous economy that allows people to tap into the value of getting fit.
Sweat Economy has put a great deal of thought into creating an innovative value loop with a functioning rewards program, founded on a massive base of millions of users that were already using the legacy version of its fitness app.
The main difference with SWEAT is that it has value that exists outside of the Sweatcoin app itself. For instance, users can “stake” the SWEAT tokens they earn within their Sweat Wallet to earn NFTs that can increase their earnings, and enter prize draws in the Sweat Wallet app to win Macbooks, iPhones, fitness and lifestyle products. Users can also swap the SWEAT tokens they earn for another cryptocurrency like Bitcoin or USD Coin on an exchange after doing a simple transfer, or they can soon do so within the app’s built-in feature. For users who are prepared to be incredibly active daily, this will cost them nothing.
Sweat Economy has created a decentralized organization called the Sweat Foundation, which has committed to putting up at least $300,000 per month for on- and off-chain rewards following its token generation event.
Another aspect of Sweat Economy is that it promises to deliver real fun (and therefore value) to users via a game it is developing called LegZ. With LegZ, users will be able to engage in peer-to-peer battles with other app users. The game is designed to incorporate multiple aspects, including the user’s activity, the power of their NFT, and their gameplay skill. It’s a deflationary tool too, as users are required to stake SWEAT to be able to play, with the winner claiming the amount staked – with a small portion deducted as a fee and “burned”. This element helps create a more sustainable future for Sweat Economy.
Users will also be able to redeem their SWEAT tokens for additional benefits, besides just earning more rewards. Those who stake SWEAT will also benefit from premium features, exclusive access to events and prize draws.
Other features Sweat Economy intends to introduce include trading fee discounts for crypto-to-crypto swaps, priority access to NFT drops and premium community benefits. A “learn and earn” campaign is also on its roadmap, and users will also have the option to monetize their fitness data. Third parties who’re interested in accessing this data will be required to spend SWEAT tokens to access it, and users will earn a portion of that income. It’s yet another anti-inflationary mechanism that will enable users to profit by selling their own movement data.
Although it is yet to prove itself in the real world and in the longer-run, it’s clear that Sweat Economy is dead set on creating a positive feedback loop that will ensure it can thrive well into the future.
