Content Storage

When you publish on InkDAO, where does content actually go? Not to a company's servers like Medium or YouTube. InkDAO uses a hybrid approach combining blockchain and distributed file storage—creating a system that's permanent, private, censorship-resistant, yet performant.

Why Traditional Storage Fails

Medium articles sit on Medium's servers. YouTube videos live in Google data centers. This centralized approach has fundamental problems:

Single Point of Failure: Platforms can delete your content for violating ever-changing terms. Companies go bankrupt, content disappears.

Platform Lock-In: Your content and audience relationship belong to the platform, not you.

Privacy Concerns: Platforms read your drafts, analyze unpublished work, potentially train AI on your content—without consent.

InkDAO splits content into two systems: IPFS for content, Ethereum blockchain for ownership.

IPFS: Distributed Content Storage

IPFS (InterPlanetary File System) works differently from traditional servers. Instead of "where is this file," you ask "what is this content." Each piece gets a unique identifier (CID) derived from the content itself.

When Rachel publishes her NFT guide, it receives a CID like bafkreihwdcefgh.... This CID is mathematically derived from her content—change one character, the entire CID changes. The CID serves as both permanent address and authenticity guarantee.

Her content doesn't live on one server—it's distributed across IPFS nodes worldwide. If one node goes down, others serve it. If InkDAO disappeared tomorrow, Rachel's content would still be accessible through IPFS. Platform survival isn't tied to content survival.

Private Access on Public Infrastructure

IPFS is typically public—anyone with a CID can request content. But paid content needs privacy. How?

InkDAO uses Pinata's private groups. When Rachel publishes, content goes to IPFS in a private group. The CID exists publicly, but accessing content requires authentication through InkDAO's backend, which verifies blockchain ownership first.

Result: content benefits from IPFS permanence and distribution, but access is controlled through cryptographic ownership. Can't be censored (on IPFS), can't disappear (distributed), can't be accessed without payment (blockchain tokens prove ownership).

Blockchain: The Source of Truth

Ethereum stores ownership and metadata. When Rachel publishes, these details are recorded permanently in the MarketPlace contract:

• Her wallet address (proving authorship)

• Content CID on IPFS (immutable link)

• Price she set (economic terms)

• Unique token ID (ERC-6909 identifier)

• Publication timestamp (permanent record)

None of this can be altered by anyone. It's replicated across thousands of Ethereum nodes, will exist as long as Ethereum exists, provides absolute transparency. Anyone can verify Rachel published this content, when, and at what price.

When someone purchases, that transaction is also recorded. Buyer receives ERC-6909 tokens (1 unit of that token ID) providing cryptographic proof of ownership—non-transferable and permanently tied to their wallet.

The Complete Journey

Creation: Marcus writes about Layer 2 solutions. Saves to IPFS in private group. Each save generates a new CID. Only Marcus can access because it's linked to his authenticated wallet.

Publication: Marcus publishes. Content stays on IPFS with its CID. Thumbnail uploads to IPFS publicly. Metadata submits to Ethereum blockchain via MarketPlace contract. Post assigned unique token ID. Gas fee (~$5-10 mainnet, pennies testnet) goes to network validators. No separate contract deployment—all posts managed in single MarketPlace contract (ERC-6909).

Purchase: Sarah buys for 0.03 ETH. Her wallet sends ETH to MarketPlace contract. The full 0.03 ETH goes directly to Marcus. Contract mints ERC-6909 tokens (1 unit of that token ID) to Sarah's wallet. Transaction is atomic—everything succeeds together or nothing happens.

Access: Sarah wants to read. Frontend queries blockchain for CID and token ID. Backend checks Sarah's token balance (ERC-6909) for that specific token ID. Confirms ownership. Fetches content from IPFS. Serves to Sarah's browser. Feels instant, but multiple systems work together behind the scenes.

Why This Matters

True Permanence: Content can outlive the platform. If InkDAO disappeared, content and ownership records still exist and remain accessible.

Censorship Resistance: No single entity can delete content. Distributed across IPFS, ownership on Ethereum.

Creator Independence: Content on IPFS (accessible through any gateway), earnings in personal wallet (no platform can freeze funds).

Verifiable Ownership: Anyone can verify on blockchain that a wallet owns access. Blockchain is source of truth, not a platform's database.

Privacy Without Central Control: Content stays private through cryptographic ownership verification, not arbitrary access control lists.

Real-World Implications

Researchers establish provable first publication through blockchain timestamps—prevents idea theft. Developers publish guides that keep earning years later with automatic payments. Analysts' timestamped predictions prove credibility. Creators publish legal but controversial content that remains accessible even under platform pressure.

The Trade-Offs

IPFS can be slower than CDNs for first load (but fast after caching). Blockchain transactions cost gas fees (small, goes to network validators). Infrastructure is more complex than renting servers. The ERC-6909 multi-token approach reduces gas costs by 90%+ compared to deploying separate contracts per post.

But these are the price of true ownership, real permanence, and actual censorship resistance. InkDAO deliberately chose this architecture—accepting complexity for a system that can't be shut down, can't be censored, and gives genuine control to creators and readers.