Note the reason why a specific cryptocurrency, from a set of competing crypto currencies, gets used is an example of the network effect. The more people use a specific cryptocurrency (bitcoin or ethereum or dogecoin or whatever), the more and better support there will be for transactions in this currency. This means better and more reliable software (less likely to lose or corrupt your money), and more importantly, it means less volatility and more stability for carrying value from sender to receiver. The more mega or giga-dollars being moved using that currency the better off you will be for your transaction. Especially if your transaction if large or you are trying to be anonymous—either way, more traffic is better for you.
This is the network effect—using the network with more users has more utility to you. In the cryptocurrency world this means the currency that both (1) offers all the features needed in practice (2) has the most users is ultimately going to become dominant.
At the moment more people transacting in Bitcoin makes Bitcoin less useable as a currency. Transaction costs of >10 dollars per transactions are simply undesirable for most economic transactions. Politically, it also seems to be hard for bitcoin to change in a way that would make it suitable as a real currency and radically reduce transaction costs.
Note the reason why a specific cryptocurrency, from a set of competing crypto currencies, gets used is an example of the network effect. The more people use a specific cryptocurrency (bitcoin or ethereum or dogecoin or whatever), the more and better support there will be for transactions in this currency. This means better and more reliable software (less likely to lose or corrupt your money), and more importantly, it means less volatility and more stability for carrying value from sender to receiver. The more mega or giga-dollars being moved using that currency the better off you will be for your transaction. Especially if your transaction if large or you are trying to be anonymous—either way, more traffic is better for you.
This is the network effect—using the network with more users has more utility to you. In the cryptocurrency world this means the currency that both (1) offers all the features needed in practice (2) has the most users is ultimately going to become dominant.
At the moment more people transacting in Bitcoin makes Bitcoin less useable as a currency. Transaction costs of >10 dollars per transactions are simply undesirable for most economic transactions. Politically, it also seems to be hard for bitcoin to change in a way that would make it suitable as a real currency and radically reduce transaction costs.
Yes, and also usually the currency becomes safer (harder to “hack”) with more miners.