App Mining represents a new model for incentivizing development of apps, allowing small teams to bootstrap, potentially without relying on ads or venture capital. App Mining gives out developer rewards to high quality applications built on the Blockstack platform.
App Mining Has Been Paused. More info
Think of it as something similar to an Apple App Store but apps are ranked in a decentralized semi-automatic way. In the long run the goal is to build an App Store with no company like Apple in the middle. Developer rewards are given out monthly based on the app ranking for the month.
The App Mining program is in a pilot stage right now. This is the repository for on-going development of the App Mining program and its associated technologies. Before continuing, we suggest you familiarize yourself with the program:
- Visit the App Mining website
- View the latest App Mining results
- Visit the App Mining documentation
- Understand how Apps are reviewed and scored
- Visit the App Miner's Guide
- Review the original launch of the App Mining program
- Review the App Mining Changelog
Given the early stages of the program, we believe it is best to avoid automating ranking and payment mechanisms until we can validate key assumptions. Instead, we will, as a community, validate assumptions and field-test ranking mechanisms, during the pilot phase, as App Mining evolves.
The current ranking process requires formalizing relationships with external app reviewers. More App Reviewers should be periodically added to further improve the quality of the apps and attract the right kind of use cases to our ecosystem. A mechanism for adding/replacing App Reviewers that creates value and is less labor intensive is an open discussion item.
The purpose of this repository is to make operational decisions more transparent and involve the Blockstack open-source community in various parts of the process.
We are currently collecting input on the following issues:
- Aspects of app review or ranking that contain errors or effects ecosystem incentives in a negative way.
- New or improved ranking criteria, processes, app reviewers, or app review technology.
Thoughtful feedback and solutions from the entire Blockstack community is welcome.
Below are some long term goals. We invite you to create issues and propose changes that help move in the direction of these broader goals:
- Increasing the quantity and quality on App.co.
- Expanding consumer awareness of Blockstack ID and decentralized auth/storage.
- Discovery and distribution of apps to users that want them.
- Internet users increasingly owning and controlling their identity, data, and money.
- Ranking fairness and objectivity so high quality apps rise in the ranking.
- Competition amongst app reviewers to provide fair, objective, and transparent rankings.
- Bribery, collusion, or technical attacks of the ranking system.
- Ranking criteria that unfairly favors certain apps over others.
- Overly complex ranking rules, procedures, or technology.
- Increasing operational work or technical demands for Blockstack PBC.
- Ranking rules, procedures, or technology that insulates Blockstack from the wider internet community.
Currently, third party App Reviewer partners are:
App Reviewer partners are encouraged, but not required to, monitor the repo and participate in discussions. The community is encouraged to propose new App Reviewers that increase the quality and robustness of App Mining.
The App Mining program is operated by Blockstack PBC and is subject to various applicable laws and regulations. Even if a process change is technically possible, it might not legally possible due to regulatory conditions. Please see this link for a list of disclosures.