Introduction

The business giant like Google, Facebook, and many others have been collecting the user's data, compiling them and all those data are being socially engineered & sold for monetary gain. All these are being done without the consent of users and under the pretext that the browsing experience is free. The pop-up, ads, banners, etc are additional burden and distraction to the visitors. Apart from that, there are security vulnerabilities through web browsing and that can cost even to the extent of theft & hacking of valuable digital assets.

Advertising and the generated revenue is definitely a key element in the internet sector in daily life. But the sharing of the revenue is not yet made fair and transparent and in almost all cases, monopoly prevails. From the internet experience in our daily life, the visitors, webmasters, and advertisers are trying to achieve their respective goals. For example, the visitors make use of the internet for his own personal purpose, but in that process, the visitors/end users end of getting intrusive ads. The webmaster runs a website and tries to monetize that on the basis of the time spent by the visitors. The Advertiser encourages webmasters to grab as much as they can. So all the three entities are in a conflict of interest when they try to achieve their respective goals.

This aforesaid problem can be solved with the introduction of blockchain technology to the web browsing experience. A new way of monetization can be explored through in-browser mining as opposed to forced induction of ads to the UI. It can be fair & transparent too. The revenue generation and distribution can be made fair, but if the web mining will be without the consent of the users/visitors, it will again be distracting for the users as it may not be smooth & pleasant. The users may always look for another platform which may suit their purpose. Simply put, the websites which are advertising-centric may lose visitors.

So the UX should remain at its place as a top priority and along with that, the revenue generation can be considered in a non-intrusive way. The ad blockers, pop-up blockers, anti-miner are very much prevalent these days and the users are very much aware of all such things. Even if we consider alternatives like web-mining, which offers a new alternative revenue generation through in-browser mining, the mining requires too much computing power & extensive data processing centers, which is practically not feasible.

Therefore a new approach is needed where the visitors, the webmasters, the advertisers, etc can have an aligned interest, the UX should remain intact and should be as per the choice of the user, the revenue generation should remain at its place, the web-mining should be there but in a decentralized way, along with enhanced security and usability.

The Evolution of Content Monetization

(1) Advertisement

This is the simplest form of content monetization which may be in the form of an ad or banner or pop-up.

These are mostly intrusive and invasive to the purpose of the visitors and therefore don't bode well with the visitors.

It may also happen that with this form of content monetization the publisher may not be able to retain visitors which may further result in the decline of revenue.

(2) Subscription

This is the next form of content monetization in which the visitors will have an ad-free browsing experience but they have to subscribe to publishers with a certain subscription fee. For example, Medium with paywall.

So this may be good form the viewpoint of the browsing experience, but not everyone can afford to pay the fees.

It is a barrier to entry.

(3) Mining script

Mining script runs on the background when a visitor visits a website and the visitor may enjoy ad-free browsing experience, but the mining script running on the background may slow down the device and/or loading of the page.

Hidden mining script is unethical as it does not take the consent of the users/visitors and they consume the computing power & resources and ultimately when the users get to know about it, they get blocked with anti-miner.

(4) Opt-in web browser mining

Opt-in web browser mining is the best evolution of content monetization as it does take the consent of the visitors to use the computing power of their devices. Further, how much computing power shall be used is also as per the choice of the visitors/users.

As it is an opt-in process, the publishers and visitors remain in good understanding and the monetization happens in a fair and transparent way.

The visitors experience ad-free browsing and at the same time by letting the publisher use spare computing power, they also earn a share of the revenue generated from the browser mining.

Along with better browsing experience, the visitors earn a share of the revenue.

Brief Overview of Gath3r

Gath3r is a next-generation cryptocurrency miner especially designed to solve the issues of website owners & visitors and to offer an alternative form of monetization for the website owners who are advertising centric. Gath3r aims to offer a solution by decentralizing the process of sparing the computing power required for in-browser mining. It introduces a versatile native coin along with merged mining. The new coins forked out of GTH, can utilize the hashrate of Gath3r. Merged mining can secure the new & less -popular blockchains and alongside it offers interoperability, therefore making the things easier for web-miners and it can be cost-effective as well as profitable. Simply put, Gath3r provides more utility to the miners & webmasters and along with that, it offers better usability, security, UX, etc.

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The Existing Problem Interface & the Solution by Gath3r

(1) High energy-intensive computing process & expensive mining

The existing browser mining is no doubt an emerging & popular phenomenon but it also comes with a cost and the computation is also centralized, energy-intensive & expensive. Further, there is a trust deficit among the users/visitors to use a certain website or app.

The solution by Gath3r

Gath3r makes the process decentralized by making use of spare computational power of the users/visitors with their consent. This makes the computation and mining decentralized. How much the user can spare can also be set by the user. So it is more transparent. The users can visit a website of their choice. Just by installing the Gath3r code in a particular website/app & by making use of the spare CPU/GPU processing power, the webmasters can mine cryptocurrency.

(2) Transparency

Existing web browser mining lacks transparency. The existing mining scripts use the processing power of visitors without their consent and also it leads to slowing down of the system. This is not an ethical practice either. The moment a visitor gets to know about it, he/she will immediately activate anti-miner. The end result is that the website owner may experience fewer visitors.

The solution by Gath3r

Gath3r makes everything transparent for visitors. How much processing power will be used is well in consent with the visitors, so it will not unnecessarily slow down the system of the users. In Gath3r, it is an opt-in process on the part of the user. Means the user will have a notification in the form of a pop-up before letting the spare processing power of his device for mining.

(3) Free Internet

The users in the existing state of web browsing experience suffer from forced induction of advertising, e-commerce, subscription, etc. The other form of in-browser mining hiddenly uses the computing power of the users/visitors in the name of the ad-free browsing experience. The cryptocurrency and its mining is "internet of money", it will prevail in some form but the existing form is disadvantageous and not fair on the part of the visitors because mostly the existing state of mining/monetizing is intrusive and invasive one.

The solution by Gath3r

It is not against monetization but it proposes a new non-intrusive way of monetization which is beneficial for both webmasters and visitors, the mining must also be in consent of the visitors. Gath3r firmly believes that the proceed of monetization must be fairly split between the webmasters and the visitors, as the processing power of the users is being utilized, so they must also be adequately compensated. But the primary objective which is "better browsing experience" should be as per the choice of the users.

(4) Decline of revenues & visitors

In the existing state, the users face forced induction of advertising, e-commerce, subscription, etc. That makes the user experience poor, and also slows down the loading of pages. Most of the time, it is distracting too and hence the visitors finally quit visiting such sites/apps and that ultimately results in the decline of revenues for website owners.

The solution by Gath3r

The underlying principle of Gath3r is in line with the principle of blockchain which brings transparency to the monetization. It does not interfere with the browsing experience of the users. It is fairly an opt-in process and web mining happens with the consent of the visitors. The users are paid with a share of revenue in this process. The website also does not face backlash or malware accusations. This is definitely a pro solution for both webmasters and visitors. More and more users under such a hood of monetization will be willing to join, which will yield the best results in terms of the number of visitors as well as the revenue generated.

Main Components of Gath3r

GTH Blockchain

GTH chain is the parent blockchain of Gath3r ecosystem & GTH coin is the native coin. GTH blockchain makes the solution offered by Gath3r decentralized. It has better scalability and it can handle large loads of websites/applications. The system of Gath3r offers a composite solution for the developers and it facilitates the creation of new cryptocurrencies and auxiliary chains, the developers can clone the existing blockchain & develop their own coin. It mainly focuses on the various issues of new cryptocurrencies in the ecosystem. Gth3r is very specific to the security, hashrate of new and relatively less popular cryptocurrencies.

The advantage in Gath3r blockchain is that the new & auxiliary chains tied to the parent chains can enjoy the benefit of enhanced hash rate. They are secured against a 51% attack. The smart contract further enables interoperability, means one coin can be able to interact with other coins. With the same hash power, the miners can mine more coins, so this will further encourage more visitors to join the ecosystem.

Smart Contract

It has an in-built smart contract which enables the unification of blockchains and makes the entire Gath3r ecosystem interoperable. Means whatever auxiliary chains that fork out of Gath3r will inherit the same functionality and will be able to interact with others within the ecosystem.

Merged Mining & Auxillary Chains

Whatever new coins and auxiliary chains will be created can take advantage of merged mining. With auxiliary proof-of-work, merged mining will make the new cryptocurrencies and chains more secure and the new chains can further utilize the hash rate of the parent chain of Gath3r. So web-miners can yield better profitability with the same amount of work.

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Master Nodes & Lite Nodes

The master node hosts the full blockchain, whereas the light node hosts the compressed web-lite blockchain which is stored locally in the browser and that is in sync with the master node. The lite-node serves a specific purpose and make the use-case feasible for users in a general sense where the unnecessary heavy data is left out(which is served by the master node). So this makes the thing simple for users to quickly access to the network & perform a transaction.

Enterprise Sales

Gath3r offers a composite solution for the enterprises which includes everything such as development, the launching of blockchain and/or forking of the chain, merged mining, etc.

Chain Governance

The chain governance in Gath3r follows a simple voting process where the votes are split between various entities: Publishers, Master nodes, Auxiliary chains, Gath3r team, etc.

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Interoperability

The Gath3r ecosystem is fully interoperable. The new chains and cryptocurrencies created/forked out of GTH chain inherit the same fundamental property and that enables the auxiliary chains to interact with others, thereby making the entire ecosystem interoperable.

Web/Mobile wallet based staking

Gath3r encourages users to take decentralized control of their assets/coins and therefore it offers web/mobile wallet which can be used for staking the coins earned by the users and that can further be utilized(as staking power) for validating the transaction in the GTH blockchain.

GTH Coin Utility

It can be used as payment for Smart Contract.

It can be used as payment for merged mining.

It can be used as payouts for visitors and publishers.

It can be staked to enhance the staking power to validate a transaction.

How it Works

The model of Gath3r ensures transparency, privacy protection, and monetization in a non-intrusive way for the webmasters. For visitors/users, it is an opt-in process.

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Gath3r has a code which the website and application owners can integrate.

A mandatory opt-in is built into the websites, the visitors will be prompt by a pop-up when they visit a website to allow their spare CPU & GPU computational power to mine cryptocurrencies.

Through the mining process when the website submits the correct code, the webmasters enables the block.

The system then rewards the webmaster with a payout which can be GTH coin or BTC or even cash wherever permitted.

Publishers are rewarded in a separate pool based on the hashrate.

The coins earned by the visitors are automatically sent to a web-based staking wallet.

Merits & Demerits

Merits

As the payout in Gath3r supports Gath3r coin, BTC or even the fiat currency, it can bring more users to the ecosystem and has the potential to accelerate mass adoption.

The loyalty program can encourage the visitors to spend more time on the website.

It enhances the security of new coins and auxiliary chains.

It is interoperable.

Merged mining can yield better profitability with the same resources.

The non-intrusive monetization does not conflict the interest of website owner and the visitors.

The web-based staking enables the users to earn interest.

It is an opt-in process for the visitors and fairly transparent.

The computation is decentralized.

Gath3r is a better alternative to the inefficient crypto mining script.

Gath3r allows the communication between validated blockchains with the ability to perform advanced functions & tasks.

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Demerits

The name (Gath3r) is really a difficult one to spell and tell to the people.

Overall Assessment

Comparative Analysis

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Conclusion

Empowered with blockchain technology, Gath3r has offered a decentralized solution to the web browser mining which is non-invasive, non-intrusive. The process is an opt-in process for visitors and they can let their spare computing power for the mining process. So what Gath3r offers not only a genuine solution to the existing invasive mining scripts but also a potential solution for the visitors/publishers to earn without any conflict of interest. The resources can be utilized in a decentralized and optimal way as well, as the user only let their spare computing power for web browser mining.

The fair & transparent monetization powered with blockchain technology generates a new form of revenue for publishers, visitors, etc. The privacy of the user is respected and the security remains intact in the entire process. The website owners and app developers need not have to worry about the decline in revenue and visitors. Gath3r model has the potential to encourage more visitors to join the ecosystem. It is definitely a win-win situation for all the entities in the ecosystem.

The images & logos are taken from the official website of Gath3r. Unless otherwise stated (or source indicated), all are my original works.