If you’re reading this blog in a web browser, then you can notice a “https” on the blog’s URL. It is a protocol representing the security of a website. Since the beginning of the internet epoch, everyone has been familiar with ‘Http’ and ‘Https.’ And now, the time for a change has finally come. 

The world’s second-largest blockchain, Ethereum, has released a new standard that enables web users to access Dapps and NFTs without worrying about centralized censorship. Despite the fact that most web URLs are in “HTTP” format, Web3 is going to introduce a game-changer here. Ethereum is already a well-known player for dapp and smart contract development services, but decentralized Web hosting? 

Yes, the Web 3.0 URL has hit the floor. Let us break down the information about this new protocol. 

What Is Web 3.0 URL?

With the launch of the ERC-4804 token standard onto the Ethereum blockchain, users were able to access Dapps and non-fungible tokens without any censorship restriction, as we said earlier. This new ETH standard is given the title “Web3 URL to EVM Call Message Translation.” ERC-4804 was proposed for the first time in mid-February 2022. 

Web 3.0 URL is said to be an “HTTP-type” URL that can help access on-chain Web3 content. The proposal for ERC-4804 token standard occurred in 2022, but it was endorsed and finalized on the mainnet in March of 2023. 

How Does A Web 3.0 URL Work?

Well, If you watch closely, most of the existing “said-to-be” decentralized Dapps still rely on centralized servers. For example, if you want to contact a webpage, you should go via DNS and then through DreamHost or GoDaddy. 

In general, when a user clicks a link in a web address, the computer automatically uses HTTP to ask for information from another computer, such as a website or image. Contrarily, ERC-4804 users can search “web3://” instead of “http://” to access NFTs or Dapps like Uniswap. With this standard, users can directly execute a query to the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM). Finally, you can access a complete webpage successfully, along with the content stored on the Ethereum blockchain or an L2 protocol. 

Limitations Of Web 3.0 URL

The cost of executing Web3 URL is at the high end. One of the crucial problems is that the storage cost on the Ethereum blockchain is expensive on the mainnet. For instance, storing 1GB of on-chain data will cost around $10 million, which is way more expensive than what most Web2 applications charge. In such cases, you can integrate a Layer-2 (L2) protocol to reduce costs slightly. 

Characteristics Of ERC-4804 Standard

This new URL standard will be advantageous for a specific range of applications. But, it will remove the censorship risks while using a Dapp or a website. With this standard, everything does not have to go decentralized. So, if you are running a Web2-based enterprise, then you need not worry about centralized censorship. 

Is Web 3.0 URL A Seed For Decentralized Hosting?

The InterPlanetary File System (IPFS) is a perfect example of a network created to provide decentralized stuff similar to what centralized cloud service providers do. However, the content linked to IPFS URL is static and immutable. Fortunately, ERC-4804 allows people to access ‘dynamic’ information with real-time interactions such as likes and comments. Ultimately, being a member of the Ethereum ecosystem, this token standard can also help to perform cross-chain communication. So, when you build your smart contract with Ethereum, you can get multi-chain interaction features also.