TON Ecosystem Collapses Amid Speculative Hype, Internal Strife

In the dynamic world of cryptocurrency, the TON ecosystem, once celebrated as a potential "traffic gold mine" for Web3, has experienced a dramatic rise and an equally swift decline. Initially backed by Telegram, the ecosystem gained significant traction with the launch of various mini-games, attracting considerable attention from investors and trading platforms. However, the ecosystem's rapid growth was underpinned by speculative hype and inflated data, ultimately leading to its collapse.

The low customer acquisition cost of Telegram mini-games was a major attraction for project teams, enabling them to achieve significant scale quickly. However, this low cost also meant that real users were often overlooked in favor of data inflation. Project teams and studios would agree on volume targets and engage in "volume swapping" to artificially boost data, creating a false sense of prosperity. The real user ratio within the ecosystem was alarmingly low, with many users being professional airdrop hunters rather than genuine players.

The TON Foundation, which was supposed to guide the ecosystem, was plagued by internal factional struggles and a lack of clear direction. The foundation's power structure was fragmented, with different teams vying for control and resources. This led to uneven resource allocation and a sudden shift in focus from mini-games to DeFi, causing many developers to abandon their projects. The arrest of Telegram founder Pavel Durov in France further destabilized the ecosystem, leading to a loss of confidence and support.

Project factories and trading platforms also played a significant role in the ecosystem's demise. The industrialized development of games and the rapid listing of coins by trading platforms created a highly competitive environment. This environment favored projects with strong negotiation power and market validation, leading to a concentration of resources and the exclusion of smaller projects. The lack of fresh user growth and the overdrawing of the market by trading platforms ultimately led to the collapse of the Telegram mini-game track.

The TON ecosystem's rise and fall serve as a cautionary tale for the Web3 industry. The ecosystem's promise of "social + Web3" attracted many developers, but ultimately, it turned them into producers of black box data. For players, the allure of airdrops and quick profits was a mirage, leaving them with little more than a $0.99 game gift package. The industry must learn from this experience and focus on building sustainable, user-centric ecosystems rather than chasing short-term gains.