Bitcoin social tipping and micropayments service provider ChangeTip has officially launched its iOS mobile app enabling anyone to receive or send bitcoin or USD seamlessly from and to a phone number, email address, Facebook or Twitter account.
The ChangeTip team believes that “social tipping is the expression of financial appreciation and freedom online.” Over decades, bloggers, content providers, artists and digital creators have persistently explored different methods to monetize their digital content. ChangeTip believes the frictionless ability to connect financially online will lead to a revolutionized Internet experience. If you reduce the cognitive load and time associated with making a small payment, you can change the way we connect.
Due to the increase of governments, central banks and financial institutions moving toward a cashless society such as Sweden, a growing number of people have begun to search for alternative payment systems that can be easier used for connecting financially online when compared to conventional currency.
The industry is aware of the general trends moving towards the discussion of “blockchain tech” instead of Bitcoin, due to the precarious and negative reputation Bitcoin has in the non-cryptocurrency world. This continued negativity is a pain point the company has experienced when trying to market bitcoin to non-bitcoin users.
However, the company has also found that when users try bitcoin out, their understanding of how the technology works and the possibilities of it increases. As a result, the company launched USD support in August, which not only provides additional quick and easy currency conversion features to established bitcoin users, but an opportunity for users of the current world reserve currency to try out bitcoin in a safe and helpful environment.
The mobile app was a “clear must have, since millennials spend, on average, 5 hours a day on their phones,” says Victoria van Eyk, head of community at ChangeTip. “This app blends your online and offline worlds together, making the seamless transfer of value possible. We’ll see an influx of use cases we have never imagined before, as now we can connect financially with anyone over the internet using bitcoin, but also tip people ‘in real life’ with either the world reserve currency USD or bitcoin. This assists people who depend on the generosity of others and who are feeling the impact of our continued move into an increasingly cashless society.”
The ChangeTip app provides yet another service, which its competitor Venmo, the payment network and application acquired by PayPal’s Braintree in late 2012, fails to offer - free international payments, and value transfer without the need or involvement of a bank.
Currently, Venmo supports millions of both Android and iPhone users, managing one of the largest payment networks in the world. But while Venmo limits its service to U.S. customers, ChangeTip is available internationally, in almost every country worldwide, leaving ChangeTip a larger user-base to target.
ChangeTip was one of the few startups to utilize bitcoin to create an online digital currency-based tipping service. Since its launch, digital creators and bloggers have received micropayments and bitcoin tips, as an appreciation of their works on various social media platforms including Reddit, Twitter and Facebook.
The ChangeTip Mobile App is available in the App Store now.