Bitcoin's Lightning Network has a fresh new flavor

The crypto world is taking unexpected turns as interest in digital currencies
and blockchain technology grows. The latest surprise is the San Francisco-
based ice cream delivery service, Block and Jerry's. The company, being
opened by a group of college students, will run on Bitcoin's Lightning Network.
According to Block and Jerry's co-founder Rob Durst, the idea is to get a
whole new audience involved in cryptocurrency. The aim is to provide their
customers with an incentive to use the very latest in payment technologies,
get on board the Bitcoin train and get to grips with how the growing Lightening
Network works. In addition to developing their app, the group has come up
with a detailed guide on how to set up Lightning and execute transactions on
the network. Block and Jerry's hopes to give ice cream loving, blockchain
programming novices a way into this new world.
An increasing number of companies is setting up business in connection with
the Lightning Network. It is a scaling technology, which has almost 1,000
nodes and is still growing, enabling Bitcoin to increase adoption, by moving
transactions off the blockchain.
Block and Jerry's serves as a great test case for how businesses can utilize
Lightning to accept Bitcoin moving forward. The company's primary objective
doesn't seem to be making money, considering they don't accept credit cards
or any alternative type of cryptocurrency. They also approach a very niche
audience, as evidenced by ice cream flavors like Vitalik Garcia and Doge
Food that reflect a passion for cryptocurrency and blockchain technology.
However, it is this passion that has lead the group to take the risk of sending
real Bitcoin payments via Lightning.
One company developing a Lightning implementation is Lightning Labs. The
CEO, Elizabeth Stark, has expressed concern that users could suffer losses
executing transactions on the network, which could lead to development
delays. She goes on to note that upcoming Lightning releases may be
incompatible with today's Mainnet, leading to potential shut downs for new
payment channels. Stark and others offering Lighting-based merchant
services are unlikely to jump on board with Block and Jerry's, since they will
be reluctant to promote software that at this early stage could lead to financial
losses for users.
Even so, Block and Jerry's co-founders are optimistic. Their initiative is
designed to create a more immediate user experience over the Lightning

Network, and to boost contributions to its development by exposing a wider
audience to the early technology.
Up to now, in its nascent stages, Lightning has been, primarily, the realm of
veteran blockchain developers, due to its skeleton UI and the fact that it
requires a degree of familiarity with command line code.
However, the Block and Jerry's team is looking to open the door for the
average developer. Durst trusts that the step-by- step guide that it has created
for its users, including developers with no prior experience in blockchain
programming, will make working with the Lightning Network simple and
seamless.
As Durst notes, the Lightning Network holds the promise of quicker, cheaper
confirmations, a key factor for those looking to rein in costs. Bitcoin is on the
brink of mainstream adoption and Durst and his team are excited to be among
those pioneering the change.