Abroad, Filecoin is known as the Airbnb of cloud storage. Filecoin has a lot of potential in the digital asset space, and if Filecoin is successful, the token FIL that underpins the Filecoin network will create a lot of value. As far as we know, the smartest investors are investing in Filecoin right now.

01 The Magical Internet

Before we dive in, let’s get some background on how data storage and distribution are evolving.

In fact, for many people, the Internet is simply magic. You type a list of information you want into a browser, and within seconds the required information is displayed on your phone or computer.

While the Internet and the “cloud” make it seem as if the Internet exists in the “ether”, it is largely a physical phenomenon. Ninety-eight percent of the world’s data travels through fiber-optic cables. The Internet is a network of computers connected by cables and domain names. The Internet has evolved over decades, with a lot of coordination around the globe to build the infrastructure and define standards for how data is transmitted over the network.

How does the Internet work

The current standard is based on Sir Timothy Berners-Lee, who invented the “Internet” in 1989. He offers a way to identify the data (the bits of information that make up a website). Data can be transmitted over the Internet via the Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP).

When you request data over the Internet, you are actually requesting a specific IP address to access information stored on the server.

For the most part, the protocol works well, but it does have its drawback that location-based addressing encourages the centralization of the Internet. As you can see from Google and Amazon, these are huge companies built around the HTTP protocol. Consult V family SLF5576

One way to think about it is, if you own the server, you own the rights to the data distribution service. In today’s data-driven world, this business model is very profitable. But HTTP can fail, as we saw recently when the content delivery network Fastly failed, taking up a lot of Internet space.

But what if there were a better model? A more efficient, resilient and secure way for data to move around the Internet? A model that changes who owns and therefore controls our data?

A new data model

IPFS – Efficient content-based addressing. This is a new model for moving data around the world that could rival or outlaw HTTP. Invented by Juan Bennet and subsequently invented the Filecoin network to help drive the adoption of IPFS. Consult V family SLF5576

IPFS is the foundation of the Filecoin infrastructure.

With Filecoin, network users don’t ask for specific “location data.” Filecoin users ask for a specific “piece of content,” and the nearest server that holds the data makes it available to the client.

This small change has a profound effect on scale. The most important thing is that the Internet can work in a more efficient way.

This makes the Internet faster, and data travels faster across the Internet. It also makes the Internet more resilient because it is no longer so dependent on a few providers.

Mature business model

Filecoin’s vision is to make data storage and distribution an open environment that drives the most efficient markets. But the first thing to do is create value for users, and it takes a very large network to do that. That’s why incentives to encourage web builders are so important. Consult V family SLF5576

Filecoin’s success will depend on whether the network becomes valuable enough to convince users to migrate. The Filecoin network is still in its infancy, but the potential is there because Filecoin’s underlying architecture, IPFS, has attracted a lot of interest from developers, and there are now over 5,000 Filecoin developers. More than 200 new projects have joined the Filecoin network. Filecoin has also attracted some of the world’s top investors, including Sequoia Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, Union Square Ventures, and Winklevoss Capital. Consult V family SLF5576

Filecoin’s opportunity isn’t just to compete with AWS, Azure, or Google; it’s more powerful because it has the potential to change everything that underlies the Internet. This has led to a lot of interest and anticipation from domestic and international investors for Filecoin’s future, as Filecoin’s potential is huge.