Brave Browser Launches Version 1.0

Following the success of the beta version, Brave Browser launches the stable 1.0 version three years later. It’s available for download for Windows, Linux, macOS, iOS and Android. 

Brave Software has officially launched its privacy-centric web browser Brave 1.0. Over the last couple of years, Brave has become known for its open-source browser with a built-in ad-blocker. 

The project stands out due to its proposal of anonymously monitoring user’s attention, providing security protection and rewarding publishers with the Basic Attention Token (BAT). Through its integrated Brave Rewards program, around 70 percent of the ad revenue is distributed among its users. 

Brave Software announced, through a blog post, that the official version of its web browser is live. This comes three years since the launch of the beta version, which proved to be a success. 

The browser can be downloaded on Windows, Linux, macOS, iOS and Android. As per the blog post, Brave’s private ads and payment platform, Brave Rewards, is available on iPhones and iPads. It’s safe to say that they just completed a milestone in broadening access to millions of users and stepping up their game in the competition with other browsers.

On the Brave 1.0 Reviewer’s Guide, it’s possible to find a comparison of browsers. 

Brendan Eich, co-founder and CEO of Brave Software, talked about how today’s “internet is broken,” and highlighted the harsh advertisement environment. He said: 

“Surveillance capitalism has plagued the Web for far too long, and we’ve reached a critical inflection point where privacy-by-default is no longer a nice-to-have, but a must-have. Users, advertisers, and publishers have finally had enough, and Brave is the answer. Brave 1.0 is the browser reimagined, transforming the Web to put users first with a private, browser-based ads and payment platform.”

Brave’s trajectory

One month ago, Brave reached the eight million monthly users mark, an impressive mark for the company. Today, Brave has nearly 9 million monthly active global users worldwide. The numbers suggest that the privacy-centric crypto-incentivized advertising model for an online browser is gaining traction. 

That trend is illustrated by the rise of verified publishers listed on the Brave’s platform. Their verified publishing scheme allows consumers to tip content creators in BAT. The list of content creators has been growing steadily since January, and as of today, counts with 325,247 publishers. 

Among the verified websites, there are names such as The Washington Post, Wikipedia and the guardian. The number of Youtube publishers increased 1000 percent since January, while Twitter saw content creators rise 1,590 percent in just five months. 

The Transparency Initiative

At the same time that Brave reached the eight million mark, they launched the Transparency page, where they showcase Brave rewards statistics and token activity. The page includes the growth of verified creators and the recent BAT purchases. 

A successful year for Brave

Brave’s popularity can be perceived through the rise of BAT, from a low of $0.15 in September to a high of $0.27. A technical analysis by Cryptoslate predicts a bullish impulse for the token. 

Based on this year’s success, Brave seems set to continue growing in 2020. The launch of its stable version and the recent partnership with Everipedia are expected to open doors. The next months will tell us if the BAT token keeps up with the browser’s growth.