Wiper is an encrypted mobile messenger with a built-in Bitcoin wallet that allows users to send and receive Bitcoin instantaneously, directly from the mobile application. Using its Bitcoin wallet, Wiper recently launched a new functionality called Wiper Film to help filmmakers and online digital content providers monetize their content and maximize their profit with Bitcoin micropayments.
The company had previously raised $2.5 million in seed funding from sole investor and Intermedia and Unison founder Michael Choupak, to develop a unique set of cryptographic functionalities which encrypts all incoming and outgoing messages and HD calls.
The core concept of the Wiper application was inspired by the frustration that co-founders Manilo Carrelli and Michael Choupak felt while using conventional messaging platforms such as Whatsapp, Facebook and Skype, which do not allow users from removing their messages and content due to compliance issues. Anyone on the Wiper network can instantly and permanently delete sensitive user data and messages from the Wiper database and servers.
To provide an additional level of security to its users, Wiper also developed and integrated its Bitcoin wallet, which allows Wiper messenger users to send micropayments to each other with a touch of a button, securely and instantly. The wallet is the basis for the new Wiper Film functionality.
Wiper Film is a $4.99 a month subscription available for all Wiper messenger users that grants access to hundreds of independent films. Content providers will receive a fair share of the revenue in Bitcoin, that will be paid through Wiper Bitcoin wallets. In essence, Wiper Film is like traditional advertising networks Google AdSense or YouTube advertisements, which incentivizes content providers with an appropriate share of the ad revenue based on the popularity of the content. But instead of using existing payment methods such as PayPal or bank wire transfers, Wiper Film pays its filmmakers in Bitcoin.
One major advantage for filmmakers on the Wiper network is that they are able to receive Bitcoin payments with a minimum threshold that is substantially lower than the payment thresholds of Google and other leading advertising networks. Since Bitcoin micropayments are far cheaper than conventional payment methods, digital content providers will be able to receive their share of the income in smaller dividends.
On Google for example, content providers are required to wait until they reach a minimum threshold of $100 before cashing out. While major filmmakers and digital content providers drive tens of thousands of dollars per month in profit, freelance and independent filmmakers generate a much smaller income and thus struggle to reach that threshold each time they publish or release their content.
Furthermore, Bitcoin payments are instantaneous. That means that digital content providers on the Wiper network will no longer have to wait for a week to two to receive their payments, unlike Google or AOL advertising networks, which require 5 to 10 business days as a minimum payment settlement period for users.
The Wiper team raised an additional $2 million from its previous investor Michael Choupak and plans to focus on the development and distribution of Wiper Film throughout 2016.