Do you have some bitcoins burning a hole in your pocket? You're in luck. Several sites have joined forces for Bitcoin Black Friday, an online campaign that will offer discounts to those who pay in bitcoins.
"It's a one day extravaganza of deals for Bitcoin users that will allow tech-savvy shoppers to get all their holiday gifts purchased without spending a dime," organizers said. "Instead, they can spend their bitcoins, which have surged in value recently as they have become more and more widely adopted."
Bitcoins are a virtual currency created by users in their own computers with a Bitcoin "miner" application. It takes quite a while to "mine" one bitcoin, so it's not exactly a get-rich-quick scheme, but in recent weeks, the price of a bitcoin has skyrocketed; on Thursday night, it was over $1,000. Bitcoin is still in its infancy, so you can't exactly pay with bitcoins at the corner store - or even major retailers - but those who want to cash out will now have a few more options thanks to Bitcoin Black Friday.
The event is the brainchild of Bitcoin evangelist Jon Holmquist. Last year, he organized a Bitcoin Friday event with 75 merchants, which he said helped "gain much needed attention and legitimacy for Bitcoin." This year he teamed with Internet freedom activists Fight for the Future, and has signed on more than 250 merchants.
"Bitcoin Black Friday is an awesome way to bring the whole Internet community together at a time when Bitcoin needs as much mainstream attention as possible," Holmes Wilson, co-founder of Fight for the Future, said in a statement. "Even though it seems like Bitcoin is going strong, it won't be politically safe until it's widely used by average Internet users - that's already happening, but we're speeding things up with Bitcoin Black Friday, and making it fun in the process."
