In a Feb. 6 Cointelegraph interview with Infura researcher Patrick McCorry, it was revealed that Infura is creating an open-source market of data providers to ensure Ethereum Web3 applications don’t experience crashes in the foreseeable future.
Ethereum: “Decentralized Infura” Can Be Useful To Decentralized Blockchains
According to McCorry, the new “decentralized Infura” will ensure that blockchains stay distributed by splitting data provider services among numerous providers in a market. It’ll kick off with up to 10 vendors cooperating for network bootstrapping and then progressively expanding its members over time. Several prospective partners are getting ready to meet at ETH Denver next month or so to decide on the upcoming steps of this project.
McCorry believes that this transition will make the Web3 platform resilient and reliable, allowing users to quickly switch over to different service providers in case of any disruptions. Furthermore, providing services from multiple locations around the world under an array of varying legal regulations could mean a more secure Infura Network – one which is less vulnerable to censorship.
Criticized For Being Too Centralized
Infura‘s suite of APIs and developer tools are a must-have for all Web3 app developers, providing them with data from blockchains. Github projects such as MetaMask, Gnosis, Aragon–and many more—rely on Infura for their operations. Even centralized exchanges have adopted the use of Infura to keep an eye out on withdrawal and deposit transactions!
Blockchain networks impose transaction fees for users writing data to prevent servers from getting overcrowded. Fortunately, Infura has emerged as an efficient way to charge developers or users who need access only to the stored information on-chain; since this does not involve any transactions, no fee is charged.
Since it has become a popular choice for developers, Infura has come under scrutiny for its potential centralization. In November of 2020, the MetaMask wallet app was rendered unusable by many when Infura servers were taken down, and several centralized exchanges were blocked from accessing reliable transaction info as well. This caused some skeptics to doubt if Ethereum can remain truly decentralized while relying on Infura to deliver data to users.
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