Ethereum NFT badge application POP is worth paying attention to? What are POAPs Why collect them?

What are POAPs?

POAP (pronounced poh-ap) is an acronym for Proof of Attendance Protocol. These NFT badges are issued to demonstrate participation in an event, whether it takes place virtually or in the real world. Each badge is unique, which means that the only way to get a specific POAP is to attend an event. Collectors can quickly accumulate unique POAP collections that document their experiences and journeys in the crypto space.

All POAP was created using the ERC-721 standard, the most commonly used format for casting NFTs. However, to classify an NFT as POP, it needs to meet some specific criteria. First, it must be minted through the official POP smart contract. Second, it needs to contain metadata related to a specific time or date, up to a year. Finally, all POAP must have an image associated with it.

While POP was originally minted on the Ethereum mainnet, SINCE October 2020, POAP has been created and distributed on the Ethereum sidechain xDai. Because xDai is designed for fast, inexpensive transactions, issuers can mint POAP at very little cost. Therefore, POAP is usually distributed free of charge to anyone who is eligible to receive them.

If the user pays the gas fee, POAP can also be migrated from xDai to Ethereum. However, due to Ethereum's high fees, most users choose to leave their POAP on xDai so that they can view them on the POAP application. While POAP will remain on xDai for the foreseeable future, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin hinted that they could be hosted on the second-tier network optimistic rollups in the future.

So far, POAP has been distributed at more than 100 Ethereum community events, such as EthGlobal, Dappcon, and the recent Ethereum Community Conference in Paris. More than 7,000 POAP were claimed in these events, creating a provable attendance record stored on the blockchain.

In addition, some online crypto communities are using POAP to interact with their members. DAOs such as SushiSwap and ShapeShift distribute badges to attendees of weekly community meetings, AMA participants, and voters of governance proposals. Elsewhere, popular metaverse game Decentraland regularly distributes POP to honor in-game events, such as the recent 10 million user party hosted by MetaMask.

POP is also used in the Animated Web Series and the NFT project Stoner Cats. During the project's launch, many of the people trying to cast the Stoner Cat failed their transactions due to improperly written smart contracts, and users spent a total of $790,000 in gas fees. To compensate those affected, the Stoner Cats team issued a limited Rekt Stoner Cats Minters POAP and refunded the gas fees for unsuccessful transactions.

Why collect POAPs?

While it's fun to collect them, these blockchain badges could also have greater untapped potential.

One example is that the engagement and time of the community can be measured by the number of POPs in a user's wallet. Earlier this year, Bankless DAO used POAP to allocate funds for its users' airdrops, and more POAp equates to a larger share of airdrops.

Other communities that issue POP Are also working to incentivize collectors. SushiSwap has begun introducing benefits for POP holders, such as the ability to map collaborative community artwork more quickly and then distribute it to participants as a fragmented NFT. While that doesn't seem like much compared to a full-fledged token airdrop, Anyone who attends its event can claim Sushi POAP, while Bankless DAO only distributes its POP to paid subscribers.

Not just by measuring engagement by the number of badges collected, an individual's POP collection can also be seen as a highly reliable, decentralized identity. To do this, POAP issuers must ensure that no more than one POAP is received by each person participating in the event and prevent non-participants from receiving them. As long as the issuer acts as a reliable performer, each issued POPP increases the strength and effectiveness of all POPAPs collective identities.

By treating the POAP collection as a decentralized identity, the user has identified the practical application of the blockchain badge. For example, SushiSwap AMA moderator 0xTangle had discussed using POP as a kind of blockchain resume with members of the Sushi community. When recruiting in the crypto space, employers can use the applicant's POAP collection as a reliable record of their participation in the community. This has a lot of value when hiring people into autonomous, community-driven entities such as DAOs that need to ensure that everyone working in them aligns with the organization's goals.

Since the project launched its current version on xDai in October 2020, the use of POAP has been growing steadily. Users have only touched the fur of possible uses of POP, social graphs, and recommended applications such as mortgages have not yet been implemented. With unlimited apps and a low barrier to entry, POAP has the potential to help redefine identity in cryptocurrencies.