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Web3

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This article is about the concept for a decentralized Internet. For the concept for an Internet based around machine-readability, sometimes called Web 3.0, see Semantic Web.

Web3, also known as Web 3.0,[1] is an idea for a version of the Internet that is decentralized and based on peer-to-peer technologies such as public blockchains.[2]

Background

Main article: Web 2.0

Web 1.0 and Web 2.0 refer to eras in the history of the Internet as it evolved through various technologies and formats. Web 1.0 refers roughly to the period from 1991 to 2004, where the vast majority of Internet users were solely consumers of content. Most websites were static pages that displayed content from the server filesystem rather than a database.[3] Web 2.0 is based around the idea of "the web as platform".[4] Far more users of the Internet produce content, which they upload to social networking services, blogs, or video or image sharing websites. Many web pages are dynamic and serve content from relational databases, or are full-featured web applications. Web 2.0 is generally considered to have begun around 2004, and continues to the current day.[4][5][2]

Web3 is distinguished from a concept for a semantic web created in 1999 by Tim Berners-Lee, which has sometimes also been called "Web 3.0".[6] Some writers referring to the decentralized concept usually known as "Web3" have used the terminology "Web 3.0", leading to some confusion between the two concepts;[7][8] furthermore, some visions of Web3 also incorporate ideas relating to the semantic web.[9][10]

History

The term "Web3", specifically "Web 3.0", was coined by Ethereum co-founder and Polkadot creator Gavin Wood in 2014.[1] In 2020 and 2021, the idea of Web3 gained popularity. Particular interest spiked towards the end of 2021, largely due to interest from cryptocurrency enthusiasts and investments from high-profile technologists and companies.[2][11] Executives from venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz travelled to Washington, D.C. in October 2021 to lobby for the idea as a potential solution to questions about Internet regulation with which policymakers have been grappling.[12] Some companies including Reddit and Discord were reported to be exploring incorporating Web3 technologies into their platforms in late 2021,[2][13] however Discord later announced they had no plans to integrate Web3 technologies amidst heavy user backlash.[14]

Concept

Web3 revolves around the idea of a decentralized Internet. Proponents often contrast this to Web 2.0, where large amounts of the web's data and content are centralized in a fairly small group of companies (often referred to as Big Tech).[2]

Specific visions for Web3 differ, but all are heavily based in blockchain technologies, such as various cryptocurrencies and non-fungible tokens (NFTs).[2] Some visions are based around the concepts of decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs), which seek to enable many people to have equal ownership and governance in an organization.[15] Decentralized finance (DeFi) is another key concept, in which users exchange currency without bank or government involvement.[2] Self-sovereign identity allows users to identify themselves without relying on a centralized authentication system like OAuth.[16]

Reception

Some technologists and journalists have described Web3 as a possible solution to their concerns about over-centralization of the web in a few "Big Tech" companies.[2][12] Some have expressed that Web3 could improve data security, scalability, and privacy beyond what is possible on traditional Web 2.0 platforms.[10]

Some legal academics expressed concerns over the difficulty of regulating a decentralized web, which they reported might make it more difficult to prevent cybercrimes, online harassment, hate speech, and dissemination of child abuse images.[9] Some other critics of Web3 see the concept as an extension of blockchain-based trends that they view to be overhyped or harmful, particularly NFTs.[13] Some critics have raised concerns about the environmental impact of cryptocurrencies and NFTs. Others have expressed beliefs that Web3 and the associated technologies are a pyramid scheme.[11] Discord's CEO, Jason Citron, tweeted a screenshot in November 2021 suggesting the company might be exploring integrating Web3 into their platform. This led some to cancel their paid subscriptions over their distaste for NFTs, and others expressed concerns that such a change might increase the amount of scams and spam they had already experienced on crypto-related Discord servers.[13] Two days later, Citron tweeted that the company had no plans to integrate Web3 technologies into their platform, and said that it was an internal concept part of a company-wide hackathon.[14]

Further reading

  • Brendan Hesse (November 29, 2021). "What is 'Web3' and Why Should You Care?". Life Hacker.
  • Bobby Allyn (November 21, 2021). "People are talking about Web3. Is it the Internet of the future or just a buzzword". NPR / All Things Considered.

References

  1. ^ a b Edelman, Gilad. "What Is Web3, Anyway?". Wired. ISSN 1059-1028. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Mak, Aaron (November 9, 2021). "What Is Web3 and Why Are All the Crypto People Suddenly Talking About It?". Slate. Retrieved November 9, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  3. ^ Cormode, Graham; Krishnamurthy, Balachander (June 2, 2008). "Key differences between Web 1.0 and Web 2.0". First Monday. 13 (6). Archived from the original on October 25, 2012. Retrieved November 9, 2021.
  4. ^ a b Hosch, William L. (September 7, 2017). "Web 2.0". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved November 9, 2021.
  5. ^ O'Reilly, Tim (November 30, 2005). "What Is Web 2.0". O'Reilly. Archived from the original on April 24, 2013. Retrieved November 9, 2021.
  6. ^ Shannon, Victoria (May 23, 2006). "A 'more revolutionary' Web". International Herald Tribune. Retrieved November 9, 2021.
  7. ^ Alford, Harry (September 16, 2021). "Crypto's networked collaboration will drive Web 3.0". TechCrunch. Retrieved November 9, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  8. ^ Khoshafian, Setrag (March 12, 2021). "Can the Real Web 3.0 Please Stand Up?". RTInsights. Retrieved November 9, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  9. ^ a b Harbinja, Edina; Karagiannopoulos, Vasileios (March 11, 2019). "Web 3.0: the decentralised web promises to make the internet free again". The Conversation. Retrieved November 9, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  10. ^ a b Zarrin, Javad; Wen Phang, Hao; Babu Saheer, Lakshmi; Zarrin, Bahram (May 15, 2021). "Blockchain for decentralization of internet: prospects, trends, and challenges". Cluster Computing. 24 (4): 2841–2866. doi:10.1007/s10586-021-03301-8. ISSN 1573-7543. PMC 8122205. PMID 34025209.
  11. ^ a b Read, Max (October 24, 2021). "Why Your Group Chat Could Be Worth Millions". Intelligencer. Retrieved November 9, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  12. ^ a b Feiner, Lauren (October 13, 2021). "Prominent Silicon Valley VC firm Andreessen Horowitz embarks on major crypto policy push in Washington". CNBC. Retrieved November 9, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  13. ^ a b c Hatmaker, Taylor (November 9, 2021). "NFTs and crypto wallets could be in Discord's future". TechCrunch. Retrieved November 9, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  14. ^ a b Hatmaker, Taylor (November 10, 2021). "Discord pushes pause on exploring crypto and NFTs amidst user backlash". TechCrunch. Retrieved November 12, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  15. ^ Roose, Kevin (November 5, 2021). "Crypto Is Cool. Now Get on the Yacht". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved November 9, 2021.
  16. ^ Meunier, Thibault; Jo, In-Young (October 1, 2021). "Web3 — A vision for a decentralized web". The Cloudflare Blog. Cloudflare. Retrieved November 9, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
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