The key differences between “dTowns” and other social networks are the following:
• Synergy inside the network. In other social networking systems, there is no developed model of synergy between third-party modules. They work separately, which means the users experiencing or contributing them gain advantages only inside the limited domain of the module, or maybe just a series of modules by the same or cooperating developers. For example, when we use a photo album application on Facebook and add pictures to it, our friends can comment on them or “tag” (mark the people on the photo with a square) them, and the only outcome will be a message on the profile – that someone has commented on your photo or someone has tagged you on a photo. In dTowns, we have a different picture – personal and global currency. Personal currency is what we call “energy”. A user spends it, when he performs actions. Energy restores over time, but it can be restored using other conditional means, like energy drinks and so on. By the way, this is another way to place advertisements – but without annoying ads and banners with possible security flaws. This energy stuff is to prevent site abuse, spamming and flooding, but the most important part is – to maintain balance, which is really important everywhere, where MMORPG elements are used. Global currency is, as in a real society, a mean of trade – this is what people receive for their jobs, this is what they pay for their services. So, when someone votes for a picture you placed on a gallery module, his energy decreases, as he has performed an action, and your picture’s activity rises, too, thus earning you points. This allows modules, even third-party ones, interact.
• Cooperation with real-life services. Imagine, someone located in dTowns-Yerevan, would be able to order food deliveries from a real Yerevan supermarket or Chinese restaurant! Do not forget, dTowns is not a game, it is to make services you need just clicks away from you. We are planning to cooperate with shops, cinemas, theatres and exhibitions to provide the information and services that the client requires. More, it might enable organizations, providing services, form “virtual departments” – dPartments, to work with dTowns clients, and recruit employees from dTowns users. This would give dTowns the possibility to exchange dTowns currency to real-world money and vice-versa.
• A higher level of user security. dTowns will have a law enforcement system, and users will not be banned at the will of the administration. They will have rights, responsibilities and law. Those, who violate the law, will be punished accordingly. Those tried and found innocent will be rehabilitated in full rights and dTowns property. Punishment varies from fines to public service and temporary or permanent ban from the site. This is to prevent vandalism, violation of rights and other criminal activities, while still maintaining a friendly interaction with the user – not giving a second chance only in extreme cases.As you can see from what was said above, this is a completely new level of social networking, where the user will value his account and will have confidence, that he won’t lose it for no reason.
There is another couple of concepts we’d like to introduce, too: they aren’t new, but are not widely used in social networking. One is interaction with existing web services, instead of concurrence. For example, instead of developing an internal radio service, we let third party radio stations work with dTowns, letting benefit both the station, dTowns and the users, who are now able to continue listening to their favorite internet radio station without leaving the social networking page. And yet another concept is the “feedback system”, so successfully used in E-Bay and neglected in social networking pages: it is, when users can give positive or negative feedbacks to each other, when an interaction occurs. This is most usable, when a business transaction takes place.
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