This study investigates the impact of cryptocurrency rewards and token prices on user-generated content (UGC) provision by content creators on a blockchain-based platform. Analyzing data from the Steemit platform, we find that although an increase in total reward value incentivizes UGC contributions, the rise in token prices alone does not lead to a surge in UGC. Instead, token prices have a mediating role in the relationship between total rewards earned by content creators and the volume of UGC they produce. Furthermore, we observe that an increase in UGC does not lead to a corresponding rise in the platform's market capitalization, as increased website traffic intensifies competition for rewards from a constant pool, suggesting that heightened user engagement does not translate to enhanced market capitalization. These findings imply that carefully designed reward mechanisms are crucial for sustaining user engagement and content creation amidst market fluctuations. Our study underscores the importance of a comprehensive approach to incentivizing user participation and ensuring platform growth, as a mere increase in token prices may not guarantee sustained engagement or an associated increase in market capitalization.

中文翻译：

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加密货币奖励会提高平台估值吗？


本研究调查了加密货币奖励和代币价格对内容创作者在基于区块链的平台上提供用户生成内容 (UGC) 的影响。分析Steemit平台的数据，我们发现，虽然总奖励值的增加激励了UGC贡献，但仅代币价格的上涨并不会导致UGC的激增。相反，代币价格在内容创作者获得的总奖励与其产生的 UGC 数量之间的关系中起着中介作用。此外，我们观察到，UGC 的增加并不会导致平台市值的相应上升，因为网站流量的增加加剧了对固定池奖励的竞争，这表明用户参与度的提高并不意味着市值的增加。这些发现表明，精心设计的奖励机制对于在市场波动中维持用户参与和内容创作至关重要。我们的研究强调了采取综合方法来激励用户参与和确保平台增长的重要性，因为仅仅代币价格的上涨可能并不能保证持续参与或相关的市值增加。