I was reading the whitepaper for EOS (https://eos.io/) and it seems like that they have found a way to eliminate fees from their network in the future and it seems like that they are trying to become some sort of distributed AWS at some point.
What is Cardano’s take on this and would it possible to have no fees in Cardano’s blockchain ? Would it be possible to create distributed AWS (as an example) on top of Cardano ? It is a billion dollor problem to solve ?
No, Cardano will take some transaction fee. Read this docs for more details: https://cardanodocs.com/cardano/transaction-fees/.
I have no idea about building the distributed AWS on top of Cardano.
I also have these questions about EOS vs. Cardano. I like Cardano better because of it’s process, but EOS’s model for sustaining it’s system appeals to me more.
Can someone tell me why Cardano/IOHK did not choose a model without fees like EOS’s model?
It seems like end users, the public, will ultimately choose the model without front-end transaction fees, because nobody likes to pay fees.
I think I understand the need to prevent distributed denial of service (DDOS) attacks and to provide incentives for block producers. I also understand the need to fund sustainability of the protocol.
For EOS to not have transaction fees, it’s my understanding that DAPP developers on EOS need to buy or rent EOS tokens to allocate bandwidth and storage for a particular DAPP (sources listed, below). Therefore, DDOS attacks are not in the best interest of the attacker, because the attacker would be harming itself because the attacker would need sufficient tokens to perform the attack. And it seems that the incentive to produce blocks is through payments through inflation (i.e., the EOS network creates new tokens and gives those tokens to block creators). What are the drawback’s to this model?
For Cardano, the DDOS attacks and incentives are handled through transaction fees. In other words, DDOS attacks would be too expensive to implement, and block producers are rewarded with a portion of the fees. In addition, the fees are part of the sustainability system of Cardano.
Thank you for any insights you provide.
Cardano:
EOS:
I think I heard C.H. mentioning it in one of his interviews, where he explains that you need fees as an incentive for the nodes to maintain the network, otherwise, why would someone build a node and leave it open at all times? It is part of the PoS protocol:
More nodes maintaining the network / fees as incentives = Faster transactions = Efficient and reliable system.
I am not sure how the no-fees system that EOS is implementing, despite appealing at first sight, would be viable on the long-term
Thank you for your response, CosmosX.
I have little doubt that IOHK reviewed EOS’s model and determined that a protocol without transaction fees (no fees to the end-user) is not as efficient as Cardano’s protocol with fees.
IOHK likely determined that trade-offs for a protocol without fees are less appealing that a protocol with fees.
I am just curious about those trade-offs and why IOHK believed that EOS’s model would not be as efficient and reliable.
I have almost no knowledge about programming, so I’m just trying to learn. If possible, please provide a link to any document/video that explains this.
Can a DAPP developer using the Cardano protocol provide DAPP users with free transactions on the DAPP because the DAPP developer pays for those transactions? This might shift the costs back to the DAPP developers, which seems to be what EOS’s protocol forces DAPP developers to do, through obtaining more EOS tokens, to achieve necessary bandwith, etc.
The question is how long can EOS provide free lunch? There will be a point of time when resources get dried up. Looks like a marketing tactic to lure investors and developers into their economic system.
Transactions are not free. Ever. In any system.
CPU cycles, Memory, Disk, Bandwidth.
Someone always pays, the question is who?
You can have a system where the individual making the transaction pays the “entity doing the work”. This is simple, straightforward and transparent.
You can have a system where the individual making the transaction does not pay, it is free for them. New money is created to pay the “entity doing the work”. In this situation the cost is spread across everybody in the form of inflation. Every time a transaction happens, every coin holder effectively gets skimmed for a small amount.
In both systems someone pays - just different people.
In Cardano, in the future, a DAPP developer could create a smart contract such that they pay the transaction fees. In this case a third party pays.
Someone always pays.