When I first started working in web hosting, the Internet was a very different place. There were far fewer websites, and most people used dial-up connections to get online. In those early days, web hosting was a simple business. You bought a server or rented some server space and put your website on it. There were search engines and directories like Alta Vista and Yahoo, but search engine spam was a big problem. You could easily rank your website at the top of the search results by stuffing your pages with the keywords that people were searching whether the content was relevant or not.
In those early days, web hosting was a simple business.
Rob Lederhilger
Google came along and changed everything. With its revolutionary page ranking algorithm, Google made it much harder to rank your website artificially. By ranking pages based on how many inbound links they had from other high-quality websites, Google ensured that only the best websites would show up at the top of the search results. You had to provide valuable content that other sites felt compelled to link to. Over time website owners changed their tactics while Google has continued to improve its page ranking algorithm. This gave birth to the eternal cat and mouse game called “SEO” (search engine optimization).
Search result spam wasn't Google's only problem, they needed to figure out how to monetize their shiny new search engine. In 2002, Google introduced its first paid search results. Webmasters could pay to have their website show up at the top of the search results for certain keywords. This was a huge shift in how Google operated. No longer was it a purely merit-based system. Now, the richest and most powerful websites could buy their way to the top.
Over the years, the Internet has evolved into a much more complex environment. Today, there are millions of websites, and people are using all kinds of devices to connect to the Internet. Web hosting has had to evolve to keep up with this changing landscape. Unfortunately, this has led to a lot of consolidation in the Web hosting industry. Only a handful of companies now control the majority of the market share.
When these companies first emerged, they decided to use Google's model of giving away their services for free. In exchange, they would show advertisements to their users. This was a great business model for Google, as they were able to dominate the search engine market. Web 2.0 companies soon followed suit and adopted the same business model.
We now know there are significant issues with this business model. Web 2.0 companies are using (and selling) our data to target us with ads. They're also collecting data on our browsing habits and selling it to other companies. Another problem with Web 2.0 is that it's not very decentralized. These applications are controlled by a small number of companies, and users don't have much control over their data. In some cases, these companies can even track user behavior across different websites.
The internet has always been a beautiful thing, but for many years I was disappointed with the way Web 2.0 evolved and took away from its original purpose - to provide an open platform where everyone could share information freely without restrictions or limitations, or data collection (AKA surveillance or spying). This business model is not sustainable in the long run. Users are becoming increasingly aware of the implications of using these applications, and they're starting to search for alternatives. Web 3 provides an opportunity to build decentralized applications that put users in control of their data.
SOLUENCY is excited to be at the forefront of this movement. More details to come in part 2 of SOLUENCY's Journey to Web3
Soluency is Committed to Web 3
Web3 is the next generation of the internet, where users are in control of their data and applications. Our Web3 Hosting product is revolutionary and will change the way people use the web. You can host your applications on the decentralized web, without having to rely on centralized servers. This means that your data is safe and secure, and you have complete control over your application. Our Web3 Hosting product is also scalable and can be used by anyone, from individuals to enterprises.