PLAZA -Project Introduction
Technology in our world today is constantly evolving. Different concepts and innovations are being invented daily, changing the way we see the world, from our daily interactions with other people and the world at large to the way we satisfy our daily needs.
E-commerce is a major part of our lives, and the commercialization and dependency of humans on the internet has created this multi-trillion dollars market. The e-commerce industry, however innovative as it may be, is not without pressing challenges that need an equally innovative solution.
The blockchain is a cutting-edge technology that has revolutionized a lot of world sectors and markets. And while its application and implementation are nowhere near its full potential. Constant and continuous innovations are opening new doors of possibilities for the blockchain technology.
Problem Statement
A couple of decentralized projects have attempted to revolutionize the e-commerce industry through the blockchain. And while it is still too early to judge their achievements, some of those projects are already faced with new problems that come with using blockchain and cryptocurrencies.
In between every new technology and the lifestyle of humans, there is often an intersection that is mostly occupied by complexity and confusion. This often presents more problems than solutions for the average person, in the time it will take him/her to get grips of the new innovation.
The blockchain and cryptocurrencies are posed with the challenges of complexity, high level of difficulty, and highly technical applications to real-life problems. In other words, while the innovative blockchain technology can provide solutions to different types of problems, these solutions are mostly theoretical and lacks easy user adoption.
In the case of e-commerce, these problems will not continue for much longer.
In this article, I will be introducing the PLAZA decentralized platform, which aims to revolutionize the e-commerce industry using the blockchain as an effective tool, but unlike the other decentralized solutions before it, Plaza's solutions will do away with all the complexities that come with blockchain solutions and promote easy usability and application.
This new innovative platform is called PLAZA.
PLAZA
Plaza is an ecosystem that involves an e-commerce marketplace empowered by the capabilities of the blockchain to ensure lower prices for customers, properly reward them for their loyalty, ensure complete data security, and improve user experience by adopting easy to use application interfaces and offer more flexibility on how their cryptocurrency can be used in their daily lives.
It is safe to say that Plaza is a project that prioritizes the users and helps businesses reach their customers in a more effective, efficient and economical manner by cutting out the middlemen in the business, replacing them with blockchain powered smart contracts.
Source: Website
Plaza Project Vision
E-commerce is a big part of our lives, either it is ordering groceries from a local grocery shop or buying other products from sellers overseas. Plaza's vision is to develop a "freedom lifestyle" product. Using the blockchain as a base infrastructure for its exciting innovations.
Existing Problems
The problems plaza is aiming to solve can be divided into 2 categories;
- The challenges and limitations of the e-commerce market
- The challenges of cryptocurrencies to users
Limitations Of The E-commerce Market
High Costs: The role of major e-commerce companies in bringing the goods and services on offer to the desired customers cannot be overemphasized, however, these middlemen invest a lot of money in the infrastructure and personnel for the successful running of their businesses.
They, in turn, charge the sellers high fees in order to cover for their expenses and also make huge profits. These high fees are then pushed by the sellers unto the buyers by inflating the prices of their products.
Additionally, users and businesses have to rely on third-party payment options to successfully complete transactions, and the users are always charged transaction fees. In order to make a successful purchase of different goods or services, users/customers have to make high extra payments to cover for the excess costs of successfully fulfilling their orders.
Data Privacy and Security: e-commerce companies utilize vulnerabilities in the online presence of users in order to gather data which is used for different purposes like targeting ads and promos based on a person's shopping patterns.
Other more sophisticated data brokers spy on people's online activities and sell this personal data to anyone interested. This is a big violation of privacy and should be put in check.
Challenges of Cryptocurrencies To Users
Payment Difficulties: Both the conventional and cryptocurrency payment solutions have their own challenges. For the conventional payments, it is the high fees charged on credit/debit card payments, and while cryptocurrencies offer cheaper payment solutions for users, it is often accompanied with difficulties of purchasing, storing and transacting in cryptocurrencies, especially for a newbie.
Real World Utilities: One of the major obstacles of cryptocurrencies is in its application to practical real-world uses. Most utility tokens have no use outside their assigned platforms and for other daily purposes like shopping. This lessens the appeal of the mass adoption of cryptocurrencies by users worldwide as most people are satisfied with the convenience that their normal credit/debit cards provide.
Cryptocurrencies Are Seen As Assets: The potential for appreciation in values of cryptocurrencies means that a lot of people getting into the crypto space are less concerned about the actual utility of the tokens but rather in its potential to increase in value and make them richer in the nearer future.
The problem with this is a currency that cannot hold its value will have very little actual utility potential because both the sellers and buyers stand a risk of making losses on the future rise or fall of the token value, which will have an impact on their business or personal finances.
Plaza Solutions
Solution To High Costs: Plaza through its innovative platform will cut out the middlemen and present sellers with a platform to properly engage their sellers directly, and also payments are made in cryptocurrencies, both of which cuts significantly the extra product or service costs and the high transaction fees.
Solution To Data Privacy and Security Issues: Plaza utilizes the blockchain technology which is famed for its anonymity and high security to encrypt and protect the personal data of users breaking the "status quo" of the existing e-commerce market.
Solution To Payment difficulties and Real World Utilities: The plaza platform through bits cryptocurrency payment solution, eliminates the high cost of transaction fees like there is with the traditional card payments. Additional, every user receives a plaza free wallet which is synchronized with the plaza debit card, bringing the convenience of card payments to the blockchain and cryptocurrencies.
Solution To The Asset Nature Of Cryptocurrencies: This is a problem that is common to utility tokens, and for this reason, plaza will function on a dual currency system, in which a limited supply utility token (PLAZA) will use for fulfilling actions within the ecosystem and a tethered transaction coin (PL$) will be used to purchase goods and services on the marketplace. This allows buyers and sellers to transact freely without the fears of a depreciating market value reducing the value of their payments for the goods and services bought or sold respectively.
For more information about the other problems and solutions that this platform has been created to tackle, kindly read the project Whitepaper.
Touchpoints of The Plaza Ecosystem
- Plaza Mobile and Desktop Applications
- Plaza Concierge
- Plaza Card
- Plaza Merchant
Source: Whitepaper
Source: Whitepaper 
Plaza Team
The plaza project team consist of 7 really experienced and professional members. The CEO & Chief Architect is Kevin Johnson who has previous experience in marketing. Plaza also has a team of 5 top advisors. The full details of the team members with the links to their LinkedIn profiles are available in the link provided in the official contacts section below.
Source: Website
Plaza ICO Details
The plaza utility token (PLAZA) will be on sale in the plaza public sale which ends on the 11th of November. This is an ethereum blockchain ERC 20 token, which will be used as the driver of the plaza ecosystem. All the tokens to be generated will depend on the amount raised in the token sale.
Ticker: PLAZA
Protocol: ERC 20
ICO Price: 1 ETH = 5,000 PLAZA
Minimum Investment: 0.25 ETH
Hardcap: 100,000 ETH
Source: Website
Conclusions
Plaza is created by a team with foresight which has seen the struggles of cryptocurrencies in getting real lifestyle applications and the frailties of the e-commerce market. This plaza has been created a to offer an innovative solution to this problems through a seamless integration of the blockchain with proven traditional measures.
In the plaza cards and its seamless integration with the plaza wallet, the plaza tokens will be much more easier to use as compared to other cryptocurrencies, and economical too. With this, in my personal opinion plaza has what it takes to be a real disruptive force in the cryptocurrency and e-commerce markets respectively.
Lastly, according to the plaza website, the plaza blockchain is capable of achieving 15,000 transactions per second which is more than any project currently on the blockchain can boast of. This speed will enable the plaza blockchain to accommodate the potential millions of people all over the world will be using it for their daily e-commerce requirements.
Disclaimer
This article has been written as a review of Plaza blockchain project for promotional purpose. The content of this article is a review of the project added with my personal insights from my understanding and research on blockchain and e-commerce.
I am not an investment advisor and I strongly recommend that you make your personal research, and consult your legal and financial advisers before participating in ICOs. Cryptocurrencies carry a certain level of risk, so make sure you understand the laws that apply to blockchain projects in your jurisdiction.
Official Contacts and Materials
Website: https://www.plaza.systems/
Whitepaper: https://www.plaza.systems/whitepaper/
Onepager: https://www.plaza.systems/one-pager/
Plaza Team: https://www.plaza.systems/team/
Telegram Discussion Group: https://t.me/plazatalk/
Telegram Business Discussion Group: https://t.me/plazabiz/
Telegram Announcement Channel: https://t.me/plazainfo/
Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/PlazaSystems/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5C06Ma-O6-bqgJ76GogBMw
GitHub: https://github.com/plaza-systems/
Medium: https://medium.com/plaza-systems/
Flipboard: https://flipboard.com/@PlazaSystems/
References
- Nyxone. (2017). What’s Importance of E-Commerce and online shopping and why to sell Online - Medium [online] Available at: https://medium.com/@nyxonedigital/importance-of-e-commerce-and-online-shopping-and-why-to-sell-online-5a3fd8e6f416 [Accessed 30 Oct. 2018].
- Plaza | Freedom Lifestyle. (2018). [online] Available at: https://www.plaza.systems/ [Accessed 30 Oct. 2018].
- Plaza | Freedom Lifestyle. (2018). [online] Available at: https://www.plaza.systems/whitepaper/ [Accessed 01 Nov. 2018].
- Plaza | Freedom Lifestyle. (2018). [online] Available at: https://www.plaza.systems/one-pager/ [Accessed 01 Nov. 2018].
- Stellabelle. (2017). What’s The Backstory On The Word, HODL? - Medium [online] Available at: https://medium.com/@stellabelle/whats-the-backstory-on-the-word-hodl-27756392b698/ [Accessed 03 Nov. 2018].
- Richard Svinkin. (2017). Cryptocurrency: How We Hook the Masses - Coindesk. [online] Coindesk. Available at: https://www.coindesk.com/cryptocurrency-hook-masses/ [Accessed 03 Nov. 2018].
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The concept of using cards to spend cryptocurrency as opposed to making payments directly from a wallet anytime there is a need for it is a good one.
I think this project has a very good future or probably you are very good at explaining ICOs, anyway I will make more research. Keep it Up
Nothing beats a customer targeted product and infrastructure. Plaza brings a unique kind of simplicity to the lifestyle of cryptocurrency users all over the world, making it perfect for the e-commerce industry and also usage in our daily lives.
This is a nice concept, but I don't really know how plaza will be able to get more adoption and compete with e-commerce giant like amazon.
IMO its easy to assume the e-commerce market is saturated, but a look at the major e-commerce companiws like alibaba, amazon, ebay etc will show that as long as the service they provude is good, they will all thrive in the competitive environment. The same may apply to this project if it delivers on its promises
I beg to disagree, a lot of ecommerce companies have been created over the years but only a selected few that we know.
No I don't agree with you as well
I don't know the exact figures for this year, but as at least year 2017, The world ecommerce market was worth more than 2 trillion US dollars, do you think this is the job of only the big players? No!
Every company big or small has a role to play.
Yea, you have a point
Very good point here in my opinion. Both the very big and smaller companies are equally important to the growth of the industry, encouraging more competition and providing great service.
Also you forgot to add that people react well to cheaper stuffs, especially if it with the same quality and more convenient. If this platform can be as convenient as the normal companies with know but with cheaper services at the same quality, i will definitely jump on it.
you made a very compelling point, plaza has enough appeal to interest users.
You exactly have a point, the market is b8h enough for everybody to participate
Exactly the room for expansion of the e-commerce market is huge
There is a massive room for improvement and expansion of the e-commerce marketplace, plaza using the blockchain and cryptocurrencies will make the power distribution fairer and allow sellers more control over their businesses
Presently china has put a ban of cryptocurrencies and america regulations are sketchy to say the least, the same can be said for india (my country). This are three very big countries with huge markets. How will this affect the potentials of plaza
It is true cryptocurrencies still have some uncertainties in those countries and the regulatory environment is not the best at the moment, but with the big moves already being made concerning cryptocurrency regulations, the big companies recognizing the potentials of the blockchain technology and already adopting it to varying scales. It is only a matter of time, when mass adoption will be attained.
With this already said, plaza is positioned perfectly in between cryptocurrencies and ecommerce to bring forth innovative changes.
A really nice project to look up to
Yea it is, join the telegram groups to stay updated with the latest information
Very good review.. The referenced articles are also a good read as well
Thanks for the feedback, glad you liked the contents.
Kindly join the social media groups of the project especially the telegram channels to learn more.
Good post, you have added value to steemit, please follow my blog back.
I love fitness and also cryptocurrency. I will like to learn more about ICO
I have followed you as well , please follow my blog more closely as i always create contents about top ICOs and also connect with me on bitcointalk so we can have a chat about any particular things you wanna know as regards cryptocurrencies and icos.
This is a very good one, i'll look closely into this
Thanks for the feedback @jibadedotun
This is a great idea with a huge competition waiting for them out there. Here's hoping the team pull this through.
The team has a lot of experience and the advisors as well are top professionals in their fields. i believe plaza is going to be a force to recon with.