Paul Kemp-Robertson: Bitcoin. Sweat. Tide. Meet the future of branded currency.

譯者: William Choi 審譯者: Julia Xu

So if I was to ask you

若果我問你們

what the connection between

一瓶汰漬洗衣精和汗水之間

a bottle of Tide detergent and sweat was,

有什麼的聯繫

you'd probably think that's the easiest question

你也許會認為這是本週愛丁堡大會上

that you're going to be asked in Edinburgh all week.

最簡單的一條問題

But if I was to say that they're both examples

但是如果我說，它們是

of alternative or new forms of currency

這個高度連接、數據驅動的全球經濟中的

in a hyperconnected, data-driven global economy,

貨幣替代品或新型貨幣例子

you'd probably think I was a little bit bonkers.

也許你會認為我瘋了

But trust me, I work in advertising.

但相信我，我從事廣告行業的

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

And I am going to tell you the answer,

我將告訴你們答案

but obviously after this short break.

但顯然要再過一會

So a more challenging question is one

有一個更為棘手問題是

that I was asked, actually, by one of our writers

幾週前，我們的一個廣告撰稿人問我

a couple of weeks ago, and I didn't know the answer:

我當時並不知道答案

What's the world's best performing currency?

他問世界上哪種貨幣的表現最好？

其实就是比特幣 (Bitcoin)

It's actually Bitcoin.

Now, for those of you who may not be familiar,

也許你們當中有些人不熟悉它

比特幣是一種加密的、虛擬的、人工合成的貨幣

Bitcoin is a crypto-currency, a virtual currency, synthetic currency.

It was founded in 2008 by this anonymous programmer

它誕生於 2008 年， 由一位匿名程式員

using a pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto.

假名為中本聰所創造的

No one knows who or what he is.

沒人知道他是誰

He's almost like the Banksy of the Internet.

他像網際網路界的班克斯 (Banksy)

And I'm probably not going to do it proper service here,

也許我還不能解釋清楚

but my interpretation of how it works is that

但我的理解是比特幣是

通過一種挖礦程序而發行的

Bitcoins are released through this process of mining.

So there's a network of computers that are challenged

有那麼的一組電腦網絡

to solve a very complex mathematical problem

要解決一個非常複雜的數學問題

and the person that manages to solve it first gets the Bitcoins.

而第一位解答了問題的人就拿到比特幣

And the Bitcoins are released,

當比特幣發行後

they're put into a public ledger called the Blockchain,

就被放到名叫「區塊鏈」分類帳

and then they float, so they become a currency,

然後價格會波動，他們就成為了一種貨幣

and completely decentralized, that's the sort of

它是完全分散管理的，這是爲什麽

scary thing about this, which is why it's so popular.

比特幣非常可怕，卻也如此受歡迎的原因

So it's not run by the authorities or the state.

沒有國家機構或中央銀行管理它

It's actually managed by the network.

它其實是由網路進行管理

And the reason that it's proved very successful

它之所以會如此成功就是因為它

is it's private, it's anonymous, it's fast, and it's cheap.

是私有、匿名、交易快速並且價格便宜

And you do get to the point where there's some wild fluctuations with Bitcoin.

當然有時候比特幣也會大幅波動

So in one level it went from something like 13 dollars

又一次它在四個月內兌美元

to 266, literally in the space of four months,

由 1 比特幣兌 13 美元升至 266 美元

and then crashed and lost half of its value in six hours.

然後六小時內又跌去一半

現今比特幣兌美元的價格

And it's currently around that kind of

110 dollar mark in value.

徘徊在 110 美元附近

But what it does show is that it's sort of gaining ground,

但比特幣確實開始盛行

it's gaining respectability.

逐漸獲得市場地位

You get services, like Reddit and Wordpress

某些服務商如 Reddit 和 Wordpress 部落格

are actually accepting Bitcoin as a payment currency now.

現已接受比特幣作為支付貨幣了

And that's showing you that people

這表明了

are actually placing trust in technology,

大眾實際上開始信賴科技

and it's started to trump and disrupt

而比特幣則開始對抗、擾亂

and interrogate traditional institutions

和詰問傳統機構

and how we think about currencies and money.

以及我們對貨幣和金錢的看法

And that's not surprising, if you think about

這並不令人意外

the basket case that is the E.U.

只要想想歐盟那個爛攤子

I think there was a Gallup survey out recently

蓋洛普 (Gallup) 最近做了一項調查

that said something like, in America,

顯示美國人對銀行的信任程度 史無前例得低

trust in banks is at an all-time low, it's something like 21 percent.

只有 21% 的大眾信任銀行

And you can see here some photographs from London

再看看這些來自倫敦的照片

where Barclays sponsored the city bike scheme,

這是柏克萊贊助的公共自行車計劃

and some activists have done some nice piece

一些激進分子更改了活動標語

of guerrilla marketing here and doctored the slogans.

這是很棒的游擊式營銷

"Sub-prime pedaling." "Barclays takes you for a ride."

「次級 (Sub-prime) 腳踏」「巴克萊載你一程」

These are the more polite ones I could share with you today.

今天拿來跟你們分享的 算是較為客氣的了

But you get the gist, so people have really started

但其意思已夠清楚了

大眾對金融機構已失去信心

to sort of lose faith in institutions.

There's a P.R. company called Edelman,

有一間名為愛德曼 (Edelman) 的公關公司

they do this very interesting survey every year

每年都會圍繞信任和大眾的想法

precisely around trust and what people are thinking.

做一個很有趣的調查

And this is a global survey, so these numbers are global.

這是一項全球的調查， 所以資料也反映著全球的情況

And what's interesting is that you can see that

而有趣的是你可以看到

統治集團的地位開始變得不穩定

hierarchy is having a bit of a wobble,

and it's all about heterarchical now,

問題都集中在統治集團上

so people trust people like themselves more

也就是大眾更相信和他們一樣的個體

than they trust corporations and governments.

而不信任企業和政府

And if you look at these figures for the more developed markets

如果你看看發達國家的數字

like U.K., Germany, and so on, they're actually much lower.

如英國、德國等大眾的信任度就更低了

And I find that sort of scary.

我認為這是個可怕的現象

People are actually trusting businesspeople

大眾更相信商人

而非政府和社會領袖

more than they're trusting governments and leaders.

So what's starting to happen, if you think about money,

如果你思考一下， 貨幣將要如何變化

if you sort of boil money down to an essence,

如果你要追究貨幣的本質

it is literally just an expression of value, an agreed value.

它其實就是一種價值的表現

So what's happening now, in the digital age,

在現今的電子數位時代

我們可以用不同方式去量化價值

is that we can quantify value in lots of different ways

and do it more easily,

而且更為簡便

and sometimes the way that we quantify those values,

有時候我們量化價值所使用的方式

it makes it much easier

使得創造出一種

to create new forms and valid forms of currency.

新型的、強大的貨幣形式更為便捷

In that context, you can see that networks like Bitcoin

這樣看來，你就會突然明白比特幣

suddenly start to make a bit more sense.

存在的合理性了

So if you think we're starting to question

如果你認為我們開始質疑

and disrupt and interrogate what money means,

擾亂、詰問貨幣的意義

what our relationship with it is, what defines money,

以及它與我們的關係、金錢的定義是什麼

then the ultimate extension of that is,

那最終延伸出來的問題就是

is there a reason for the government to be in charge

政府是否還有理由

of money anymore?

負責管理貨幣？

So obviously I'm looking at this through a marketing prism,

顯然我是用市場營銷的視角看這問題

從品牌角度看

so from a brand perspective,

brands literally stand or fall on their reputations.

品牌的成敗直接取決於它的聲譽

And if you think about it, reputation has now become a currency.

如果你想一想，現在聲譽 也變成了一種貨幣

You know, reputations are built on trust,

你知道，聲譽是基於信任

consistency, transparency.

一致性，透明度

So if you've actually decided that you trust a brand,

如果你決定去信任某一品牌

you want a relationship, you want to engage with the brand,

就會想要與其建立長久關係

you're already kind of participating in lots of new forms

那麼你其實已經

of currency.

使用了很多貨幣的新形式了

So you think about loyalty.

比如說忠誠

Loyalty essentially is a micro-economy.

忠誠事實上就是一種微觀經濟

You think about rewards schemes, air miles.

比如獎勵方案、里程兌換等

The Economist said a few years ago that

幾年前《經濟學人》曾報導

there are actually more unredeemed air miles in the world

事實上全世界沒有兌換的里程數

than there are dollar bills in circulation.

比市面流通的美鈔還要多

You know, when you are standing in line in Starbucks,

當你在星巴克排隊時

30 percent of transactions in Starbucks on any one day

在任何一天星巴克有三成交易

are actually being made with Starbucks Star points.

是通過隨行卡進行的

So that's a sort of Starbucks currency

那就是星巴克的循環系統裡

staying within its ecosystem.

自帶的一種貨幣形式

And what I find interesting is that Amazon

有趣的是我注意到亞馬遜

has recently launched Amazon coins.

最近推出亞馬遜幣

So admittedly it's a currency at the moment that's purely for the Kindle.

無可否認這是一種只用於 Kindle 的貨幣

So you can buy apps and make purchases within those apps,

你可以用它購買應用程式或 在應用程式中購買其他東西

but you think about Amazon,

但是你想一想亞馬遜這例子

you look at the trust barometer that I showed you

看看我向你們展示的信任氣壓計

where people are starting to trust businesses,

大眾開始信任企業

especially businesses that they believe in and trust

特別是那些企業他們認為

較政府更為可信

more than governments.

So suddenly, you start thinking,

突然間你會意識到

well Amazon potentially could push this.

亞馬遜其實可以推廣這種貨幣

It could become a natural extension,

它可以是一種自然的延伸

that as well as buying stuff --

或者用它來買東西

不再限於在 Kindle 上使用，你可以 購買書本、音樂、

take it out of the Kindle -- you could buy books, music,

real-life products, appliances and goods and so on.

現實生活中的產品、電器、百貨等

And suddenly you're getting Amazon, as a brand,

突然間亞馬遜作為一個品牌

is going head to head with the Federal Reserve

將和美國聯儲局正面交鋒

in terms of how you want to spend your money,

關於你想怎樣花錢

what money is, what constitutes money.

什麼是貨幣、貨幣的組成等

And I'll get you back to Tide, the detergent now,

現在讓我們回到汰漬洗衣精的問題

as I promised.

正如我之前承諾的

This is a fantastic article I came across in New York Magazine,

我在《紐約雜誌》上讀到一篇很棒的文章

where it was saying that drug users across America

文章指出全美各地的吸毒者

are actually purchasing drugs

在用汰漬洗衣精的瓶子

with bottles of Tide detergent.

去購買毒品

So they're going into convenience stores,

他們走到便利店

stealing Tide,

偷取汰漬洗衣精

and a $20 bottle of Tide

一瓶二十美元的汰漬洗衣精

is equal to 10 dollars of crack cocaine or weed.

等同 10 美元的可卡因或大麻

And what they're saying, so some criminologists

背後的原因，一些犯罪學家

have looked at this and they're saying, well, okay,

研究后得出的結論是

汰漬洗衣精售價很高

Tide as a product sells at a premium.

It's 50 percent above the category average.

比其他同類產品平均貴五成

It's infused with a very complex cocktail of chemicals,

它的化學成分非常複雜

so it smells very luxurious and very distinctive,

味道十分高檔而且與眾不同

and, being a Procter and Gamble brand,

作為寶僑 (P&G) 的品牌

it's been supported by a lot of mass media advertising.

它的大眾傳媒廣告曝光率非常高

So what they're saying is that drug users are consumers too,

意思是說吸毒的人也是消費者

so they have this in their neural pathways.

他們腦子里也有這種意識

When they spot Tide, there's a shortcut.

他們把汰漬看做指一條捷徑

They say, that is trust. I trust that. That's quality.

他們說這就是信任，我相信它， 這是品質保證

So it becomes this unit of currency,

所以它成為了一種貨幣單位

which the New York Magazine described

《紐約雜誌》稱之為

as a very oddly loyal crime wave, brand-loyal crime wave,

一種古怪的忠誠犯罪潮， 品牌忠誠度的犯罪潮

and criminals are actually calling Tide "liquid gold."

事實上犯罪分子稱汰漬為「液體黃金」

Now, what I thought was funny was the reaction

而我認為寶僑發言人

對此作出的回應很有趣

from the P&G spokesperson.

They said, obviously tried to dissociate themselves from drugs,

寶僑顯然要和毒品撇清關係

但表示 ：「這提醒我一樣事情

but said, "It reminds me of one thing

and that's the value of the brand has stayed consistent." (Laughter)

就是汰漬的品牌價值很一致（笑聲）

Which backs up my point and shows he didn't even

這證明了我的觀點，

break a sweat when he said that.

也看得出發言人說話時毫無擔憂

So that brings me back to the connection with sweat.

這把我帶回到和汗水的聯繫

In Mexico, Nike has run a campaign recently

耐吉 (Nike) 最近在墨西哥進行了 一個宣傳活動

called, literally, Bid Your Sweat.

名為「用你的汗水出價」

So you think about,

你試想一想

these Nike shoes have got sensors in them,

有些耐吉鞋裡裝有感應器

or you're using a Nike FuelBand

或者你戴了耐吉的運動腕帶

它就能檢測你的移動

that basically tracks your movement, your energy,

your calorie consumption.

你的能量和卡路里的消耗

And what's happening here, this is where you've actually

實際上你被帶入了耐吉的社區

elected to join that Nike community. You've bought into it.

你加入了他們

They're not advertising loud messages at you,

他們沒有向你大肆宣傳

and that's where advertising has started to shift now

而現在廣告也開始轉移到

is into things like services, tools and applications.

如服務、工具、應用程式上面

So Nike is literally acting as a well-being partner,

所以耐吉扮演的角色是一名伙伴

a health and fitness partner and service provider.

一個健康、健身夥伴、服務提供者

So what happens with this is they're saying, "Right,

這個活動是這樣的，他們會說「好，

you have a data dashboard. We know how far you've run,

你有一塊數據面板，我們知道你跑了多遠

how far you've moved, what your calorie intake, all that sort of stuff.

你吸取了多少卡路里等各種信息

What you can do is, the more you run, the more points you get,

你跑的越多，點數就越多

and we have an auction where you can buy Nike stuff

然後我們安排一埸拍賣會 你就可以去購買耐吉產品了

but only by proving that you've actually used the product to do stuff."

但要證明你確實使用了耐吉的產品。」

And you can't come into this. This is purely

你不能報名參加這活動

for the community that are sweating

這只限於耐吉社區的成員，他們使用耐吉產品

using Nike products. You can't buy stuff with pesos.

這是拿錢買不到的

This is literally a closed environment, a closed auction space.

這是一個真正的封閉環境， 封閉的拍賣場所

In Africa, you know, airtime has become

在非洲，廣告時間

literally a currency in its own right.

已變成了一種貨幣

People are used to, because mobile is king,

因為流動手機是王者

they're very, very used to transferring money,

那裡的人已習慣於

making payments via mobile.

通過手機進行轉賬或支付

And one of my favorite examples from a brand perspective

有一個我很喜歡的品牌例子

going on is Vodafone, where, in Egypt,

來自沃達豐，在埃及，

lots of people make purchases in markets

大眾在市場

and very small independent stores.

或小商店購物時

Loose change, small change is a real problem,

找零錢是件很麻煩的事

and what tends to happen is you buy a bunch of stuff,

所以一般情況下

如你買下一堆東西

you're due, say,

算下來有10美分20美分的零錢

10 cents, 20 cents in change.

The shopkeepers tend to give you things like an onion

店主就給你一個洋蔥

or an aspirin, or a piece of gum,

一片阿司匹林或口香糖

because they don't have small change.

因為他們沒有零錢

So when Vodafone came in and saw this problem,

沃達豐發現了這問題

this consumer pain point, they created

這種消費者的痛處

some small change which they call Fakka,

於是沃達豐發明了名為 Fakka 的零錢

which literally sits and is given

店主可以把它用作零錢

by the shopkeepers to people,

支付給顧客

and it's credit that goes straight onto their mobile phone.

Fakka 金額可以充值到手機裡

So this currency becomes credit, which again,

所以這零錢再次變成了帳面餘額

is really, really interesting.

這是非常有趣的例子

And we did a survey that backs up the fact that,

我們曾做過的一項調查

you know, 45 percent of people

顯示在美國最重要的年齡階層裡

in this very crucial demographic in the U.S.

約 45% 的大眾

were saying that they're comfortable using

表示願意使用

an independent or branded currency.

某種獨立或品牌貨幣

So that's getting really interesting here,

所以事情變的真的有趣

有一種很有趣的趨勢

a really interesting dynamic going on.

And you think, corporations

你會認為企業應

should start taking their assets and thinking of them

把貨幣視為資產，從另一角度

in a different way and trading them.

看待它們，進行交易

And you think, is it much of a leap?

你會想這是不是想得太遠了？

It seems farfetched, but when you think about it,

這好像遙不可及，但是你要知道

in America in 1860,

美國在 1860 年時

there were 1,600 corporations issuing banknotes.

約有 1600 家企業發行紙幣

There were 8,000 kinds of notes in America.

全美共有 8000 種紙幣流通

And the only thing that stopped that,

然而一件事就停止了這局面

the government controlled four percent of the supply,

就是政府控制了 4% 的貨幣供應

and the only thing that stopped it

而制止這種局面的原因

是因為爆發了內戰

was the Civil War breaking out,

and the government suddenly wanted to take control of the money.

政府突然要控制貨幣的流通

So government, money, war, nothing changes there, then.

政府、貨幣、戰爭，這些元素從沒有改變

So what I'm going to ask is, basically,

所以我想提出的問題是

is history repeating itself?

歷史是否在重演？

Is technology making paper money feel outmoded?

高科技會否讓紙貨幣過時？

Are we decoupling money from the government?

我們是否讓貨幣和政府脫離？

You know, you think about, brands are starting to fill the gaps.

請你們細想一下，品牌正在填補空隙

Corporations are filling gaps that governments can't afford to fill.

企業正在填補那些政府填補不了的空隙，

So I think, you know, will we be standing on stage

明年今日，我想我們也許站在臺上

buying a coffee -- organic, fair trade coffee -- next year

使用 TED 弗羅林或 TED 先令

using TED florins or TED shillings?

購買一杯有機公平貿易咖啡？

Thank you very much.

謝謝大家

(Applause)

(掌聲)

Thank you. (Applause)

謝謝 (掌聲)