Brave rolls out new opt-in feature to reward users with BAT tokens for viewing ads

Privacy webs browser Brave has announced the launch of Brave Ads – an advertising platform built on privacy.

Brave Ads will enable users to earn rewards for watching advertisements. By default, Brave blocks cross-site web trackers and the ads which come with them. Hence, to view Brave Ads, users of Brave’s latest release of the desktop browser for macOS, Windows, and Linux would have to opt into Brave Rewards.

The company explained that as Brave Ads are “opt-in”, brands would know with certainty that their ads, running in its platform, are viewed by people who welcome advertising.

In its announcement, Brave said:

“Users receive 70% of the gross ad revenue, while Brave receives the remaining 30%. Users are rewarded with Basic Attention Tokens (BAT) via the integrated Brave Rewards in their browser.”

BAT is currently among the top 25 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization. It is trading at $0.428 at the time of writing.

Brave said that it is working with a number of ad networks and brands for the Brave Ads catalog inventory. Vice, Home Chef, Ternio BlockCard, MyCrypto, and eToro are now supplying ads, in addition to BuySellAds, TAP Network, AirSwap, Fluidity, and Uphold, which were part of the early access program for developer and beta users that started on January 15, 2019, the release said.

Further, The Giving Block will provide ad inventory and test use cases for their partner charities and non-profits. Brave is also working with the Human Rights Foundation, which is being featured as part of the launch, where users can tip the organization through Brave Rewards.

“With Brave Ads, we are launching a digital ad platform that is the first to protect users’ data rights and to reward them for their attention,” said Brendan Eich, CEO and co-founder of Brave Software.

“Brave Ads also aim to improve the economics and conversion of the online advertising industry, so that publishers and advertisers can thrive without the intermediaries that collect huge fees and that contribute to web-wide surveillance. Privacy by design and no tracking are integral to our mission to fix the Web and its funding model.”