Epic Story! KashMiner: Kodak licenses its name for a bitcoin mining machine - Business Insider
(businessinsider.com)
- Camera company Kodak is partnering with a company to get into bitcoin mining.
- Its stock soared more than 100% on Tuesday after it announced it was launching its own cryptocurrency.
- Critics have attacked the company over the mining scheme amid fears of a cryptocurrency bubble.
Another day, another unusual company taking the dive into the cryptocurrency space.
Kodak, the once-iconic camera company, is licensing its brand to Spotlite, which builds computers specifically designed to mine bitcoin, for a new line of bitcoin mining machines. The two companies plan to rent use of the machines to the public for thousands of dollars.
On Tuesday, at Kodak's booth at CES, the tech industry trade show going on in Las Vegas, representatives of the company handed out flyers to promote the arrangement and the new mining computer, dubbed the Kodak KashMiner.
Kodak and Spotlite are asking potential customers to sign a two-year deal and pay $3,400 upfront to rent the mining machines, which are used to support the bitcoin network and create new bitcoins.
As part of the agreement, Spotlite gets to keep half of all proceeds the machines generate by mining bitcoin. Spotlite and Kodak estimate customers will earn $375 a month — making $9,000 overall over the two-year rental period.A Kodak representative did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment about the arrangement.
The inside of the promotional flyer for Kodak KashMiner detailing the terms of
Matt Weinberger/Business Insider
But some Twitter users harshly criticized the new service on the social network. Some argued that Kodak jumping into bitcoin mining was evidence of a bubble in cryptocurrencies. Others pointed out that because the difficulty of mining bitcoin gradually increases over time, Kodak KashMiner customers may see far smaller returns than they anticipated.Among the reactions:
Saifedean Ammous@saifedeanKodak has now become a Bitcoin mining scam. Look closely, they are flat-out lying about the returns of their miners because they neglect to mention the small detail that the difficulty rises and the output drops!
https://twitter.com/chrisbhoffman/status/950861459302445056 …
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Saifedean Ammous@saifedean
There is no way your magical Kodak miner will make the same $375 every month, unless Bitcoin mining difficulty stays the same. It is currently increasing at around 15% a month, so mining output should drop around 15% a month, too. Good luck to everyone who bought this deal! pic.twitter.com/0xA2HNtHFc
Saifedean Ammous@saifedeanReplying to @saifedean
There is no way your magical Kodak miner will make the same $375 every month, unless Bitcoin mining difficulty stays the same. It is currently increasing at around 15% a month, so mining output should drop around 15% a month, too. Good luck to everyone who bought this deal! pic.twitter.com/0xA2HNtHFc
Saifedean Ammous@saifedeanAllowing for the 15% difficulty adjustment, the actual returns on the Kodak miner will be $2,457 on a $3,400 investment.
SFYL but please be sure to take a selfie with your non-Kodak cellphone camera while holding the miner for the Ultimate Kodak Moment!
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Chris Hoffman@chrisbhoffmanKodak is selling a Bitcoin miner where you pay for a two year contract and “make a profit”. (*at current prices, Kodak gets half of all bitcoin you produce.) This is the dumbest shit I’ve ever seen at CES.
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Laz Alberto@LazAlberto
I work for a company that is building a Bitcoin mining facility. I’ve spent countless hours building complex spreadsheets, modeling price fluctuations, scouting green energy, accounting for difficulty...
This, from @Kodak, is actually insulting. Please don’t give them money.
https://twitter.com/fearthecowboy/status/950865561616920576 …11:34 PM - Jan 9, 2018
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hussein kanji✔@hkanji
Dot-com madness all over again. Shares in Kodak jumped 77% after it said it would launch Kodakcoin, “a photocentric cryptocurrency to empower photographers and agencies to take greater control in image rights management”
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-01-09/kodak-stock-surges-after-announcing-coin-to-join-crypto-craze …1:47 AM - Jan 10, 2018 · Islington, LondonKodak Surges After Announcing Plans to Launch Cryptocurrency Called 'Kodakcoin'
Kodak’s latest moment has it joining the cryptocurrency frenzy.bloomberg.com
Such concerns haven't put off some customers, however. Spotlite's existing capacity is already sold out, a company representative told the BBC."At this time we have 80 miners, and we expect another 300 to arrive shortly. There is a big pile-up of demand," the representative said.
The new bitcoin mining rental service was one of two blockchain-related announcements from Kodak at CES on Tuesday. The company also announced that it is teaming with Wenn Digital to launch a blockchain-based rights-management service and related cryptocurrency.
The service is aimed at tracking the online use of licensed photographs and ensuring photographers get paid for their works.Kodak's stock skyrocketed more than 117% Tuesday on the news.
The company is only the latest to see its stock soar after announcing bitcoin- or blockchain-related news. Long Island Ice Tea Company's stock price recently tripled after it renamed itself Long Blockchain, and the stock of a franchisee of the Hooters restaurant chain also jumpedafter it said it was moving into the space.
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