BAT-Enabled Brave Browser Hits 10 Million Downloads

Brave Software has revealed that its cryptocurrency-backed browser, Brave, has surpassed 10 million downloads.

Earlier this year, in May, the browser reached 5 million downloads, increasing five-fold since January.

Thrilled that Brave for @Android now has over 10 million downloads! ???? Thank you to our users for choosing to browse faster and safer, and for valuing privacy protection! https://t.co/ME6ZkOYfLx pic.twitter.com/nBmpMFEcBa — Brave Software (@brave) August 24, 2018

Brave Shows How Blockchain is Done

The cryptocurrency ecosystem continues to grapple with lack of regulation, scams, frauds and the absence of working products to justify a $225 billion market cap. However, companies like Brave, which launched without much ado or flashy promotions, prove that cryptocurrency products can integrate with ease into existing user habits, and perhaps even triumph over competitors.

In comparison to other enterprising, and often far-fetched, blockchain projects, the Brave browser had a relatively smoother path to mainstream adoption.

The flagship browser offers an inbuilt app blocker that speeds up a user’s browsing experience, provides greater security and consumes lesser data. However, Brave’s USP lies in its related Basic Attention Token (BAT), which incentivizes users to view advertisements and award content creators.

The BAT Token

Offered via an ICO in May 2017, BAT famously raised over $35 million within 30 seconds of sale commencement. At the time, the Ethereum-based token promised investors a decentralized advertisement solution, a narrative which has undoubtedly succeeded.

Regarding incentives, users are rewarded BAT merely by browsing the internet, with all tokens received through an inbuilt app wallet. While users can utilize collected tokens for tipping creators and publishers, the latter can enable Brave-supported advertisements on their platform to earn additional revenue, which the company touts is larger than YouTube payouts.

Advertisers can also purchase BAT on cryptocurrency exchanges to buy ad slots on the Brave browser. However, precise statistics on the number of marketing firms choosing brave over Google, YouTube or other social media platforms remain unknown as of writing.

Increasing Utility

As per the whitepaper, future partnerships may allow BAT-enabled purchases on several different platforms in exchange for services or goods. For now, however, the token’s utility is limited to altcoin traders and ad-slot purchasing.

Despite its recent success, Brave is quick to point out that the download number does not necessarily correspond to a compared amount of users. In July, the company stated that it had 3 million active users per day, with the figure expected to hit 5 million by the end of 2018.

Today, Brave is compatible across several operating systems–including Linux, Windows and Apple–and features over 20 search engines. The company also announced a partnership with DuckDuckGo, the privacy-centric search engine founded in 2008.