I’m high on Web3. That doesn’t mean I believe the hype or even understand a lot of the mumbo-jumbo. I’m still in learning mode and have no idea what’s going to happen or how soon. But I’m excited about the buzz and enjoying the stimulation of looking at the future of sport in radically
new ways.
In Web3 the world of sport is facing an innovation trend with the potential to shake everything up like nothing else in decades. I’ll go further than that ¬ like nothing ever before.
So, what’s so radical about Web3? What does Web3 mean anyway?
Basically, Web3 is a re-invention of the way the internet works based on blockchain.
Here’s a simplified short-hand way to grasp why that matters.
Web1 – In the early days, the internet was Read-Only. It gave consumers access to archives and the like. The technological underpinning was open-source protocols. No one ‘owned’ the internet.
Web2 – This is where we are now. The internet is Read-Write. That means sports and brands can create content for fans to consume on websites and apps. In addition, the open-source internet has a closed-source overlay of servers and platforms controlled by the big companies that dominate the web. They collect and exploit data and extract most of the commercial value. In effect, it is they who ‘own’ the internet.
Web3 will be Read-Write-Own. The internet will be de-centralized ¬ you might say democratized ¬ via blockchain. Sports and brands and fans and companies will be able to control their own rights and data and interact with others as they choose. The groups and individual actors will all be able to ‘own’ the internet piece by piece.
At least that’s the basic storyline at this point. Obviously, this is complex and unpredictable stuff that will take time, like biological mutation.
The Web3 revolution is essentially a tech thing. It’s about re-tooling the back end of the internet and building a new underlying structure of blockchain and tokenisation. Most internet users probably won’t even be aware of what’s happening, anymore than they are of what happens behind Web2 today.
BUT the implications of the changing back-end tech are HUGE.
Blockchain has the potential over time to transform IP and control of data and legacy concepts of ownership and governance that have been in place for centuries. The potential impact on sport is almost beyond imagination.
And how can you not be excited about that?