cmag.io | A Digital Magazine To Showcase Artists, Developers and Builders on Cardano and in the Wider Web-3 Industry

[GENERAL] Name and surname of main applicant

Tyler Rodrigues (withspaces)

[GENERAL] Email address of main applicant

contact@cmag.io

Additional applicants

n/a

[GENERAL] Please specify how many months you expect your project to last (from 2-12 months)

6

[GENERAL] Please indicate if your proposal has been auto-translated into English from another language.

No

[GENERAL] Does your project have any dependencies on other organizations, technical or otherwise?

Yes

[GENERAL] If YES, please describe what the dependency is and why you believe it is essential for your project’s delivery. If NO, please write “No dependencies.”

NMKR - Creating and managing our tokens.

• "Digital Prints" (CMAG magazines)will be released as native CIP-25 fungible-tokens. Using NMKR's tools, we will be able to manage token policies, pin media to IPFS, create public minting portals, in addition to many niche but useful utilities such as sales conditions, airdrops, and payout splitting. These tasks will be quick and simple using the NMKR Pro dashboard.
• We will also be experimenting with their new marketplace feature through its development, with the intent of one day using it as our primary marketplace (displaying listings from the NMKR store and other marketplaces in the ecosystem).

CardanoPress - Token-gating on our website.

• CMAG content will be self-hosted (opposed to the content being publicly available on IPFS – like 31 Weeks). The "Digital Prints" (fungible-tokens) will work essentially as keys. This will allow for more flexibility, for example an artist we interview could make a certain part of their story exclusive to supporters holding their work.
• With CardanoPress, we are able to easily integrate Cardano wallet data into our website. Users will be able to log in using their wallets, their profiles will be updated according to the assets they are holding, then we are able to use that information to manage content visibility.

[GENERAL] Will your project’s output/s be fully open source?

No

[GENERAL] If NO, please describe which outputs are not going to be open source. If YES, please write “Project will be fully open source.”

n/a

[METADATA] Category of proposal

Other

[IMPACT] Please describe your proposed solution.

It is very easy to overlook the builders in our industry. The days move quickly, and the loudest voices are often only concerned of their profits. The individuals/projects with their heads down, building the ecosystem we hope to one day see, they need a dedicated, formal and flexible platform to present themselves on. This would also aid in the documentation of the history of our space.

The "Problems"

We have our social accounts like Discord and Twitter, we have websites, we have curated content with news sites and youtubers (in fact I am one of those youtubers). However, based on the nature of these platforms, we only ever talk about the now. The announcements, the updates, the GMs, the news, the drama, the memes, the WEN.

This is a result of our fast paced industry.

Because of this, it becomes difficult to get a sense of the work being done behind the scenes. Most projects typically break down into one of two categories, either presenting themselves as a long list of project updates, or they have a more communal approach, regularly interacting with their community. Both are fantastic for people already invested into the work, but it can often be intimidating or difficult to consume to someone not already aware of the project.

I've experienced this quite a bit doing cNFTnews interviews for the past two years. We would look into a new project for a story/interview, their socials fall into one of the two categories I mentioned, their website may have a quick bio but it's mostly tries to direct you to a wordy/technical white paper. Then when they come on the show we all instinctually begin talking about the updates/announcements/ect. Again, this is great for people already invested, but does nothing for someone new to a project since most of the time you need a basic understanding of it before they announcements start to make sense.

I believe this is a big reason dedicated builders are often overlooked in favor of fly-by-night projects. It takes time and dedication to learn about these types of projects/individuals. Its much easier to just start following the loudest in the room when the alternative is difficult to consume. I want to try to alleviate some of that effort with CMAG.

One last thing I'd like to talk about in this "problem" section is the importance of documenting our history. Everyone and everything on the internet is having their history documented in one way or another, and this is especially true in web-3 with blockchain technology. The problem is this information is fragmented and can be hard to quantify when not curated.

My Solution

With CMAG, I want to create a unique platform to showcase the artists, projects, developers and builders in our industry. I want to present the work their doing in a timeless and creative manner.

To solve the problems I mention above, I believe a community driven digital magazine is a great solution for our ecosystem. It would serve almost as a sample platter, highlighting the talented individuals in our space. Presenting a wide range of content will help introduce newcomers to what different projects have to offer, and with the project being built on top of Cardano's infrastructure, it will also demonstrate the capabilities of the chain and the tools being built around it.

How it will work:

Content will be accessible on our website, cmag.io. There will be 'public' content and mag-holder exclusive content. Many of the stories posted to the site will be public but to view a mag in its entirety and its bonus content, you will need to hold the corresponding Digital Print. Public content can be viewed by any user holding any CMAG issue. A new user will be able to get into the CMAG ecosystem by purchasing the magazine on sale that month (or even a cheaper one for sale on the secondary market), and they would be able to get regular, but more basic content from the project.

Users who would like to subscribe for full content (receiving issues as they're released) will also be able to do so. I am planning to utilize CIP-68 non-fungible tokens as subscription/loyalty cards. Users will be able to reload their cards for a set period of releases and ideally those will be airdropped. The loyalty-card aspect of these will work like hole-punch reward cards, "get a free mag after [x] number of mags". These may be gamified, with [x] being randomly generated between a set range.

The "Digital Print" concept is set to mimic traditional media so that it is easy to use and understand. Prints will not have rarity and will be released as an open mint for a predetermined deration of time.

While CMAG will mimic traditional media, it will not be limited to it's constraints. When we release an issue it will be viewable as a virtual magazine but be accompanied by a page of bonus content (content that can be tailored to the user based on the assets they hold). For example, a project could leave a cryptic message on a page of a magazine they were interviewed in, and the message only appears if the user has one of the projects assets in their wallet.

Front End Mockups (Early WIP)

This is a screenshot of what I've been working on for the site. More will be visable on the site soon but this section is the closest to what Im going for with the design of the site. This is the top section of a magazine page.

Some things to note:

• The red lock icon bar.
• This is to indicate weather or not the additional content is visible to the user.
• The date (above the title).
• The site wont necessarily push recent content to the front, especially as the project grows. The concept of CMAG is to document the builders in our industry, unlike news, these stories wont necessarily have an expiration date. The design of the Library will reflect that.
• The Info Box (right)
• I enjoy looking at the data of my digital assets, coincidentally there is a lot of data to be shown with these assets. There is blockchain data such as the amount minted, IDs and media types. There is magazine data with guests and writers, all of this data will be celebrated throughout the sites design, and visualized as time goes on (past the 6 month timeline of this proposal).

[IMPACT] How does your proposed solution address the challenge and what benefits will this bring to the Cardano ecosystem?

This solution will bring a formal publication to our ecosystem which will help showcase individuals and document the work being done.

In addition to this, it will also help familiarize people outside of Cardano with our ecosystem. CMAG stories will primarily cover Cardano projects but it will not be limited to it. This benefits people inside our community by keeping them up to date on artists and decentralized tech outside our community. It will also help introduce people to Cardano as I am hoping to cast a wide net with the topics we cover and people we interview.

[IMPACT] How do you intend to measure the success of your project?

I intend to quantify the success of the project through various key performance indicators (KPIs), which would include:

1. Number of readers (mints).
2. Featured artists and projects: We would maintain a count of the number of artists and projects we are able to showcase in the magazine.
3. Website traffic: By tracking growth in website traffic, we can assess whether our reach is expanding beyond our subscriber base and if we are attracting new potential subscribers.
4. Community feedback: We will continuously collect qualitative feedback from our audience through social media interactions, and comments. This feedback will provide valuable insights into our content quality, relevance, and impact.

[IMPACT] Please describe your plans to share the outputs and results of your project?

The primary outputs of CMAG will be the content produced as well as and cmag.io itself, The website that will host and manage it all.

The first issue should be released within 2 and a half months of funding. This will allow for enough time to complete the website, and publicly test its functionality. From there, the plan is to release new issues monthly, however we may need a little more time between releases as the project gets rolling. Monthly issues are our goal.

Stores will be a mix of public and holder-exclusive. These will be stories from mag issues that will be posted as standalone articles on cmag.io. The rate at which these are released is still to be determined. This will start officially after the first issue is released, but will be beta testing this with past stores (from before the acquisition) before then.

[CAPABILITY/ FEASIBILITY] What is your capability to deliver your project with high levels of trust and accountability?

I believe I'm the right person for this project

I've been an active member in the community since late 2020. I primarily have worked as a freelance artist, working with projects like Jesus 2, Clay Nation and cNFTcon to name a few. In addition to this I've released several of my own collections as an artist. I cofounded cNFTnews where we have been interviewing artists in the community every week for the past two years. I helped orchestrate CollaBits (from CardanoBits), one of the the largest artist collaboration event on Cardano. I released 31 Weeks, a 288 page book showcasing the earliest artists and projects in our community. Recently I started running bsky.art on Bluesky (decentralized social network), the largest artist algorithm/feed on the platform. All of these projects culminate into a long list of interesting and talented individuals that can be showcased in this magazine.

Before entering web-3 I worked as a designer and before that I was getting a degree in architecture as well as studying graphic design and art history.

I am very honored by all of the opportunities this community has offered and I truly hope I have been putting them to good use.

My time in this community has also shown me how much I enjoy bringing individuals together, community building and documenting our history. This will help grow a stronger community as we work towards the future we're all here to see.

[CAPABILITY/ FEASIBILITY] What are the main goals for the project and how will you validate if your approach is feasible?

CMAG’s goals include:

• Showcasing talented and interesting individuals in a creative and timeless manner
• Growing a thriving following of readers who regularly engage with our content
• Promoting web-3 education
• Introducing people to the Cardano ecosystem and the work being done here.

I will validate the feasibility and success of our approach using the key metrics described above.

[CAPABILITY/ FEASIBILITY] Please provide a detailed breakdown of your project’s milestones and each of the main tasks or activities to reach the milestone plus the expected timeline for the delivery.

• Completing cmag.io
• This task is almost complete and ready to present. It will be launched with a beta run using 31 Weeks and the previous CNFTMAG Issues (from before the acquisition). This should be completed by the start of August. 
• If time permits, I also hope to do a full test run of all the tools by beta testing with a mock release.
• CMAG #004 release
• After completing and testing the website, CMAG will be ready for its first release since the project changed hands. This will be a full release with all features mentioned so far (although this may not include subscription cards).
• CIP-68 “Subscription Cards”
• Subscriptions will be managed with CIP-68 non-fungible tokens. User subscription status will be tracked using the NFT and will also incorporate a loyalty system, providing discounts and free Digital Prints for continuous subscribers. This is my next task after releasing the first issue.
• Physical Magazines
• Limited runs of physical prints are planned to be released as well. Opposed to the Digital Print tokens, these will be viewed more as collectables. Im in contact with a print shop and will be doing a test run sometime after the first issue, before we begin to release these regularly. 

[CAPABILITY/ FEASIBILITY] Please describe the deliverables, outputs and intended outcomes of each milestone.

This project's output will be a regularly released digital magazine

Deliverables for the magazine include:

• Guest lineups and coverage
• Engaging and creative content showcasing individuals
• Educational and informative content (Cardano & Web-3)

[RESOURCES & VALUE FOR MONEY] Please provide a detailed budget breakdown of the proposed work and resources.

Much of this proposal phase will be handled by me, I am in contact with additional members and advisors though, most notably someone to help manage finances. Funds from this proposal will go towards funding the time it takes to get this project off the ground as well as hiring freelance specialists and marketing.

The current price of ADA is $0.32 (following the price increase from the XRP ruling). I will be calculating our funding based on the monthly average price of around $0.28 to hedge price slippage from this recent price action.

• Operational Expenses: $2,000 - 7,143 ADA
• Content Creation: $6,500 - 23,214 ADA
• Website Development: $2,000 - 7,143 ADA
• Marketing and Outreach: $1,500 - 5,357 ADA
• Finance Specialist: $1,500 - 5,357 ADA

[RESOURCES & VALUE FOR MONEY] How does the cost of the project represent value for money for the Cardano ecosystem?

Our budget ensures the ability to kick-start this project with efficient operations, and marketing. The cost aligns with industry rates and the expected return - increased visibility, user engagement, and growth for the Cardano ecosystem.

[IMPORTANT NOTE] The Applicant agreed to Fund10 rules and also that data in the Submission Form and other data provided by the project team during the course of the project will be publicly available.

I Accept