Staking a claim at the blockchain-based intersection of decentralized finance, nonfungible tokens and a thriving digital content creator economy, The Poken Company is generating plenty of buzz with slick marketing and cross-platform services.
Under the banner of Pokmi and the tagline “Come for the NFTs, stay for the uncensored and safe experience,” the brains behind the operation are recruiting talent and fans for their #PokenArmy.
$PKN will revolutionize our industry, providing a more transparent and ethical model for content creators by putting them back at the center of the economic equation.
Through a $PKN currency earnings program that includes pooling and staking options, as well as world-famous performer ambassadors such as Maitland Ward — with her very own “3D Metaverse NFT” avatar — Manuel Ferrara, Abella Danger, Anissa Kate and more, Pokmi is pulling out all the stops to make a splash.
First created in May 2021 by two experienced scale-up entrepreneurs and self-proclaimed “hyper-growth enthusiasts,” Nils Lataillade and Marco Garniga explained that Pokmi's primary ambitions are to become “the reference in the financial infrastructure of online adult content, to transform the world of digital content towards more ethics” and to offer “transparency and fairness for both creators and consumers, thanks to blockchain technology and NFTs.”
For those unfamiliar with the increasingly tech-heavy lingo flitting about mainstream news sites, it can be daunting trying to grasp what exactly is being bought and sold. Many of these neologisms fall under the “Web3” or “Web 3.0” umbrella — a general concept that views the next evolution of the internet as revolving around software and platforms that are not dependent on traditional companies or institutions.
In a nutshell, a blockchain stores data in “blocks” that are linked together via a “chain,” which can be used to clearly record the path that financial transactions take over time. Cryptocurrencies are digital currencies that are tracked on a blockchain, while nonfungible tokens, or NFTs, are basically a one-of-a-kind digital asset whose proof of unique ownership is also tracked on the blockchain. Popular NFTs are visual in nature, spanning everything from meme photos to GIFs of adult stars.
By weaving these various aspects together, Pokmi’s creators aim to be the “first uncensored content platform based on NFTs.” In the summer of 2021, the company closed a first ICO of $10.7 million. Unlike an IPO or initial public offering, an ICO — initial coin offering — is a capital-raising technique for startups centered around new cryptocurrencies.
Through the eventual sale of “nearly $1.5 billion of $PKN,” according to Pokmi reps, the company hopes to see its specially designed cryptocurrency “become the sustainable financing vehicle for an industry that is still looking for a secure model.”
In light of recent troubles with credit card brands, many of which wield significant influence in the payment processing realm with an often negative impact on adult businesses, companies like Pokmi aim to fill the gap with decentralized options less subject to banking regulations.
That is why Pokmi believes that “$PKN will revolutionize our industry, providing a more transparent and ethical model for content creators by putting them back at the center of the economic equation.” To demonstrate the brand’s efficacy and seriousness, Pokmi says that its ambassadors “are really proactive” and frequently “want to create more content and leverage our platform to make other content creators join our journey.”
To position itself competitively in this new market, Pokmi underscored, “We are focused on uncensored creativity. For us, it’s important to let creators be free and be rewarded for that.”
As for the long-term view, from metaverse business plans to staying ahead of the evolving blockchain-based landscape, they shared, “We’ve already bought lands on Decentraland. We are actively working on the metaverse. You’ll soon know our strategy. It will be a huge market. Blockchain has changed our vision of the business, and most of the companies will embrace it as soon as they can.”
Decentraland refers to a 3D virtual-reality world powered by the Ethereum blockchain, in which users can make digital structures ranging from art galleries to concert halls and casinos, and charge other players to visit their creations. While that concept may sound outlandish to folks who do not play video games regularly or see the value in such online purchases, one need only look at the hand-over-fist revenues that mobile game developers make from microtransactions that include everything from special outfits for characters to speed-up bonuses in character progression, as well as the runaway success story of Roblox.
Nonetheless, Pokmi remains grounded in its approach to capitalizing on this brave new virtual world, by ensuring its technological framework is robust. “We are implementing the latest standards in security, DeFi tech and NFTs, such as EIP-2981 for royalties and OpenID Connect for crypto payment flows,” they explained. DeFi is an acronym for decentralized finance, EIP-2981 refers to a standardized way to retrieve royalty payment information for NFTs and OpenID Connect enables developer authentication of users across sites and apps without needing to handle password files directly.
With a keen eye towards the future and a firm hand in the present zeitgeist of digital markets, the enterprising folks behind Pokmi say they look forward to fulfilling their mission in 2022 of pursuing “more creators, more content, more users, more safety, more metaverse and more of Pokmi.”
