In recent months (years), you may have come across a phrase growing (then shrinking) in popularity: Web3. Part of the reason that there’s such a heated debate going on in the space that runs adjacent to cryptocurrencies and NFTs, is that a lot of the “promise” of Web3 has yet to be properly implemented or even mapped out, so we’re really dealing with what’s potentially possible rather than what’s actually here. It hasn’t stopped anyone from trying, though. Enter Readii internet.
Readii, based in Sydney per a press release from a respectable PR firm based out of Singapore, is billing itself as “the world’s first Web3 enabled internet service”. What that really means, is it’s an internet service that allows users to earn cryptocurrencies as they surf the internet.
Constant crypto mining.
Excited to be launching soon! Register on our website for early access https://t.co/thPbbV2KQR
— readii.xyz — coming soon! (@readiixyz) March 8, 2023
“A first mover in the telco space, Readii offers a unique value proposition unlike anything else available at present — by bridging the concepts of Web3 and cryptocurrencies with home internet services which are familiar to all, the company aims to bring these emerging technologies to the masses,” Readii’s press release continues.
“Currently, onboarding into the world of Web3 entails an understanding of complex language and a relatively new technological paradigm, with frustrations stemming from a cumbersome user experience. Readii makes Web3 simple and real, removing barriers to entry such as lengthy cryptographic keys and high gas fees.”
As journalists, it’s our job to take a press release, remove the marketing/PR fluff, and then explain exactly what it is a company is doing. But dear readers, it is near impossible in this case – the whole thing is just word salad and crypto promotion.
What is clear, however, is that Readii, spearheaded by co-founders Daniel Li and Mark Collins, hopes to bring Web3 “to the masses” via its “Web3-powered router”. In the press release, Li and Collins were touted as “ex-Telstra and Stripe” employees – a quick check of their LinkedIn showed us, yep, Li worked for Telstra as a ‘corporate sales specialist’ back in 2014 and Collins was with Stripe for two years, where he launched and grew the Australian sales and operations of the then-startup back in 2015.
Li’s LinkedIn also showed us that Readii, or ReadiiTel, has actually existed since 2017, and after raising $412,000 through equity crowdfunding in 2019, set out on a fundraising exercise six months ago. Our friends over at The Australian Financial Review reported on ReadiiTel back in October, with the company at the time noted as providing internet and managed IT services for 400 small to medium-sized organisations, and NBN plans for consumers.
But back to this latest offering.
“In addition to providing fast and reliable internet, the device is capable of storing a customer’s private cryptographic key, thereby making any cryptocurrency transaction conducted on the network seamless, while using security features like multi-party computation (MPC) to ensure that this key is never misappropriated or lost,” the company continued, noting that customers will also have access to a Readii internet router-compatible mobile app.
But wait, there’s more. In exchange for usage of the network, Readii will be giving customers a 10 per cent revenue share of its native token, $RDI. Useless outside the Readii ecosystem, the $RDI cryptocurrency, the company said can either be used to reduce the cost of a customer’s monthly internet plan or withdraw as “cryptocurrency rewards”. The Readii token can be swapped with bitcoin and ether, and internet plans can also be paid in crypto.
As far as its website can tell us, there will be just the one contract-free plan, $105 per month, which will get you unlimited data. Download speed will be max of 100Mbps, upload is capped at 20Mbps. Readii said its offering will be fully deployed across Australia by June 2023, with token airdrops announced closer to launch date. $RDI will be released in the upcoming months. At the time of publish, 1,767 people had signed up for the waitlist.
We can wait…..