Published on: 2015-07-31T14:29:14+00:00
The message posted on the Bitcoin-dev mailing list highlights the concept of a "fee market" in Bitcoin. Unlike a binary option, this fee market exists in varying degrees over time. Currently, the fee per transaction in Bitcoin constitutes less than 0.5% of the rewards paid for mining a full block. This low fee percentage serves the purpose of driving the widespread and cost-effective use of Bitcoin, aiming to solidify its network effects for all users.To emphasize the importance of fees in maintaining network decentralization, an analogy was drawn with email adoption. The hypothetical scenario presented questioned how many people would have embraced email if there had been a per-message fee and hourly sending limits, with only the highest-fee messages being delivered. The analogy suggests that fees are necessary for ensuring the decentralized nature of the Bitcoin network, while avoiding fees would accelerate centralization.It is important to note that miners do not currently rely on fees as their primary source of income. In fact, they will not need to be paid by fees for many decades to come. Therefore, requesting miners to include transactions for free is not equivalent to asking them to give away money. The focus on driving Bitcoin usage without significant fees aims to pave the way for long-term growth and adoption, ultimately benefiting the entire Bitcoin ecosystem.
Updated on: 2023-08-01T14:52:06.094646+00:00