Proposal for a Fairer Rewards Distribution in the Lisk Airdrop Campaign

Proposals General
1

I would like you to discuss how the community can be involved in voting on this matter because I feel that 80% of the users are dissatisfied with the current system.
The current Lisk airdrop rewards system uses a points-based structure, allocating points for activities such as using dApps, conducting blockchain transactions, and referring new users. While this system encourages participation, it could be refined to achieve a more balanced and equitable rewards distribution.

!The rules established at the start of the campaign do not need to be set in stone. Adjustments can and should be made to ensure the system remains fair and effective throughout the campaign’s duration.

Proposed Adjustments to the Reward System

  1. Activity-Based Rewards
    A portion of the rewards should be allocated to users who actively contribute to the Lisk ecosystem by using dApps and performing blockchain transactions. This approach prioritizes meaningful engagement and supports the platform’s long-term growth.
  2. Referral-Based Rewards
    Another portion of the rewards should continue to incentivize the referral program, encouraging users to invite others to the platform. However, it is crucial to maintain a balance, ensuring referral-based rewards don’t outweigh activity-based rewards.
  3. Referral Points Cap
    Introduce a maximum limit on the number of points that can be earned through referrals. This will prevent over-reliance on the referral system and ensure that rewards are distributed more evenly.

By splitting rewards between activity-based contributions and referrals and introducing caps where necessary, Lisk can ensure a fairer distribution of rewards. This approach not only incentivizes new user acquisition but also fosters meaningful activity within the ecosystem, creating a more sustainable and inclusive rewards model.

Please consider how this proposal can be put forward for a DAO vote.
I strongly encourage the Lisk team to discuss and clarify this process to ensure the community’s voice is heard.

2 Likes
2

good suggestion, I’m in support of this

1 Like
3

Thank you for participating in the life of the Lisk ecosystem.

I support the first point, but only to a small extent, for example, allocating 20% of the airdrop to it. I also support the second point, but with the condition that it takes everything into account and is allocated 80% of the airdrop. I am against the third point, but I believe bots that are clearly fake and created using scripts should be eliminated. After the airdrop, these bots will disappear like the wind, creating pressure on the price without contributing to the growth of the ecosystem, as they are not genuine participants.

For example, LayerZero hired two companies to clean their lists of Sybil addresses to reward the real community instead of bot operators. They implemented a strategy where users could admit their address was a Sybil and still receive 15% of the regular reward. I would reduce this to 10% and allocate the rest to real users.

The main point is we need to detect all Sybil accounts and pay them dust, and the real members pay much more.

4

Thank you for taking the time to analyze and discuss the current Lisk airdrop rewards system and for sharing your valuable suggestions. I deeply appreciate your thoughts, especially regarding addressing Sybil accounts and ensuring a fairer distribution of rewards. However, I would like to complement the discussion with some research findings and further arguments that highlight the importance of activity-based incentives.

A 2023 study highlighted that airdrop systems often result in short-term engagement. A significant portion of users focuses solely on obtaining the airdrop tokens and then becomes inactive after the event. This is particularly true for referral-based systems, which tend to attract new entrants who do not remain active participants in the ecosystem.

The study proposed prioritizing activity-based incentives, such as transaction fee discounts or staking rewards, as solutions to encourage long-term engagement and sustainable community growth.

(Source: Arxiv Study)

Long-Term Benefits – Why Activity-Based Rewards Matter

  1. Sustainable Community:

Activity-based incentives, such as rewards for transactions or dApp usage, help build a committed community that supports the ecosystem’s growth in the long term. These active members contribute real value rather than seeking short-term gains.

  1. Stable Token Value:

Active users who utilize the platform help maintain token liquidity. In contrast, one-time referral-based entrants often sell their earned tokens immediately, leading to price volatility.

  1. Ecosystem Development:

Activity-based systems encourage platform usage, such as executing transactions, creating smart contracts, or participating in governance. This drives the ecosystem’s real progress.

  1. Filtering Out Sybil Accounts:

Activity-based rewards are more effective at identifying and filtering out fake accounts, as these accounts typically do not actively engage with the ecosystem.

Based on the above, I would like to propose the following revised distribution:

  1. 70% Activity-Based Rewards:

Rewards should prioritize active transactions, dApp usage, staking, and other activities that contribute to the ecosystem’s growth. This approach ensures the community’s long-term sustainability.

  1. 30% Referral-Based Rewards:

Referrals should still incentivize bringing in new users but on a more limited scale to avoid a “referral war,” which often results in inactive users joining.

  1. Anti-Sybil Measures:

Filtering out Sybil accounts and providing them with minimal rewards is critical. As the Arxiv study suggests, these accounts should only receive “dust rewards” to avoid undermining the system’s fairness and efficiency.

I firmly believe that this approach will create greater value for the Lisk community in the long term and ensure that rewards go to genuine, committed users. Thank you again for your thoughts, and I look forward to working together to build a more sustainable and equitable system.

5

Agree with that, the first I thought that we need to attract more people, that’s why 20/80, but there will be more bots, not people :slight_smile: 70/30 is nice. Thank you for your researches.

@shuse2 @przemer @maxkordek @Lisk_Team what do you think about that? Can the community decide or influence the decisions made by the team?

6

iam 100% aggre with you… its for fair battles

7

I hope the reff system will be removed, sir, it is very unbalanced for players to use reff bots for the highest rank

8

can’t be removed due to the fact that it attracts new users and some genuine participants who will eventually blend into the community

1 Like
9

good idea, I’m in support of this

10

Hi guys! I am a researcher working on the airdrop design. I wanted to reiterate a couple of points to hopefully lower your frustration and address your comments.

  1. We are seeing some sybil activity around the Userdrop, especially concerning users with many referrals and many points from referrals. Learning from previous airdrops (e.g. see the comment by @romcsibacsi), we understand the utmost importance of anti-sybil measures to ensure that honest and active community members are rewarded and not some bot farms that will disappear the moment the airdrop is over. That’s why we will be implementing extensive anti-sybil measures before any payouts, scrutinizing accounts with many referral points and making sure all sybils are removed from the LSK drop. If someone referred 1000 fake accounts, they will not profit from it. Please understand that it is hard to enforce anti-sybil criteria on the go while airdrop is progressing, because malicious actors could learn how to overcome them and because modifying DB in production is always risky. That is why the leaderboards (and especially referral leaderboard) might not reflect the actual LSK payouts: some accounts could be removed later in our anti-sybil campaign.

  2. We are currently not considering capping referral points in Userdrop Season 1. Referrals are essential for us because they motivate users to spread the word about Lisk and expand Lisk community. From our perspective, a user should always have an incentive to invite their friend to join the Userdrop. A cap of e.g. 10 referrals or 5000 referral pts would stop active community members from spreading the word after they reach this limit.

  3. We are closely following the feedback on the Userdrop Season 1 and taking note of all successes and challenges to learn from it. Rest assured that Userdrop Season 2 rules will be designed based on the experience of Season 1, having actual data to back up the design decisions.

Generally I appreciate your input on the issue of the balance between referral / onchain activity points, this is not a simple matter. It is clear that ultimately we as a community need both, but I would argue we just don’t have good quality data to determine the “ideal proportion” between referral points and onchain points.

I am looking forward for your feedback and I hope that we can make Lisk Userdrop as stimulating for our community as possible.

4 Likes
11

Thank you for your detailed explanation and for addressing the concerns raised by the community regarding the Userdrop design. I appreciate your openness about the challenges surrounding Sybil activity and your commitment to improving fairness in the distribution process. I wanted to share some additional thoughts, particularly on the referral system and how it could be fine-tuned to better balance incentives.

Sybil Activity and Anti-Fraud Measures

I completely agree with the importance of implementing strong anti-Sybil measures before any payouts. This will ensure that the rewards go to genuine, active participants rather than bots or fake accounts. I understand the technical and logistical difficulties of enforcing these measures dynamically, and I trust that the team will execute this process effectively during the post-campaign review.

Referral System Adjustments

While I see the value of the referral program in expanding the Lisk community, I believe there’s room to refine how rewards are allocated to avoid creating too large a gap between influencers and active blockchain users. Specifically:

  1. Lower Referral Percentage:

Rather than capping referral points, which could discourage ongoing referrals, reducing the referral bonus percentage (e.g., from 10% to 1%) could be a more balanced approach. This would still incentivize users to invite others but reduce the disproportionate advantage influencers currently hold over regular participants.

  1. Season 2 Focus on Engagement:

I agree that referrals play a crucial role in Season 1 for user acquisition. However, by Season 2, the focus should naturally shift to retaining and engaging users who actively contribute to the ecosystem through on-chain activity. This ensures long-term sustainability and a stronger community foundation.

Long-Term Considerations

I also appreciate your acknowledgment that data from Season 1 will inform future decisions. While we may not yet have perfect data to determine the ideal proportion of referral and activity points, I hope that as the system evolves, more weight will be placed on rewarding active participation over purely referral-based contributions.

Thank you again for your thoughtful response and your dedication to making the Lisk Userdrop as effective and inclusive as possible. I’m happy to continue contributing ideas to support the growth of our community.

1 Like
12

A comprehensive response

For me it’s enough, that you know the problem, and have a plan to solve it

13

Airdrops → free lsk printing → short term trading volume increase → artificial blockchain traffic → participants cash out → token inflation → downperforming → token value decrease over time

Correct me if I’m wrong but lisk burning events should follow airdrops

To answer your question there is ZERO chance that lisk team will detect airdrop bots or do anything about it. It is the issue of how this airdrop was designed itself and you can’t do anything about that so be real.

If you plan to grow provide users with free referral bots made by lisk so everybody will have equal chances or totally redesign airdrop by using more IQ and providing fair rewards system.