Get paid to look at ads! It may sound like a scam, but in fact it's a new feature available to users of the privacy-focused internet browser called Brave. The payment comes in crypto—specifically Brave's Ethereum-based Basic Attention Token (BAT).
BAT came into existence back in 2017, during the height of the ICO craze. In May of that year, the company behind Brave sold $35 million worth of BAT in less than a minute, becoming what CoinDesk calls "the original sold-out-in-seconds ICO." Since then, though, while the token has been tradeable, it hasn't been much more than a speculative asset. As ICO projects come under increased regulatory scrutiny, projects like Brave are under pressure to demonstrate that their tokens have real-world utility and haven't just been a way to make millions of dollars in seconds.
Brave's browser, which blocks ads and trackers, has been around since 2016, and already has nearly 6 million users. Up until now, it has let users donate BAT to websites and YouTube personalities, as a way of letting you directly fund the content you read or watch. Starting yesterday, users have a new option: to see Brave-specific ads that come in the form of desktop notifications instead of banner ads. If you opt in to see these ads, you'll get paid. Brave says it will distribute 70% of its ad revenue to its users' crypto wallets. That could work out to about $5 per month, CEO Brendan Eich tells Wired. According to CoinDesk, the company eventually plans to give publishers a tool to accept micropayments for individual posts rather than subscribing.
Hardly anything in the crypto world is cut-and-dried, however, and BAT is no exception. The browser won't initially allow users to withdraw the funds they earn; they can only use it to pay publishers who accept it. Before it can allow withdrawals, Brave must establish a process for verifying a user's identity. In the meantime, the value of the coin is bound to fluctuate; during the past year its price has ranged from around 13 cents to over 50 cents.
Does Brave really need its own token to work? Will regulators really see BAT as a security? Will users and publishers really want to be paid in and hold a volatile cryptocurrency? These kinds of vexing questions are par for the course with projects that raised money via ICOs. But the bigger idea here—using a blockchain to let users establish a new kind of financial relationship with publishers and advertisers—seems compelling enough to stick around in one form or another.
Is crypto winter over yet? Who knows. Either way, at MIT Technology Review, we're confident that blockchain technology is here for the long haul. After all, it didn't just show up in 2017. We're 10 years into this story.
What will the next 10 years look like? We'll try to answer that question at our third-annual Business of Blockchain event, which takes place NEXT THURSDAY, May 2nd, at the MIT Media Lab. I'll be on stage at the conference, which we co-organized with MIT's Digital Currency Initiative. Get your ticket today, before they sell out!
Here's a quick sample of the programming:
- I will chat with Charley Moore, CEO of Rocket Lawyer, which is developing automated legal agreements using blockchain smart contracts.
- Monica Quintance, head of research and networks at Kadena, will talk about the cutting edge of permissioned blockchain technology.
- Dan Robinson, research partner at investment firm Paradigm, will discuss the problems of blockchain scaling and interoperability.
- Alexis Gauba, co-founder of She256 will explore the importance of increased diversity in emerging technology fields like blockchain.
Samsung Coin? According to a new report, it might be on its way. There aren't many details, but an anonymous source "familiar with Samsung's internal situation" told CoinDesk that the South Korean company is building its own private Ethereum-based blockchain. Once it completes this experimental project, it may even launch its own token, according to the source.
Samsung has already shown strong interest in blockchain technology. The newest version of the Galaxy S10 smartphone includes a cryptocurrency wallet (the software that stores private cryptographic keys) that is compatible with Ethereum-based tokens. The Galaxy S10 will also support blockchain-based "decentralized applications" (aka, dapps).
If Samsung is really building its own blockchain and cryptocurrency, it joins a growing list of big corporations that are doing the same. So far these include Facebook, JPMorgan, Japanese messaging service Line, and Japan's biggest bank, MUFG. And given the blockchain-focused features in its flagship Galaxy S10, which has more than 40 million users, the company seems convinced the strategy will resonate with more than just crypto-enthusiasts.
What will the economy look like once robots take over manufacturing floors?
Join us at our 2-day future of work conference, where you'll hear from some of the world's leading experts.
Loose Change
Fill your pockets with these newsy tidbits.
- Paragon, the cannabis-focused company that raised $12 million in a 2017 ICO and then got prosecuted by the SEC for selling unregistered securities, lost $11 million in 2018 and still hasn't started refunding its investors. (Decrypt)
- TD Ameritrade appears to be testing the idea of offering cryptocurrency trading to its 11 million users. (The Block)
- Japanese billionaire and founder of Softbank Masayoshi Son lost more than $130 million thanks to a personal Bitcoin investment. (Wall Street Journal)
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Lightning Labs, a startup building the Lightning Network, the so-called "Layer 2" network that's supposed to help Bitcoin scale, has released a desktop application. (CoinDesk)
- Infighting at Maker Dao, the trendy stablecoin project, has led to recent departures of several prominent team members. (The Block)
