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If bitcoin is open source and the code can be copied, how is it scarce?
56 sats \ 3 comments \ @Coinsreporter 26 Mar bitcoin_beginners
Someone asked it a few days ago and TBH I think I was too dumb to answer it with another question — "Then why do you think it hasn't been copied in 16 years?
Yupp, I successfully ended what could have been a very long argument, but I wasn't entirely convinced with my logic, if there was any.
What would you answer if someone asked you the same?
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21 sats \ 0 replies \ @SimpleStacker 26 Mar
Because if you try to copy the code and make a new blockchain, the no one will accept the new blockchain as Bitcoin.
In fact, it has been tried: we call them forks. But the main bitcoin chain is still Bitcoin.
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0 sats \ 0 replies \ @stack_harder 27 Mar
Really it's about the network effect, so I would say you can also copy the facebook or tiktok code and make your own, but nobody would use it and thus it would be worthless.
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0 sats \ 0 replies \ @economy 26 Mar
Bitcoin’s scarcity lies not in its code, but in the combination of its decentralized network and limited supply. While the code can be replicated, Bitcoin’s value lies in its trust, security, and the certainty that only 21 million bitcoins will ever exist. Other projects may try to copy the code, but they won’t achieve the same level of adoption and trust that Bitcoin has gained over 16 years. What truly makes Bitcoin scarce is the network, the community, and its fixed supply, which cannot be replicated.
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