After SEC Approval, YouNow Integrates ‘Props’ Crypto Tokens Into Livestreaming Ecosystem

Props, a cryptocurrency token founded by the makers of livestreaming platform YouNow, has been approved for use by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). That said, Props holders still cannot exchange the nascent tokens for fiat currency.

Props were first unveiled in 2017, and were initially intended to power an all-new livestreaming platform from the makers of YouNow called Rize, which was subsequently merged into YouNow. The benefit of incorporating a cryptocurrency model into the livestreaming business, the company says, is that it decentralizes the platform’s economy — enabling broadcasters to not only receive money from their viewers, but to own a financial stake in the network that they are helping to fuel.

Now, Props tokens are being implemented into YouNow (see video below), which counts 47 million registered users — making Props “the first consumer-facing crypto token qualified by the SEC,” according to YouNow. While creators can earn Props from their viewers, viewers can also receive Props for watching and engaging with content. (This is on top of the current cash-based system that exists on YouNow, which enables viewers to tip their favorite creators. YouNow says that it has sold roughly $70 million in virtual rewards to date).

Notably, however, Props cannot currently be redeemable for fiat currency — though Props co-founder Yonatan Sela tells Tubefilter that the company is “on the forefront of this matter.” For instance, YouNow is currently working to have Props listed on Alternative Trading Systems — a forum that the company notes is equivalent to an exchange, and which are also regulated by the U.S. government.

Despite the fact that they can’t currently be listed on an exchange, Props are transferable from one person to another. To this end, YouNow users can receive unique benefits within the app based on their Props holdings, including a daily stipend of bars (a tipping unit), increased status within the app, and exclusive virtual items. 200,000 users currently hold Props, YouNow says, and many are using them on a daily basis.

Techcrunch notes that the company has already raised $21 million for the Props venture — known as Props Project — by pre-selling tokens. The Props Project is backed VC firms like Union Square Ventures, Comcast, Venrock, Andreessen Horowitz’s Chris Dixon, and even YouTube creator Casey Neistat. There is a finite supply of 1 billion Props, per Techcrunch, and 600 million have been mined thus far. The SEC filing valued each Prop at $0.1369.

And as an incentive to get users on board with Props, all existing YouNow users will receive free Props when they sign into the app. “Creators may receive anywhere between 0 to 10,000 Props when logging in to YouNow to claim their Props for the first time,” Props co-founder Yonatan Sela tells Tubefilter. “The size of the bonus depends on their YouNow level.” (YouNow functions on a level system, notes Sela, referring to a user’s status and overall experience on the platform).

Eventually, YouNow hopes to integrate the open-sourced Props blockchain system into a network of other apps beyond YouNow. For instance, SplitmediaLabs (which makes game-streaming software with more than 13 million users known as XSplit) and New York-based app maker PeerStream have both become partners in the Props Network and will integrate the tokens into their apps in the near future.