Paper Number
1210
Paper Type
Complete Research Paper
Abstract
This study uses a real-effort experiment to investigate whether web3 social media platforms can increase participation and high-quality contributions by issuing ownership tokens. This is particularly interesting because web2 and web3 platforms would theoretically set a price below zero if network effects were very important. However, prices on web2 platforms are typically not lower than zero because a negative price may lead to opportunistic behavior. Nevertheless, a zero price could be too high to fully internalize the network effect. With a 2x2 setup and two online experiments, we tested whether direct payment or ownership tokens increased participation and high-quality contributions. With 405 participants for two different payment schemes, we do not find opportunistic behavior. In line with the promises of web3, participation and contribution were the highest in the web3 treatments. Furthermore, users chose to contribute at high quality, even though they could earn more money by choosing low-quality contributions.
Recommended Citation
Roesch, Juergen, "Web2 Pricing vs. Web3 Tokens: The Effect of Tokens and a Negative Price on Contribution to Web2 and Web3 Social Media Platforms" (2024). ECIS 2024 Proceedings. 3.
https://aisel.aisnet.org/ecis2024/track16_fintech/track16_fintech/3
Web2 Pricing vs. Web3 Tokens: The Effect of Tokens and a Negative Price on Contribution to Web2 and Web3 Social Media Platforms
This study uses a real-effort experiment to investigate whether web3 social media platforms can increase participation and high-quality contributions by issuing ownership tokens. This is particularly interesting because web2 and web3 platforms would theoretically set a price below zero if network effects were very important. However, prices on web2 platforms are typically not lower than zero because a negative price may lead to opportunistic behavior. Nevertheless, a zero price could be too high to fully internalize the network effect. With a 2x2 setup and two online experiments, we tested whether direct payment or ownership tokens increased participation and high-quality contributions. With 405 participants for two different payment schemes, we do not find opportunistic behavior. In line with the promises of web3, participation and contribution were the highest in the web3 treatments. Furthermore, users chose to contribute at high quality, even though they could earn more money by choosing low-quality contributions.
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