Long Blockchain has been delisted from the Nasdaq and the “just add blockchain”-effect appears to be softening – but the white hot ICO market rages on.
As we reported yesterday, Telegram, which is about to open its token sale to the public, is hoping to raise a total of $1.8 billion total from its ICO after raising nearly half that sum from private-placement “VIP” investors.
And with so much money to be made hocking the dozens of coins that continue to be launched every month, perhaps it’s unsurprising that Facebook is doing a less-than-perfect job of filtering out all the crypto-related advertising (almost all of which is paid for and allocated through an automated system that is prone to lapses, as we learned during one memorable incident last year), which the company denounced last month.
Case in point: Earlier today, Ryan Mac, a tech reporter at Buzzfeed News, pointed out the following (extremely eye-catching) advertisement, which he claimed to have seen on Facebook (both it’s traditional and mobile sites) and Facebook-owned Instagram.
The advertisement is soliciting buyers for an ICO called “Datecoin”.
The advertisement describes Datecoin as “the world’s first dating service that uses neural networks and artificial intelligent [sic] algorithms based on working business model with clear buyback on blockchain…”
…or whatever the fuck that means…
Facebook is doing an amazing job blocking crypto advertis…
Oh. pic.twitter.com/CKyPaTDogN
— Ryan Mac (@RMac18) February 20, 2018
To be sure, a quick skim through the Datecoin whitepaper offers an incredibly helpful illustration of the company’s “business model.”
the white paper has a page that is literally just a photograph of a model pic.twitter.com/bxGC7dJOIY
— Ryan Mac (@RMac18) February 20, 2018
…yeah, that was a pun…
Meanwhile, a Youtube video entitled “What is DateCoin?” features five men discussing how DateCoin leverages AI and neural networking…except their discussion is entirely in Russian.
yo i’m totally gonna trust the company in the video that features 5 dudes only speaking in Russian with subtitles about employing neural networks on the blockchain for dating https://t.co/QXWuYKYJDj
— Ryan Mac (@RMac18) February 20, 2018
Even the company’s slogan is suspicious (though we suspect this is the result of a bad translation).
Even the slogan is suspicious. “Touch My ICO.”
YOU LITERALLY CANNOT TOUCH CRYPTO. THAT’S WHY IT’S CRYPTO.
— Ryan Mac (@RMac18) February 20, 2018
What would you rather do? Spend an afternoon deciphering this nonsense diagram? Or lustily gaze upon a model who bears a suspicious resemblance to American actress Angelina Jolie.
look at a diagram of our nonsense tech, OR GET DISTRACTED BY RUSSIAN ANGELINA JOLIE pic.twitter.com/Hch5jGBAUR
— Ryan Mac (@RMac18) February 20, 2018
Finally, as Mac points out, Facebook’s new transparency-in-advertising features reveal that the ad is targeted at people in the US aged 15-60 who are interested in bitcoin…
The ad was targeted at people who liked bitcoin, and are age 16 to 50 in the United States, which is a pretty wide range. Also saw the ad on Instagram and Facebook mobile web. pic.twitter.com/UN6ooJzzFq
— Ryan Mac (@RMac18) February 20, 2018
A quick visit to the DateCoin website shows that the company claims to have raised more than 2,200 ETH (roughly $2 million at this afternoon’s prices) already during its private sale…the tokens will be offered to the public beginning in March…
So, with all of this in mind, is DateCoin “the next bitcoin”? Or just another trash ICO?
What do you think?
Read the full Whitepaper below:
via Zero Hedge http://ift.tt/2odS3Kp Tyler Durden