∙ What is it (in one sentence)?
∙ What can I do with it?
∙ Where can I learn more about what you just described using meaningless buzzwords?
Edit: This page has more information, but no tl;dr either: https://lbry.io/what
The essay and FAQ do offer some explanation, but seem to gloss over other things. Does this require a DRM layer? Can I keep (and backup) any content I purchase?
How can I, as a layman, discern the nature of their cryptocurrency setup? In the FAQ LBRY.Inc is shown to allocate themselves 10% of the total amount of their digital currency, and another 20% is distributed by them to partners. In other places they are boasting that this is an open protocol, similar in impact to IMAP — and free from the clutches of evil content platforms like YouTube.
How do I know this isn't another pyramid scheme (the LBC cryptocurrency) or a mule with a carrot on its forehead pretending to be a unicorn looking for a buy-out?
>TL;DR Digital art is one of the first goods to evolve beyond scarcity. This evolution is changing the way content is discovered, publicized, paid for and delivered. Heretofore, the lack of transparency and monetization mechanisms in peer-to-peer sharing networks has largely enabled piracy. By equipping a peer-to-peer protocol with a digital currency and transparent decentralized ledger, the LBRY protocol opens the door to a new era of digital content distribution making peer-to-peer content distribution suitable for major publishing houses, self-publishers and everyone in between.
If LBRY succeeds, we will enter a world that is even more creative, connected, and conservatory. We will waste less and we make more. We will create a world where a teenager in Kenya and a reality star in Los Angeles use the same tool to search the same network and have access to the same results -- a world where information, knowledge, and imagination know no borders.
I think the problem with paying for content is not that it doesn't have a fancy protocol based off blockchain and its own coin.
It is that access to content is not straightforward and it is easier to pirate. What guarantee does Lbry offer that someone won't post a pirate copy of copyrighted content for free?