Empire.Kred

Overview

Empire.Kred, formerly Empire Avenue, was a social media platform launched around 2010, operating primarily as a virtual "social stock market". On the platform, users could buy and sell virtual shares in other users, with share prices intended to reflect an individual's online influence and social media activity. Founded in Canada by Duleepa Wijayawardhana, Michael Mannion, and Niall Brown, some of whom had prior experience at companies like BioWare and Electronic Arts, the platform aimed to quantify the value generated by users on various social networks. It utilized a virtual currency called "Eaves" for transactions and connected to external platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and others to gauge user activity. Empire Avenue garnered attention as an early experiment in quantifying social influence and gamifying social networking, attracting both interest and significant criticism before eventually being acquired by PeopleBrowsr in 2015 and rebranded as Empire.Kred. Empire.Kred ceased operations and is no longer active with a message that "After 15 years of building, growth and community, the sun has set on the Empire"

Origins and conception

The concept for Empire Avenue emerged from discussions between its founders—Duleepa Wijayawardhana, Michael Mannion, and Niall Brown—regarding the nature of "value" on the internet, particularly concerning content generated on social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter. They posited that purely algorithmic methods were insufficient to capture this value and envisioned a crowd-sourced market where value could be determined through collective user actions. The three founders had initially met years earlier while attending Memorial University in St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada. Fifteen years later, having pursued different career paths, they reconnected in Montreal and began developing the idea for Empire Avenue. Their diverse professional backgrounds were also instrumental: Wijayawardhana had experience in the video game industry with BioWare (developer of titles like Mass Effect and Dragon Age) and later with the database company MySQL AB (acquired by Sun Microsystems, then Oracle); Mannion held a Post-Doctorate in Chemistry from Harvard; and Brown had an Arts background. They cited this blend of expertise in gaming, data management, science, and humanities potentially contributed to the platform's multifaceted design, which combined elements of social networking, game mechanics, and data analytics. Wijayawardhana cited the acquisitions of his previous company, MySQL AB, as a factor motivating him to seek a unique entrepreneurial challenge with Empire Avenue. The core vision was to recognize the value created by individuals online and empower these "Influencers" to benefit directly from their content and reach, rather than value accruing solely to large platforms.

Early development and beta phases

Empire Avenue began with a bootstrapping phase, founded by Wijayawardhana, Mannion, and Brown.4 By May 2010, the core team had grown to eight individuals possessing a range of skills including UI/UX design, legal expertise, social media marketing, mathematics, and programming. The company adopted an iterative development strategy, starting with a closed beta test among friends and family to refine the platform. This was followed by an "Invite Beta" phase, allowing controlled growth while actively incorporating community feedback into the development process. A notable event during this early period was the "Big Reset," where all user share prices were reset as the platform transitioned from the closed beta to the invite-only stage. Even in its beta phase, the platform garnered positive attention, gaining 1,700 users rapidly and briefly trending on Twitter in Canada. By August 2010, while still in beta, Empire Avenue had attracted over 15,000 registered users and businesses from more than 95 countries. Significant virtual economic activity was already occurring, with over 750,000 virtual share trades conducted, representing a total value exceeding half a billion Eaves, the platform's virtual currency.

Public launch and initial growth

Empire Avenue transitioned from its invite-only beta to a public launch around July 28, 2010, with some tech blogs offering early invites shortly before the official opening. At launch, the platform allowed users to connect their accounts from Twitter, Flickr, Facebook, and personal blogs via RSS feeds, using activity on these networks to calculate user share prices. The platform quickly demonstrated international appeal, building on its beta user base from over 95 countries and later reporting users in over 190 countries. Early reports highlighted interest from specific international communities, such as users in Chile.

Funding founds

Empire Avenue secured funding through at least two distinct rounds:

Seed funding: An initial seed investment was raised from a private group of angel investors led by Boris Wertz of W Media Ventures (later Wertz Media Ventures). Announced in August 2010, these funds were earmarked for accelerating site development, launching the planned "Avenue Rewards" program and advertising platform, and funding marketing initiatives to grow the user base. Series A funding: In August 2011, the company announced it had raised $1.2 million in a funding round led by venture capital firm Crosslink Capital. Significant participation came from iNovia Capital, along with several prominent individual investors, including BioWare co-founders Drs. Ray Muzyka and Greg Zeschuk, Ben Narasin, TriplePoint Capital, former THQ and Take-Two executive Jeff Lapin, Kevin Swan, and Dr. Boris Wertz, who reinvested. The stated purpose of this funding was to expand the team and continue platform development.

SOPA protest involvement

Empire Avenue was reported to be among Canadian companies participating in protests against the proposed Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) legislation in the United States in late 2011.This action aligned the company with other internet firms and digital rights advocates opposing the controversial bill.

Acquisition and rebranding to Empire.Kred

In 2015, Empire Avenue was acquired by PeopleBrowsr, whose Kred product was also focused on measuring online influence. Following the acquisition, the platform was rebranded and integrated into what became known as Empire.Kred.

Core premise: the Social Stock Market

The fundamental concept behind Empire Avenue was its operation as a "Social Media Exchange" or "influence stock market". Each registered user was assigned a virtual share price, analogous to a stock price for a company. This price was designed to reflect the user's online activity, reach, engagement, and overall influence across various connected social media platforms. The platform used proprietary algorithms to calculate this value, taking into account factors from external networks as well as trading activity within Empire Avenue itself—how frequently a user's shares were bought or sold. The exact formula remained confidential. A key element of the concept was the idea of a "crowd-sourced market". Rather than relying solely on algorithms, the platform aimed for value to be co-determined by the collective investment decisions of its users. Buying shares in someone signified belief in their current or future influence, adding a human judgment layer to the valuation process. Users were incentivized to increase their own value by encouraging others to invest in them.

Virtual currency: Eaves

The platform's internal economy revolved around a virtual currency called "Eaves". Users utilized Eaves for various activities:

Investing: Buying virtual shares in other users. Advertising: Purchasing in-game advertisements to promote their own profile or encourage investment. Upgrades: Spending on account enhancements or virtual goods. Eaves could be earned through several mechanisms:

Dividends: Shareholders received Eaves payouts based on the online activity and engagement of the individuals whose shares they held. The more active the investee, the higher the potential dividend for their shareholders. Capital gains: Selling shares at a price higher than the purchase price. Platform actions: Completing specific tasks, potentially including engaging with advertisements (cost-per-action features were available for brands). Initial allocation: New users received a starting amount of Eaves. Recruitment: Bringing new users to the platform was suggested as a primary way to inject new currency into the system, according to critics. Direct purchase: The company's business model included the sale of virtual currency. The founders expressed a vision for Eaves to eventually connect to real-world rewards, creating a "self-sustaining online economy". However, the extent to which this vision was realized during the Empire Avenue phase is unclear from the available sources.

Social network integration

Empire Avenue's valuation mechanism was heavily dependent on integrating with external social media platforms. Initially, it connected with Twitter, Flickr, Facebook, and blogs via RSS feeds. Over time, the range of integrated platforms expanded to include YouTube, LinkedIn, Foursquare, and Instagram. The platform analyzed user activity, engagement levels, and network size on these connected services to help determine the user's virtual share price. A useful feature noted by reviewers was that Empire Avenue provided scores or indicators of activity for each connected network individually. This allowed users to see not just an overall influence score, but also on which specific platforms another user was most active, potentially guiding more effective interaction.

Gamification elements

Empire Avenue heavily incorporated game mechanics to drive user engagement and make the complex system more approachable. Key gamification elements included:

Achievements: The platform featured unlockable achievements, similar in concept to Xbox achievements or Foursquare badges, awarded for performing various actions within the site. These were designed to be earned relatively quickly in the early stages of use to encourage exploration. Trading mechanics: The core act of buying and selling shares, watching prices fluctuate, and earning dividends functioned as a central game loop. Rankings and leaderboards: Users could track their standing through "Indexes," which provided rankings within specific fields of interest or communities. Helper characters/features: To aid understanding, the platform included virtual "statisticians" and "bankers" who could provide insights into why a user's score was changing. This strong emphasis on game mechanics positioned Empire Avenue somewhere between a social utility and a social game. While intended to boost engagement, this duality may have contributed to user confusion about the platform's primary purpose. Some users treated it purely as a game, focusing on maximizing their Eaves and share price through game strategies, while others attempted to use it as a serious tool for networking and influence measurement. This potential conflict in user goals and understanding, stemming from the blend of utility features and game mechanics, likely impacted the overall user experience and the platform's ability to clearly define its value proposition for everyone.

User profiles and valuation

User profiles served as the central hub, displaying the user's current virtual share price, a list of connected social networks, and potentially personal interests imported from platforms like Facebook. Profiles also likely included activity feeds showing recent platform actions or social media updates. Empire Avenue provided users with various metrics and statistics intended to help them understand the value derived from their online activities and network connections.