The phrase Web3 has recently gained a lot of traction, particularly among individuals who are interested in technology, cryptocurrencies, and venture capital.
They said that web3 has the potential to be a game-changer in the internet's evolution.
Although the phrase has been around for almost a decade, it is still a fuzzy and divisive issue. So, what is Web3 and how is it already affecting our internet?
From Web1 to Web3 - How the internet has revolved!
Let us provide a brief recap to put Web3 in context.
Web 1.0
The original iteration of Web 1.0, also known as the Syntactic Web or the Read-Only Web, was the time period (1990–2000) when a user's function was confined to reading information given by content creators.
Users and consumers had no way of relaying information to content creators.
Static websites and personal blogs are examples of Web 1.0.
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Web 2.0
Then came Web 2.0, often known as the Social Online or read-write web, which allows users to engage with other users by facilitating interaction between web users and sites.
Around 2005, new sites like YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter introduced Web 2.0. They contributed to the Web's current tremendous popularity.
For the first time, anyone, regardless of technological abilities, could post anything online.
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However, in Web 2.0, these middlemen control everything. They hold all of our data and have complete control over what we can and cannot do online, with the ability to disable our access to platforms at any time.
Web 2.0 poses significant hazards to individuals worried about data privacy, or who have little option but to establish enterprises on the backs of social networks and commerce markets.
Web 3.0
Web 3.0, commonly known as the Semantic Web or read-write-execute web, is the internet's future.
Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning are helping to intelligently develop and distribute meaningful material customized to a user's specific needs in this era.
In a nutshell, Web3 is about undoing all of Web 2.0's flaws. The goal of the next generation of the internet is to redistribute power away from huge tech corporations and towards ordinary consumers.
Web3 proponents argue that by entirely decentralizing the web, they can cut out the Big Tech middlemen. Just like how cryptocurrencies is aiming to seize control of global banking from huge financial institutions and governments.
What is the relationship between Web3 and Blockchain?
According to Ethereum, Web3 will be a portfolio of decentralized blockchain apps that will allow anybody to access the network's services.
Following tremendous development in cryptocurrency, the concept of Web3 received the greatest traction this year.
Web3's goal is to build a decentralized web that allows sites and services to live on any computer network.
User data will be validated using blockchain technology, and everything on Web3 will be purchased using cryptocurrency.
Web3 will be powered by blockchain technology and digital tokens, so if you haven't heard of cryptocurrencies before, now is a good time to start.
Why should you care about Web3?
Users control everything
In the future of Web3, the internet would be decentralized and free of tech behemoths.
We might be witnessing the emergence of new social platforms, search engines, and markets that are produced and controlled by the people rather than by corporations.
According to Sam Richards, an Ethereum programmer, the beauty of a decentralized system is that it does not require authorisation to use.
"Anyone who is on the network has permission to use the service," "No one can block you or deny you access to the service."
End users would recover control and influence over their personal data. They may use a single customized account to go from platform to platform on the internet, rather of needing to log into numerous distinct accounts for each firm and site.
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Changes in ownership arrangements
Prior to the Web3, entertainment content was mostly controlled by platform behemoths.
Taylor Swift's loss of rights over her original songs, which forced her to re-record six of her albums, is a striking example of the entertainment industry's dysfunctional ownership arrangements.
Web3 has the potential to create a world where artists do not have to battle for control and ownership of their work.
In many respects, new ownership forms are enabled by altering incentive structures. When audiences stand to profit financially from successful material, they are more inclined to endorse it.
Indeed, we are witnessing this with NFTs right now (non-fungible tokens).
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Many artists, musicians, and other creators have lately begun to experiment with ways to obtain the majority of the cash generated by their work.
Smart contracts, which are predefined agreements written into a blockchain, may be attributed for much of this.
Smart contracts enable for secondary royalty arrangements using NFTs, which means creators get paid out every time their work is sold on the open market.
Wrap up
Decentralized technology, like blockchain, is expected to make its way into everyday internet endpoints like applications, browsers, and gadgets.
Finally, Web3's ultimate form would be a utopian internet where all users, data, networks, and stakeholders were treated equally. You'd have the same right to your own data and the same chance to benefit from it as they have now.
We are only getting started with Web3, but as we enhance the infrastructure that will enable it, its future is bright.
