From: jim bell <jimbell@pacifier.com>
Date: Thu, 4 Jul 1996 15:51:29 +0800
To: Simon Spero <cypherpunks@toad.com
Subject: Re: ecash thoughts
Message-ID: <199607040424.VAA02562@mail.pacifier.com>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain


At 05:53 PM 7/3/96 -0400, Simon Spero wrote:

>2) If ecash is used to create a new currency- i.e. the value of a unit of 
>the ecash is not tied to any single existing currency, what should the 
>value of one currency unit  be set at? (let's call it a Turing)

Low, maybe a tenth of an American cent.  But probabilistic payment should be 
used to allow the minimum average payment to go way below this, perhaps to 
an unlimited extent.  The reason is simple:  The cost of providing net 
transactions, and electronic transactions in general, can be expected to 
drop exponentially, just like the cost of telecommunications and CPU power 
do.  Any arbitrary limit to how low they can go will act somewhat akin to 
the minimum wage:  It will deter development of any product or service whose 
perceived value is less than this arbitrary minimum.

Jim Bell
jimbell@pacifier.com