In the time since the Pre-Proposal on Node Rewards was released, there has been a great deal of discussion in our Discord and in person about exactly how to best structure the network so that it is resilient, highly functional, and serves the needs of the games that are coming to the Gala Games platform. While a great deal of calculation went into the initial proposal, we were contacted by quite a few people who said that their ability to produce content in support of the network would be negatively impacted by the structure of the pre-proposal. We decided that the best thing to do was present the full array of choices to the node network and allow YOU, the node operators, to choose how the rewards structure will work.

The one thing which is non-negotiable is that the IPFS version of the nodes is going to be required for the future growth of the network. This means that the nodes will have somewhat higher requirements but can still easily be operated on a home computer without special hardware requirements beyond what a basic computer would have.

There are essentially four different levers on which node operators will be able to vote:

Question: If every six hours results in one point in the daily distribution, how much should each subsequent six hours of stable connectivity be worth?

• 0 points — You get nothing extra for providing more services (Maximum points in any 24 period for one node: 1 point)
• .5 points — You get something, but not as much as you received for the initial six hours of uptime (Maximum points in any 24 period for one node: 2.5 points)
• 1 point — Six hours is six hours and a node operator should be rewarded for each six hours they are supporting the network. (Maximum points in any 24 period for one node: 4 points)
• 1.5 points — Node operators should be incentivized to continue providing stable connections beyond the initial minimum. (Maximum points in any 24 period for one node: 5.5 points)

Question: How much of a one-time referral bonus do you believe is fair for referring a node purchaser to the Gala Node Ecosystem?

• 0 points — You get nothing extra for referring a new node operator
• 5 points — You get something, but less than the current structure
• 10 points — You receive a bonus in points which is similar to the current structure
• 15 points — You believe that one-time referrals are essential to growing the ecosystem

Question: How much of an ongoing referral bonus do you believe is fair for referring a node purchaser to the Gala Node Ecosystem?

(Note: these figures are expressed as a % of the rewards received by a node operator)

• 0% — You get nothing extra for referring a new node operator
• 5% — You get something, but less than the current structure
• 10% — You receive a bonus in points which is similar to the current structure
• 15% — You believe that ongoing referral bonuses are essential to growing the ecosystem

Question: If the node operators elect to continue the long-term ongoing referral bonuses, how many levels deep should this bonus extend?

• 1 level (Less than they extend currently — to direct referrals only)
• 2 levels (The same distance as they currently extend — to referrals of referrals)
• 3 levels (One more level than they currently extend — to referrals of referrals of referrals)

There may be several more options, but these are the basic points node operators will be able to vote on. These options are currently being explored by our statistics and economics teams. Prior to a vote, a more in-depth post will be shared with the community showing these findings and sharing some backtracked analytics to see what the network would look like with these various settings in play. We will also actively engage with the community to learn their thoughts on the broader issues, hosting several AMAs and panels of community members to discuss these options. Stay tuned for a lot more news, debate, and discussion on these points!