How did Netflix go from a DVD distribution company into a media production company? 1) It took a really long time, 2) they did a lot of weird things and took risky bets that most places wouldn't touch, 3) Hands-off (i.e. "decentralized") management styles that gave individual teams enough autonomy to work on the creative ideas they wanted.

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[Summary]

This podcast draws powerful parallels between Netflix's transformative journey and Tezos’ current path in the NFT space.

Netflix began as a DVD rental service, survived a pivot to streaming, and then took seven years to master content creation—driven by the need to escape Hollywood’s royalties and control. They learned to respect creators, embrace risk, and give creative teams autonomy, eventually becoming a cultural powerhouse.

Similarly, Tezos started with DeFi, but unexpectedly became a home for artists and NFTs—not by design, but through community-led evolution. Like Netflix, Tezos is learning that success in art and entertainment requires respecting intellectual property, royalties, and creator incentives—principles the wider NFT industry has largely ignored (e.g., OpenSea removing royalties).

The message is clear: Good things take time. Tezos is one of the few chains still committed to the long-term vision of NFTs as cultural tools, not quick-profit schemes. Despite current market downturns, the community continues to experiment, decentralize, and bridge tech with creative industries.

If Netflix could evolve from DVDs to Super Bowl shows, Tezos—already ahead in fostering a unique, creator-friendly ecosystem—can also turn NFTs into something meaningful. Stay patient. Keep building. The future belongs to those who respect both art and autonomy.

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teia.cafe | Decentralized Radio
teia.art | Arts Collective on Tezos
teia.art/ryangtanaka | Ryan's Music and Artworks


Sustainable Music Northwest (Seattle) | Public Music Concerts and Fair Wages for Musicians [https://www.sustainablemusicnw.org/]

*Episodes are also available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, iHeartRadio and most major podcasting platforms as well.

All big breakthroughs in tech start with decentralization.

[Summary]

In this episode, Ryan from teia.cafe explores the essential yet often overlooked link between decentralization and governance. He argues that while decentralization promises transparency and democratic control—exemplified by technologies like blockchain and DAOs—it cannot function sustainably without clear governance structures.

Ryan contrasts the current tech landscape, dominated by founder-led "dictatorship" startups favored for speed, with the collaborative, consensus-driven models of early internet projects like TCP/IP, DNS, and open-source software. These pre-crypto systems thrived precisely because they had explicit, multi-stakeholder governance (e.g., IETF, W3C, ICANN).

He warns that many recent crypto and Web3 projects have neglected genuine governance, opting for centralized control disguised as decentralization. When token distribution or mining power becomes concentrated, the system reverts to a centralized model, undermining community trust and long-term viability. Drawing from his experience with Tezos and the artist collective TEIA, Ryan demonstrates that functional, transparent, and verifiable on-chain governance is not only possible but critical for survival—especially as market hype fades and projects must stand on their actual technology and community.

The episode concludes by connecting these lessons to the broader tech cycle, including AI, noting that transformative technologies start open and decentralized but require deliberate governance to endure beyond speculation and achieve lasting impact.

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teia.cafe | Decentralized Radio
teia.art | Arts Collective on Tezos
teia.art/ryangtanaka | Ryan's Music and Artworks


Sustainable Music Northwest (Seattle) | Public Music Concerts and Fair Wages for Musicians [https://www.sustainablemusicnw.org/]

*Episodes are also available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, iHeartRadio and most major podcasting platforms as well.

Is the Metaverse Dead? No, it Just Smells Funny - January 14, 2026

Is the metaverse dead? A deep dive into how cultural perceptions about real-estate and real-life housing affects how the idea of virtual land is perceived. (Featuring Decentraland.)

https://www.buzzsprout.com/2565701/episodes/18508630

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Summary:

Is the dream of the metaverse dead after the crypto crash? This episode argues it's not dead—it just "smells funny." We cut through the hype to examine why the vision of corporate-owned virtual worlds (like Meta's) failed, while a different, decentralized model quietly survives.

The key lies in a surprising place: real-world housing policy. The episode contrasts the Western view of a home as a speculative asset with the Asian model (in Japan and China) where housing is treated as a stable, depreciating place to live. This cultural difference directly explains the metaverse's flop: in regions where physical housing is accessible, there was little urgency to buy into risky virtual land schemes. The metaverse hype, fueled in the West by a generation feeling locked out of real estate, simply didn't resonate in Asia.

We use Decentraland as the prime case study. Unlike centralized corporate projects, it's a truly decentralized, community-governed platform that has outlasted the hype cycle. The episode explores why this model is so hard—governance is slow and complex, like running a digital government—but also why it's resilient. While corporate metaverses became ghost towns, Decentraland has hosted virtual music festivals, art residencies, and maintains a persistent, user-driven world.

The analysis broadens to crypto adoption itself, linking it to economic stability. Countries with hyperinflation see crypto as a vital tool, while in economically stable Japan, public interest remains low despite advanced regulation. This inversion is key: the West has high public crypto interest but low institutional trust, while Asia shows the opposite pattern.

The conclusion is cautiously optimistic. The core idea of a shared digital space isn't gone; it's maturing. The path forward isn't through corporate-owned walled gardens, but through neutral, decentralized platforms that users can truly trust and build upon. The metaverse's future may be less about speculative land grabs and more about practical utility—virtual events, digital storefronts, and creative collaboration—built on a foundation that doesn't disappear when the hype does.

Podcast: Teia Cafe | Host: Ryan | Episode: S2E9

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teia.cafe | Decentralized Radio
teia.art | Arts Collective on Tezos
teia.art/ryangtanaka | Ryan's Music and Artworks


Sustainable Music Northwest (Seattle) | Public Music Concerts and Fair Wages for Musicians [https://www.sustainablemusicnw.org/]

*Episodes are also available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, iHeartRadio and most major podcasting platforms as well.