Ethereum Push Notification Service, also known as EPNS, is the new protocol that allows decentralized applications to send push notifications to users of Ethereum applications, wallets, and purses.
Designed by an Indian startup, the new protocol It is capable of revolutionizing decentralized services that are provided through decentralized applications (dApps) On EthereumThis protocol allows dApps to easily send push notifications to cryptocurrency wallet users, significantly improving the user engagement rate within these applications and optimizing their user experience.
For his part, the founder and main developer of this protocol, Harsh Rajat, said EPNS was built on the way Web 3.0 applications operate, similar to how applications that functioned in the early days of the Internet evolved. Rajat said that rather than services waiting for users to come to them to check for notifications or new messages, it is up to the services to inform users of new notifications, as is currently the case with applications like Gmail. Thus, the goal of the Ethereum Push Notification Service protocol is to deliver push notifications as the “missing piece within the Ethereum blockchain ecosystem.”
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Blockchain, the birth of a new internet
The current development that blockchain technology has had in just 11 years surpasses the limits that were believed to be impossible to overcome. Today, this technology has applications and use cases, such as dApps, DeFi, smart contracts and more, with transformative potential for our era. However, as the founder of EPNS points out, blockchain-based digital ecosystems lack one important ingredient: Push Notifications.
Rajat says his “Eureka” moment was precisely when he realized that blockchain communication still behaved similarly to the early days of the Internet, where apps didn’t send out notifications. But now, the demands of our current era don’t allow time for us to be checking every single service or app we have available, so the need for a decentralized notification protocol is a must.
“Services or dApps expect users to flock to them. Imagine having 15 or more services, would you really be checking all of them? Or is it easier to just get notified about them in a platform-agnostic way (mobile, tablet, web, or even your favorite wallets)?”
EPNS solves the problem at hand, and allows any decentralized application, DeFi protocol, smart contract, or blockchain-based service to issue and send notifications to its users independently of the platform or server being used. With this notification service, applications inform users of new messages, instead of making users frequently go back to the applications to check whether or not there are new notifications. Of course, EPNS allows each user to customize the applications and services from which they want to receive notifications.
Emulating Apple's iOS Apps
The new notification protocol seeks to emulate app notification systems like Apple’s for iOS platforms within decentralized apps and other blockchain-based digital services. EPNS will feature data protection systems, spam protection systems, and more, and will give the user complete control over the notifications they wish to receive.
“The protocol allows users to have direct control over the services from which they receive notifications and imposes rules on the services, including spam protection for users.”
Finally, Rajat indicates that the EPNS protocol will provide incentives to Ethereum wallet users who use this protocol, in the same way that Chromium's Brave does for displaying ads within the platform. With EPNS, the development and adoption of dApps, smart contracts and other decentralized services within crypto communities can be promoted.
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