Token Utilities

Network Application (Utilities)

The token will be used for future applications in the DM3 ecosystem. Under no circumstances will it be used to pay for services from dm3.org (the token is, therefore, NOT a voucher for any service from dm3.org). The possible payment function exists exclusively between users of the DM3 network.

The token is used for the following purposes:

Spam Protection

The DM3 token is a utility in DM3's multilevel spam protection. For this purpose, the sender deposits DM3 tokens. These tokens will be locked and used to ensure not to send spam. If the recipient declares a message as spam, the amount specified by the recipient is burned. This ensures that spammers risk losing tokens with every spam message they send. No costs are incurred for regular messages, as the deposit is not touched.

Only if the sender has made a high enough deposit can he or she send a message. Technically, this mechanism is similar to staking. The deposited amount is used as collateral. However, no profits are distributed here, but the depositing of tokens is equivalent to an authorization to deliver messages.

Reading incentive for advertising messages

Like spam protection, a payable amount of DM3 token can be linked to a message. Users willing to receive advertising messages can read them and receive the attached amount in return. This allows direct marketing to be realized without intermediaries. The advertising payments go directly to the potential customer.

Privacy routing

An incentive model is also required for the privacy protocol extension described so that message relay nodes are willing to forward messages. Direct payment does not make sense, as this would invalidate privacy. To be able to use privacy routing, the sender must pay an amount into a privacy pool. The sender can prove this with corresponding proof without disclosing relevant privacy details.

Nodes that have successfully rooted messages or were ready can also prove this with a proof without disclosing the details. At the end of a period, the privacy pool is distributed to active nodes based on the proofs.

Governance

To create the best possible conditions for broad use of the DM3 protocol, DM3 is a public resource that is freely accessible and can be used without restriction.

It is also very important for users to be involved in decisions regarding the further development and adaptation of the protocol and its extensions, development priorities, and other community activities. The dm3.org organization (which may later become the DM3 DAO) makes decisions based on votes, with each token representing one vote. In this way, the owners of the DM3 tokens are involved in the decisions.

Delegation of votes

To make these voting processes practicable, token holders can delegate votes to delegates, who can then vote on their behalf. In the case of delegation, the tokens are not transferred; only the voting rights are bundled.

Voting

Votes are submitted to the token holders in the form of proposals. These or the delegates who hold the voting power can then express their consent or rejection. The voting result is used as the basis for dm3.org's decision and, in the event of a positive decision, is implemented by dm3.org directly, on behalf of dm3.org, or directly by the community.

Standard Incentive

Establishing a new interoperability standard is a complex challenge. It must be ensured that as heterogeneous a group of potential adopters of the standard as possible can contribute their requirements in a coordinated manner and that a suitable technical solution is defined for them.

In addition, the potential adopters must be motivated to implement or integrate the standard, which means development effort on the one hand but not initially bringing the desired benefits, especially for the first adopters, until others have also implemented the standard.

By granting tokens, projects are encouraged to use the DM3 protocol, make their solution DM3 interoperable, integrate DM3 components into their applications, or provide DM3 infrastructure.

Issuance of tokens

DM3 tokens are issued as an incentive to establish and use the DM3 standard. This will motivate early adopters to implement the standard or use solutions based on it. Early adopters and users thus receive a share in the DM3 network and can influence its further development.

For groups of users receive tokens. However, to prevent manipulation, the exact criteria for what tokens are awarded and how many will only be published in detail at the time of allocation.

Adoption (interoperability): Protocols, services, and applications that implement or build on the DM3 protocol and thus establish interoperability with the DM3 ecosystem will receive tokens. The distribution will be designed so that early adoption leads to more tokens. This creates an incentive to implement the DM3 protocol quickly, which is crucial for establishing the standard and building the connected messaging ecosystem.

Integration of DM3 components: Applications that use embedded DM3 components, e.g., for in-app messaging, as an embedded chat function, or as a support chat, will also receive tokens. This is intended to create an incentive to integrate secure messaging based on DM3 into applications and thus expand the DM3 ecosystem and use the standard.

Early adopters: The ecosystem's success and, thus, the standard depend heavily on many users deploying DM3-based applications. By publishing active DM3 profiles, many users can be reached via DM3, thereby promoting the standard's benefits. Early adopters receive tokens as motivation to use DM3-based applications. This means that all DM3-compatible applications benefit from this incentive.

Infrastructure provider: To establish a decentralized message relay network with many independent nodes, this may be rewarded with tokens to incentivize the running of those nodes.