Beginnings of the Reputation Economy

The formal reputation networks that exist AF arose organically from the informal social media developed through the 21st century. An early barrier to interacting with strangers online—particularly when engaging in financial transactions—was not knowing if the person you were dealing with was reliable. Primitive reputation scores were the first solution, enabling buyers to rate sellers. These systems rapidly spread to social networks, discussion forums, and filesharing sites, as a way of valuating participants. Concurrently, for the first time, individuals had access to the same public presence capabilities and image-making techniques formerly reserved for those retaining expensive PR firms. Individuals with huge friends lists and blog followings had commercial pull that could sell products, fill clubs, top up campaign coffers, propagate memes, and make or kill trends.

Likewise, companies and social organizations seized an opportunity to more carefully control their public image for increasingly savvy consumers, in an attempt to manage the ratings their products and services received online. Corporations created network presences for their mascots, pitchmen, and products that gave them almost the same data footprint as flesh and blood people (some of the earliest AIs and infomorphs were cultural idoru or designed to maintain online interactions for commercial entities). Although BF networks didn’t have the direct, tangible economic impact of their AF successors, they were a vital stage in their development because they created the linkage between individuals opting in to public information networks and socio-economic benefit. Reputation was increasingly tied to participation in public data sharing, and a polished presentation across multiple media formats and networks was a key to success for individuals and organizations alike.

How an alternative economy based on reputation could form in the future.