How Basic Attention Token Works | Get Paid in Crypto to Watch Ads

How Basic Attention Token Works | Get Paid in Crypto to Watch Ads

The world of cryptocurrency is growing at an exponential rate. Bitcoin set the stage for all subsequent cryptocurrencies to expand and improve upon the concepts of blockchain, decentralized banking, and financial security and anonymity. But with so many new coins on the market, it can be difficult to distinguish what makes one different from the other. One crypto subtype that has distinguished itself from the others is utility coins, and perhaps no utility coin has more world-changing potential than the Basic Attention Token.

What is a utility coin?

A utility coin is a type of cryptocurrency that “provides users with future access to a product or service,” according to Josiah Wilmoth of Strategic Coin. For example, if you create a utility coin for music, you are promising those who purchase shares of your ICO or your coin that in the future, they will be able to use your currency to purchase music exclusively through your platform or marketplace.

Utility coins will likely continue to steadily pop up on the market, as cryptocurrency trading and use become more mainstream. After all, why switch to a decentralized form of currency unless you can actually use it to buy the things you want?

What is the Basic Attention Token (BAT)?

Brendan Eich, the inventor of internet game-changers like JavaScript, Netscape Navigator (RIP), and Mozilla Firefox, developed the concept of the Basic Attention Token, or BAT, in conjunction with a new form of internet browser called Brave. He has observed the evolution of the internet into a platform for rampant spamming, badly targeted ads, and ad trackers that piggyback off of user bandwidth, costing users money they never agreed to spend to be marketed to.

The Brave browser returns users to a purer and faster online experience by automatically blocking all ads. In order to publish sponsored content on Brave, publishers must complete a verification process agreeing to Brave’s terms and conditions. Even then, Brave users can choose whether or not they see sponsored content from these verified publishers.

This is where the Basic Attention Token comes into play. The token is delineated by, and therefore itself defines, the value of consumer/user attention. If publishers create content that multiple users are interested in watching, interacting with, or reading, they are earning ‘basic attention.’ The token being a measure of that attention, publishers are rewarded with BAT when their content performs well and is useful to users.

On the other end of the spectrum, users can also be rewarded in BAT for giving publishers their attention and the ability to market directly to them through the Brave browser, should they choose to turn on that feature. Users can then either hang on to the BAT they accumulate in their BAT Wallets, or can subsequently use their BAT to reward publishers for content they enjoy and would like to support.

In short, the Brave browser and the Basic Attention Token create a rewards-based marketing system in which meaningful relationships can be created between publisher and user through anonymous and private interactions that involve actual exchange of value defined by the user. Users can promote content on behalf of publishers and reap the rewards, just as publishers reap the rewards of interested users. Publishers can even publish premium content available through BAT payment. It’s a more democratic, one-to-one world on Brave, and it promises to have a huge impact on internet use.

I explain the Basic Attention Token in full detail here:

Why use the Brave browser?

There are several reasons to consider Brave:

Improved internet privacy - online privacy, particularly when it comes to browsing history, is difficult to come by. Brave offers a browsing platform that maintains no records of your online activity to third parties. Publishers simply cannot access users without agreeing to the terms and conditions and becoming verified.

More enjoyable browsing experience - who doesn’t long for web pages that load without display ads on the top, bottom, right, left, and in-between-paragraphs areas? Using Brave, every single one of those ads is gone. Sites load faster. You see the content you wish to see. That’s it.

Integration with Cryptocurrency world - BAT may be the answer for those looking for a tangible reason to invest in a new cryptocurrency with an immediate use. Not only can fiat be converted into BAT using an exchange such as Uphold, but other cryptocurrencies can be converted to BAT.

Are there any cons to investing in BAT?

Because the Basic Attention Token, the BAT Wallet, and the BAT Payments System are relatively new, they are in a fairly constant state of unofficial “beta,” and as such are somewhat limited in their use beyond the Brave browser.

For example, at the moment, the BAT Wallet is unidirectional. That means that it can only accept deposits and contributions, and CANNOT process withdrawals. Currently, only various cryptocurrencies, fiat, and BAT can be deposited. In the future, the BAT Wallet promises a feature allowing deposits from credit cards, as well as the ability to withdraw funds from the wallet and convert them into fiat.

BAT Donations accepted here: 0xf5fb7Cac6Abc5B81e2DFEAFbF4a45F470FAd86Ae