The Internet: A Initially Decentralized System
At its inception, the internet was simply a collection of isolated computer networks. Each computing park operated autonomously, with no interconnection between the machines. Over time, the idea of linking these computers materialized, first within individual networks and later on a larger scale.
The adoption of the TCP/IP protocol in the 1970s and 1980s allowed disparate networks owned by different entities to be connected via the use of datagrams. These data packets could be sent without requiring a permanent connection, thus creating a globally decentralized network. Each computer could communicate with another independently through standardized protocols like TCP/IP, ensuring a decentralized and open architecture.
By 1995, less than 0.4% of the world’s population (about 16 million people) was connected to the internet. However, this decentralized infrastructure allowed for exponential growth, leading to 5.3 billion users today, or approximately 66% of the global population.
The Rise of Centralization: Platforms and Data Management
While the infrastructure of the internet remained largely decentralized, a higher layer of services emerged, gradually centralizing data and interactions. Platforms such as Google, Facebook, and Amazon quickly centralized critical functions, such as information retrieval, communication, and online commerce. This process simplified access to complex services, making them accessible to the general public.
Social networks like Facebook have captured a significant portion of users’ attention. In 2023, Facebook had nearly 3 billion monthly active users, with about 60% of social media users spending an average of 2 hours and 31 minutes per day on these platforms. However, this attention is no longer solely directed toward purposeful interactions; instead, users passively consume content generated by algorithms optimized to maximize engagement.
Natural Platform Evolution: These algorithms allowed platforms to better understand users’ needs and provide tailored content, though they have also transformed how users interact with information.
This model has facilitated access to free services for users, but in return, personal data has become a central element of the business model based on targeted advertising. This new paradigm has fostered innovation while creating personalized experiences, though it also raises questions about the use of personal data.
E-commerce Giants and the Transformation of Customer Relations
Simultaneously, marketplaces such as Amazon, Alibaba, and other e-commerce platforms have radically transformed commercial relationships. By offering competitive prices and centralized logistics, these giants have allowed consumers to access a wide variety of products at lower costs. E-commerce has seen spectacular growth – from 1% of global retail sales in 2000 to nearly 20% today.
A New Dynamic in Customer Relations: With the rise of these marketplaces, the direct relationship between seller and buyer has often been replaced by automated interactions and algorithm-based ratings. This has enabled sellers to reach a global market while adapting to new consumer expectations for speed and convenience.
The Era of Cloud Giants: Centralization as Critical Infrastructure
Cloud giants such as Amazon Web Services (AWS), Google Cloud, and Microsoft Azure have played a key role in this centralization by creating infrastructures capable of processing vast volumes of information. This centralization has not only enabled businesses to benefit from powerful computing solutions at lower costs but has also accelerated the digital transformation of entire sectors.
These infrastructures have become critical to the proper functioning of the global digital economy, fostering innovation and enabling millions of companies to access sophisticated services. While centralization has optimized costs and provided massive services, it has also concentrated power in the hands of a few key players. Today, Google controls over 92% of the global search engine market, while Amazon monopolizes nearly 40% of online sales in the United States.
Commercial Practices, Mass Surveillance, and the Snowden Affair
This concentration has enabled significant advances in personalization and service accessibility, but it has also highlighted challenges related to privacy protection. Centralized data has facilitated widespread surveillance practices.
The Edward Snowden affair in 2013 revealed the extent of mass surveillance conducted by the NSA (National Security Agency) in the United States. By accessing centralized data from tech companies, the NSA was able to spy on millions of people around the world, intercepting private communications, monitoring online behavior, and accumulating vast amounts of information.
A Lesson to Learn: Snowden’s revelations prompted deeper reflection on the balance between technological innovation, national security, and individual freedoms.
The Emergence of Web3: Toward Decentralized Infrastructure and Commons
In response to these issues, Web3 emerges as a natural evolution aimed at giving more control back to users while introducing new forms of decentralized governance. Web3 proposes leveraging technologies like blockchain to offer decentralized services for data storage, computing, and transaction management, all while ensuring greater transparency and shared control over infrastructure.
Solutions like Ethereum and IPFS (InterPlanetary File System) enable the decentralization of data processing and storage while introducing participatory governance models through DAOs (Decentralized Autonomous Organizations). These models aim to transform certain parts of the digital infrastructure into commons, where the community plays an active role in the management and evolution of the systems.
The Inevitable Evolution Toward Shared Critical Infrastructure
Rather than viewing centralization as a threat, it can be seen as a step in the evolution toward an internet where critical infrastructure becomes commons, serving the entire community. Web3 seeks to rebalance power by introducing participatory and decentralized governance models.
While the challenges are numerous – from data synchronization to cost optimization – the benefits of decentralization are clear: more control for users, greater resilience to outages and censorship, and a more transparent economic model. By transforming critical infrastructures into commons, Web3 could open a new era for the internet, where networks are not solely managed by a handful of companies but by communities engaged in shared, transparent governance.