MiningPool has never been enthusiastic about advertising. We've tolerated ads as a stopgap while we build a reader support model. Brendan Eich, who created JavaScript and ran Mozilla as CEO, is now b
MiningPool has never been enthusiastic about advertising. We've tolerated ads as a stopgap while we build a reader support model. Brendan Eich, who created JavaScript and ran Mozilla as CEO, is now building a different kind of web browser called Brave. The software tackles what Eich calls a "primal threat" to the internet: advertising as it exists today.
Brave blocks most ads that load in conventional browsers. Instead, the browser injects its own advertisements and splits the revenue between itself, publishers, and users. The technical infrastructure runs on a built-in bitcoin wallet and BitGo's multisignature technology. The crucial difference: Brave's ads don't collect user data. They don't track behavior. They don't send identifying information to advertisers. Publishers can run their own ads on Brave too, provided they follow the same privacy rules.
Ad-blocking extensions allow certain ads through. Ad-blocker makers permit these ads because of business relationships with advertisers, according to Eich, not because the ads are less intrusive. Brave takes a different approach. Eich says the browser will never grant preferential treatment to advertisers with inside connections.
The revenue splits three ways. But users hold real power over where their money goes. They can block all ads and instead pay publishers in bitcoin from their Brave wallet. They can deposit cryptocurrency into the wallet and direct their payments wherever they choose. Christopher Ellis developed this idea first through a tool called ProTip, and the concept has gained traction.
It's unclear whether Brave can persuade thousands of web publishers to accept bitcoin micropayments, or if fiat payment options will emerge. Eich has proposed "monthly payment buffers" stored in Bitcoin to manage volatility, a move that hints at eventual fiat options for publishers. Users won't earn enough from ads to make a difference to their own finances. They'll direct their payments to publishers they most want to support.
Brave itself is open source, available now for developers willing to compile code from Github. Everyone else waits for an official open-beta launch. Whether this browser fixes the web's ad problem is an open question. Other platforms are attacking the same problem from different angles. One trend is undeniable: more people see the manipulation baked into online advertising. MiningPool will track Brave and other crypto-enabled browsers as details emerge.
