On April 26, social network MeWe announced its integration with the Frequency blockchain network, a parachain of Polkadot, at the Consensus 2023 event. As part of the integration, the company plans to migrate its users’ accounts to the network this quarter.
MeWe, launched in 2012 and marketed as a “Facebook alternative” with superior privacy protection, reportedly boasts over 20 million users, according to a September Axios report. On the other hand, Frequency launched as a Polkadot parachain in November.
Just in from #Consensus 2023 – Polkadot parachain @one_frequency has announced a major partnership with social networking app @mewe to connect its 20 million users to Polkadot and the Social Web, giving each of them a social identity and full control over their own data. pic.twitter.com/O39RNtEhDy
— Polkadot @ Consensus 2023 (@Polkadot) April 26, 2023
During the Consensus 2023 panel discussion, “Laying Web3’s Foundation With Decentralized Social Networks and Data Rights,” MeWe CEO Jeffrey Edell explained that the integration would enable MeWe to make a permanent commitment to data ownership for its users.
Edell stated that blockchain technology doubles down on privacy, which allows the technology to deliver on companies’ promises. He added that committing to the blockchain means committing to privacy, even if MeWe is acquired by a larger company in the future.
According to the announcement, the integration between MeWe and Frequency is based on the Decentralized Social Networking Protocol (DSNP), which Woodham worked on as part of Frank McCourt’s Project Liberty. McCourt allocated $100 million to the project in June 2021.
While MeWe and Frequency’s partnership will only solve some social media problems, Amplica Labs, the initial technical contributor to Frequency, believes that the integration will provide a foundation that app developers can use to address a variety of issues in the future.
Social networks face various problems, ranging from user experience to moderation and AI algorithms for curation, making it virtually impossible to solve everything simultaneously. The partnership between Frequency and MeWe aims to create the social web by linking digital presences and addressing the data layer to approach these complex problems.