Hi ApeCoin DAO Community,
@MemeBrains has responded to our follow-up questions and has provided consent to share them in this forum for the community.
Click to expand follow-up Q&A with @MemeBrains
1. Under the benefits to the ApeCoin ecosystem cited within AIP-383, there is an expectation set out to return 20% of all revenue until the full grant amount is repaid. There was a grant allocation of 75k APE (est. US$52,000), but only a reported return of revenues totaling just under $8,000. Additionally, there is no indication for the amount of ApeCoin tokens that were actually returned.
Unless the full 75,000 ApeCoin has been returned already, the original commitment from AIP-383 has not been Implemented/fulfilled/completed.
To resolve this discrepancy and to enable this new proposal to move forward based on the community guidelines, the new proposal should indicate both that the 20% revenue return will continue regardless of the passing of this new AIP until the original 75k ape is returned and also that the original commitment from AIP-383 is still outstanding and not complete.
To determine the 20% revenue sharing amount that AIP-383 intended to send to the treasury, I used the USD equivalent we received for paying the initiative’s operating expenses. We converted $APE into USDC in intervals, totaling approximately $110k, rather than the current value of $52k as mentioned above.
Therefore, the revenue sharing amount that AIP-383 intended to return to the treasury, and which AIP-457 continues, is based on the net total of $110k USD equivalent in $APE, not the current lower value of $52k USD.
If you believe this calculation methodology should be revisited or revised, please let me know, and I am happy to oblige.
The revenue sharing totals for each of the two events activated by The Public Bored have been presented in the corresponding Transparency & Accountability reports within the Implementation Update sections. One published on February 1st here, and the second published on April 18 here.
The amounts indicated in both Transparency & Accountability reports have been sent to the ApeCoin DAO Treasury on July 1st, 2024 here.
Upon considering the specific wording of your question, I realize there may have been an expectation that the amounts to be returned would be in $APE, whereas I have been sending back amounts in $USDC.
Screenshot reference for the usage of $USDC as the calculating methodology
This may be a minor misunderstanding, and I am happy to adjust moving forward. We can either continue returning the $USDC amounts as previously commenced, or I can send the $APE equivalents moving forward. Sending $USDC seemed logical as it represents the true revenue sharing from revenue received by paying customers. However, I remain open to input and preferences as indicated by the Foundation at any time.
Note: Although some customers paid in $APE, most chose other crypto as payment options, as the gas fees associated with $APE directly on ETH Network often ended up so big that gas was more expensive than their entire purchase.
Correct, agreed, and this has been already indicated in the opening paragraph of the Proposal Description, as well as discussed in existing Q&A as well, screenshots here with highlights for reference.
2. What are the plans to ensure that the original commitment, to return 20% of all revenue to the ApeCoin DAO until 75,000 APE has been returned, is upheld?
These plans have been outlined in the final Transparency & Accountability reports, screenshot below for reference and summarized here as:
AIP-383 was designed to launch MVP experiments for a digital billboard startup, and these experiments were completed successfully. We validated a business model that yields up to 10x higher sales prices than traditional competitors and opens up a 100x larger total addressable market.
Our biggest revenue generation challenge so far has been the lack of recurring revenue. Activating only at events means months of effort for just a few days of revenue. Consequently, we are focusing on acquiring our first permanent digital billboard by way of this AIP-457, ideally along a highway or at a street-level location. Once we secure a permanent location, we can generate continuous revenue, contributing to the DAO Treasury on a 24/7, 365-day basis.
Quoting the 6th paragraph in the Proposal Description
To support this goal, we secured a small angel investment from prominent investor Jason Calacanis. Now that we are part of his investment portfolio, we have access to the right network for our scaling strategy, from traditional tech-startup rounds to Series A, IPO, or acquisition. We are also in discussions with other venture funds for the same purpose.
Our current focus is on our follow-up AIP, which enables us to purchase the physical asset of the permanent digital billboard needed to capitalize on the increased operating margins and scale until IPO or acquisition.
Path to Profitability Screenshot from our Transparency & Accountability Report published on June 6, 2024:
Should AIP-457 and all subsequent resubmissions fail to pass, we will seek venture funding from other sources. The revenue-sharing promises of AIP-383 will continue until the balance of AIP-383 funds are returned to the treasury. This would be an unfortunate outcome for the ApeCoin treasury however, as passing AIP-457 unlocks a 20% stake in the venture as it scales towards its IPO or acquisition. Therefore, the passing of AIP-457 is of great potential value to the DAO, but either way the DAO still receives its revenue sharing promise until the balance of AIP-383 funds are returned.
The only scenario in which the remaining revenue-sharing promise of AIP-383 would not be returned to the DAO is an unforeseen complete cessation of the initiative altogether, resulting in zero revenue is generated from which to draw the 20% revenue share.
3. Do you provide consent to apply updates to the relevant areas of your proposal based on your responses to the questions above?
Yes
4. Do you provide consent to share these questions and answers with the community in this forum?
Yes
A DAR package is being worked on and upon completion this AIP will move into Administrative Review. Follow this Topic as further updates will be posted here in the comments.
Kind Regards,