The idea of Web 3.0, which was put forward by Dr. Gavin Wood, founder of the Web3 Foundation, in 2014, to give individuals control over their personal data and identities stems from the view that the current internet infrastructure (i.e. Web 2.0) allows certain technology entities to violate users’ privacy and authentication needs by design. In the meantime, it gives these entities the opportunity to collect users’ data for advertising and other profitable gains. While
Web 2.0 allows users to create and interact with content on major platforms like YouTube, it will also go down in history as the Internet era where large technology companies exploit, own, and monetize user data.
Web 3.0 aims to democratize the internet by bypassing large technology companies while decentralizing without a single point of authority. Web 3.0 enables not only large companies and individuals but also computers to produce and consume content.
Web 3.0, which is owned by the user, enables digital property rights for the first time with its decentralized protocols that provide open access to distributed data. It introduces new monetization paradigms built into software to combine consumption with investment and cause consumer behavior to change in an increasingly digital economy.
The openness of Web 3.0 also aims to associate a user’s online identity with their reputation and prevent centralized decisions from determining how information, content, and communication are controlled. As a result, the freedom of concept puts Web 3.0 at the center of crypto and blockchain, and rights and benefits are converted into a digital unit of value (token) in a process known as tokenization.