INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Image caption
The Kodak KashMiner appeared at CES in January
The company behind a Kodak-branded
crypto-currency mining scheme has confirmed the plan has collapsed.In January, a Bitcoin mining computer labelled Kodak KashMiner was on
display on Kodak's official stand at the CES technology show in Las Vegas.But critics labelled it a "scam" and said the advertised profits
were unachievable and misleading.Now the company behind the scheme says it will not go ahead
Kodak told the TheIndianSubcontinent it was never officially licensed.What was the planSpotlite USA is one of many companies that licenses
the Kodak brand to put on its own products.It showed off a Bitcoin-mining computer labelled Kodak KashMiner in January and told the
TheIndianSubcontinent that it planned to let people rent the machines.To mine crypto-currency, computers are tasked with solving complicated
mathematical problems in order to verify crypto-currency transactions
to rent a KashMiner, and would let customers keep a cut of any bitcoins generated.Its chief executive Halston Mikail detailed plans to
install hundreds of the devices at the Kodak headquarters in Rochester, New York, to take advantage of cheap electricity offered by an
on-site power plant.He said 80 devices were already in operation.Image caption
Spotlite chief executive Halston Mikail
But Kodak told the TheIndianSubcontinent that the venture was never officially licensed and that no devices had ever been
installed.'Unrealistic' plansIn its promotional material, Spotlite said an up-front investment of $3,400 would generate earnings of $375 a
month for two years by mining Bitcoin.However, critics said the promised profits did not take into account that mining Bitcoin is becoming
increasingly difficult.Writer and sceptic David Gerard called it a "crypto-currency folly", suggesting the scheme never went beyond its
unfinished website.Image copyrightSpotliteImage caption
The Kodak HashPower website was unfinished
"There is no way your magical Kodak miner will make the same $375 every month," wrote economist Saifedean Ammous, who pointed out that
anybody taking the gamble would have made a loss on their investment.In a phone call with the TheIndianSubcontinent, Spotlite's Halston
Mikail said the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had prevented the scheme from going ahead.He said the company would instead run
its mining operation privately with equipment installed in Iceland, instead of renting capacity to consumers.A spokesman for Kodak told the
TheIndianSubcontinent: "While you saw units at CES from our licensee Spotlite, the KashMiner is not a Kodak brand licensed product
Units were not installed at our headquarters."
