SolDate - Find your Mate through your Date (The Journey Forward)
It reminds me of Dark on Netflix, An end is a beginning and a beginning is an end. So true when it comes to love. Right! I had covered the project through a detailed article titled SolDate - Find your Mate through your Date. It gave a comprehensive overview and was even used by the project on their social handles. This article is meant to give an insight into the future developments since the previous article.
Let's delve into the past two months and the future of SolDate.
Quick Recap
For starters, SolDate is the first-ever dating app built on the Solana blockchain. The project aims to disrupt the existing online dating industry by providing advanced alternatives through its revolutionary dating ecosystem. It however cannot guarantee success in your love life which would depend on a multitude of other factors that are beyond the control and scope of SolDate (pun intended). The global dating industry has exploded in the last five years and more so in the past couple of years. While the industry is growing, the majority of this market is in the hands of a select few online dating apps and their parent companies making the industry an "oligarchy". The innocent ingenious effort of users trying to find partners find themselves coerced through the misuse of technology. Scams and data theft are rampant with no real security for users. Dating and matchmaking is an important process that has explicit and implicit social implications. It impacts mental health and consequently the physical well-being of an individual. A true dating experience cannot be fulfilled in a controlled environment contaminated by a rather profit-driven corporate agenda where individual interests are sabotaged through misuse of data-driven technology and excessive control. SolDate intends to challenge the trend and create a favourable and liberated dating environment to enhance users’ dating experiences.
Let's talk numbers
Online dating, a product of the internet revolution does not go too far back (maybe a decade and a half) and obviously, the market is still in the early stages of growth.
Tinder was launched in 2012 and has 20 billion matchmakings on its platform. BUMBLE has about 42 million active users and over 1.2 million who are actively subscribed to the app’s premium features. Its estimated market valuation is $13 billion. Global Dating App Revenue was in excess of 3 billion in 2020, almost double of 2015. The number of online dating app users has grown by about 60% to 270 million since 2015. Tantan, a dating app operated by Chinese social search provider Mono has over 20 million active users.
The market is expected to double in the next 8-10 years or perhaps even sooner. This presents an opportunity but to garner numbers is no easy task. A new platform offering the same features cannot beat existing players in their own game as they already have multiple advantages.
That's why a new road will have to lead to Rome that offers functions and features that are different and unique from the existing ones. SolDate aims to be that door that opens a better road when it comes to dating and match-making, not conforming to the present philosophy.
Journey since June 21
The roadmap is more like a yardstick to measure the progress of a project. SolDate has come a long way since my last article. The targets outlined as per the roadmap were -
Actively building the community and building the project - Q2 2021 Putting efforts in fundraising to shape our ideas and adding more features to the platform - Q3 2021 Launching Beta Version - Q3 2021
Let's see what all has been achieved so far.
A. Actively building the community and building the project - Q2
- $DATE Token Airdrop
The utility and the governance token of SolDate is $DATE which is designed to facilitate users to use the platform and also function as a governance instrument to self-sustain the platform. Of the utility features of $DATE, it will be used to define basic platform features like extra swipes (more than 20), invites, and boosting user reach. It aims to replace the traditional system of highly overvalued memberships with a never-expiring token. Users will be able to use all the features of the platform by just holding $DATE in their wallets. It will also be used as a currency to trade NFTs on SolDate's inbuilt NFT marketplace. Minting will be free of cost (only gas fees will need to be paid). The invite function will limit stalkers from abusing other users and also help to keep the inflation in check as it would burn one token. To ensure SolDate to be a self-sustaining platform, each Matchreward claim will be charged a 3.33% fee that will be used to pay platform bills. It will be incentivizing users through Match Rewards. The total supply of the $DATE token is 1 billion.
This brings us to the highly anticipated airdrop of the $Date token. And when it happened, there was an overwhelming response with 30,000 entries. After carefully removing the bot entries, the number stood at a staggering 27,000. Everyone who participated in the airdrop is qualified to receive the tokens. Once the app is released, users will have to sign up and claim the airdrop rewards. There is no time-bound limit to claim the rewards.
- Whitepaper and a new look for the Website
Within just a week after the successful airdrop, the project launched its Whitepaper. You can access it here. The website was given a new detail-oriented yet catchy look with the addition of Whitepaper. For me, the vibrant colors against a black background are the perfect mix to embody the feeling of love and connections. It is a great improvement reflecting the progress.
- SolDate Ambassador Program
To build the community further, SolDate announced its Ambassador Program on 11 July 21.
The program is designed for SolDate enthusiasts all over the globe to participate and spread the word about the platform across their own international communities. This will help the project to reach a wider audience. Ambassadors will have the chance to become community leaders by creating engagement and spreading excitement about the upcoming events. They will be working closely with SolDate’s marketing team while providing ideas for promotional activities and events. They will also engage SolDate’s community with written content, infographics, and other fun activities. Ambassadors will be rewarded through $DATE token prizes and an opportunity to participate in the private sale round through different tier groups. If you think you can contribute to the project and the idea, feel free to apply for it though they have stopped taking any more requests through the form. A shout through TG or discord might help (but not sure).
B. Putting efforts in fundraising to shape our ideas and adding more features to the platform - Q3
- Partnership with Leading Swiss NFT Protocol All-Art
Where there is dating, there are gifts. And nothing better than gifting trendy, high-value digital art pieces. A unique gift that can't be copied with the price increasing over time is something that will be personal and special to surely impress your date. One of the premier features of the project is a dedicated NFT marketplace and SolDate partnered with All-Art in July, after a month of talks. An MoU and partnership deal were successfully signed.
All-Art secured 2nd place in the NFT track of the Solana season hackathon. The All-Art Protocol is developed by VR-All-Art, an established platform for exhibiting and acquiring art in virtual reality, based in Zug, Switzerland. All-Art is a powerful intervention that’s signaling the problems with the typical NFT marketplaces. Their vision is to create an infrastructure to transform the status quo and move the art market forward. Towards making Art a liquid asset class with an exchangeable value, It has multiple innovative features with advanced NFT trading benefits. It aims to make transactions cheap and almost instantaneous with minimum energy consumption. It wants registered art on the blockchain to be compatible with established regulations and copyright law. Collectors must be able to benefit from purchased art beyond speculatory trading. One of the key benefits which drive NFT buyers and investors to All-Art is its no-fuss hassle-free NFT trading interface.
All-Art has already partnered with some top artists and art influencers from across the globe. All-Art NFT-PROs will be listed on the Soldate platform, with the sale and purchase through the $DATE token. One of the key advantages of partnering with All-Art is an advanced Unity-Solana Wallet. The wallet acts as a bridge connecting developers and the Solana blockchain. This feature primarily focusing on game developers also makes connecting SolDate with All-Art easy. The All-Art Protocol provides constant liquidity for NFTs by introducing a new type of liquidity pool AMMs while upgrading the current NFT standard with improved functionalities and embedded license rights called NFT-PRO. Effectively it would mean, SolDate users, who are interested in trading and making money from NFTs, can also easily invest or become a liquidity provider using their $DATE tokens.
- Partnership deal with M3 Capital
On July 26, there was an announcement about a strategic partnership deal with a venture capital and marketing support corporation, M3 Capital. The project managed to secure some investment and commitment from M3 Capital to help accentuate marketing in specific and target demographic groups in particular geographies.
M3 Capital is a capital investment and support firm that provides financial as well as other support including marketing, particularly for startups in the blockchain domain. It provides the necessary help to expand their presence and get global.
Through this deal with M3 Capital, SolDate will have the necessary support, both intellectual and financial, to tap into growing central Asian markets making $DATE a global currency. M3 Capital brings years of experience and expertise to help drive the campaign as it understands the different subtleties of these markets. It will help to create innovative marketing campaigns and techniques for these regions. Also, as a part of the deal, manpower and financial assistance will be provided to a certain extent to help with marketing in Central Asia and some emerging Eastern European Markets.
The support and positive response from across the spectrum and the larger crypto community has been overwhelming.
- Partnership deal with Titan Ventures
On July 27, SolDate also announced a partnership with Titan Ventures through a twitter release. Titan Ventures is Vietnam’s Top Incubator that has 5 years of operation with more than 130 successful projects.
C. Releasing Beta Version
The release of the platform is due for this quarter without a fixed date but sometime in September. The team has been working tirelessly behind the scenes adding features to the MVP. The development and feature testing of the platform is currently underway with the team confident to be on schedule with the proposed timeline. All eyes are set for the release of the product at this moment.
Upcoming Roadmap
The last quarter of this year will see some major events, after the launch of the beta version.
Launch on Mainnet. Android and iOS Launch.
2022 will be even more challenging with newer goals carved out and it will see the integration of some amazing technologies. Various goals which are lined as per the roadmap are -
For the first quarter,
Adding advanced features and functionalities. Launching In-App NFT marketplace. AI-based matching and VR-3D integration.
For the second quarter,
Launching community-driven governance portal. Integrating hotel and travel agencies. Strategic partnerships and further R&D investments.
VR dating will serve the purpose of user security adding a more realistic way to date online. It can be a start for those who feel unsafe about meeting a complete stranger. It will also help to prevent abusers from sharing misleading information about their physical appearances.
I can't be more excited about the app release though my girlfriend not so much 😉
I need your love and support. Please give it a like or follow or subscribe so that I can keep writing what I love.
Socials
Twitter Youtube Odysee Publish0x Read.cash Substack Medium Loop Medium Torum Presearch Noisecash
Crypto Taps Pipeflare, GlobalHive, GetZen for some free crypto
Exchange on SwapSpace
For price updates, check Coinmarketcap or download the app on Apple/ Google
Join CoinMarketCap for Airdrops, Diamonds, Learn&Earn On Telegram, Telegram(EN), Twitter, Reddit, Instagram, Facebook
Create your crypto Watchlist or track your Portfolio on Coinmarketcap