Web 3.0: The Wild West of the web
A fresh dawn of internet is looming. Dubbed the ‘Wild West’ of the web, a new, decentralised and crypto-infused platform is looking likely to emerge within the internet as we know it.”
Web 3.0 is becoming an increasingly hot topic with an enthusiasm to empower users and give them true ownership over their data while cutting out the internet ‘bigwigs’ who will no longer be able to mine and collect vast amounts of data from a single network,” partner at law firm Ashfords, Suzie Miles told City A.M.
After internet users transitioned from passive consumers to active participants in the Web 2.0 era of content generation, Web 3.0 means users will utilise an increasing number of applications and digital tools like Grammerly to have more control over what they share with internet companies. So what will that look like?
“That’s the big question,” Zumo chief technology officer Tim Sabanov said. “How Web 3.0 looks in practice could be as simple as logging in with your personalised digital wallet… or you can see where your data is being leveraged and you can opt out.”
Web 3.0 will be blockchain powered – meaning the apps that will fill the new ecosystem will exist on a distributed network with thousands of decision makers, removing the opportunity for singular bad actors to disrupt it.
“We have become products,” added Sabanov, which Web 3.0 seeks to deconstruct by having thousands of smaller players instead of a handful of tech behemoths with eyes for money-making data.
Google, Meta, Netflix, Amazon, Microsoft and Apple generated and controlled nearly 57 per cent of the global internet traffic in 2021, according to GlobalData, which Web 3.0 seeks to dissolve with the new platform which would exist within Web 2.0.
Don’t worry, you will still be able to Google and scroll on Facebook.
“One thing we can be sure of is that Web 3.0 is not going to replace Web 2.0 in the immediate future and therefore Big Tech companies do not have an immediate and imminent threat to business,” added Miles. While smaller companies such as UK-based crypto wallet and payments platform Zumo are already trying to tap into Web 3.0, it’s still early days.
Tech analyst at PP Foresight, Paolo Pescatore told City A.M.: “Everyone wants to jump on the bandwagon. The new, provides excitement, an opportunity but significant uncertainty.
“For sure, the buzz has attracted some big names in the world of tech. This in part is driven by the flow of money. For now, it remains the Wild West. Like previous new things, it will be one hell of a ride.”
The new platform that venture capitalists (VCs) are gearing up for is also expected to put regulators in a sticky position – having spent the last decade chasing an ever-rolling ball.
Partner at firm Mayer Brown, Chris Chapman added:“The regulation of the current version of the web is an issue for regulators at the moment. They have only recently begun to think about this.
“Increased decentralisation in Web 3.0 may mean fewer identifiable targets for regulation, and new challenges for regulators trying to control the flow of money and information online.”
However, Twitter founder Jack Dorsey has noted that Web 3.0 will be owned by VCs, given that they are pouring billions in investment into these blockchain-based apps.
Zumo’s CTO said he would agree with the Twitter founder “to a certain point” and that “there are elements of big finance and money going in but at the same time companies that are following the principle of Web 3.0… should make sure that that doesn’t happen. Web 3.0 should belong to everyone.”
Miles added that Dorsey’s comment “certainly creates a question mark over whether a truly decentralised and egalitarian network can be created and, if it can, would that benefit consumers who may not be well equipped to take on the responsibility that comes with having greater control over their data.”