
Ask HN: Funding websites with CPU-based cryptocurrency mining? - mirimir
Reading reports about Pirate Bay and Showtime &quot;forcing visitors to mine cryptocurrency for them&quot;,[0] I was initially shocked. But upon reflection, I believe that CPU-based cryptocurrency mining could be a viable alternative to tracking and ads for website funding.<p>From a privacy perspective, CPU load is clearly better than tracking. From a usability perspective, sluggishness from CPU load is arguably better than distraction from ads. There would also be less network load, which would especially benefit low-bandwidth users. And by the way, this would not involve persistent malware, and mining would end when users left websites.<p>Many have proposed micropayments as an alternative funding source for websites. I&#x27;ve often suggested cryptocurrency-based micropayments, with provisions for anonymity. With CPU-based mining, there&#x27;s no added privacy loss. And it&#x27;s a lot simpler, in that users don&#x27;t need to buy tokens, manage accounts, etc.<p>It&#x27;d also be better from an equity perspective, I think. Even if micropayments for website use were low, they&#x27;d be a greater burden on people with less money. But everyone browsing has a requisite device. However, devices with weaker CPUs would need to work harder, and requisite mining might take longer, so there is some inequity.<p>What am I missing? Could this actually be a viable alternative to ads?<p>0) https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.rt.com&#x2F;news&#x2F;404820-piratebay-showtime-cryptocurrency-mining&#x2F;
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PaulHoule
The question is: how much money can you really make that way?

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mirimir
I have no clue. But Coinhive (source of the Showtime code) seems to think that
it's worth it.[0] For Showtime, maybe someone was just going for coolness.

0) [https://coin-hive.com/](https://coin-hive.com/)

