There are 100 validators in IrisNet, and they work as the maintaining pillars of the irisnet.irisnet security is the responsibility of these 100 validators.
there are 4 validators that charge 0% commission fee to operate validator node. Each of them might have different reasons for charging 0% commission fee, but this can be a negative factor in making irisnet a healthy network.
Irisnet is designed so that each validator is incentivized for the cost they spent in infrastructure, salary and other possible costs,Each validator has different cost structure based on their size and node architecture. But what we can all agree on is that every validator is paying a certain “cost”. Also, most validator are expecting to pay for these costs by the revenue generated by node operation.
Therefore, TomShi suggests that we should have a discuss that should we limit validators from 0% commision fee.
1. Weakening of IrisNet fue to weakning of validartor node’s financial health.
if profit is not guaranteed by validator node operation, continuous maintenance and investment on infrastructure and employees becomes impossible, causing validator node to become less reliable. When validator node is not healthy, security of Irisnet becomes vulnearable, and long-term sustainability of network will also become impossible
2. Centralization to large validators who hold their own stakes.
Of course if a validator holds large amount of stakes on their own can earn operation costs just by inflation on their own stakes. But, if owning large amount of self-bonded Atom becomes a requirement for sustainable validator business, it will limit the opportunity for validators to participate in IRIS Network and the network will centralize towards validators who hold large self-bonded stakes. This clearly goes against the idea of “decentralization” which blockchain promotes.
3. The wrong idea about choosing the right validator intensifies.
“Price” is an important factor for customers to choose a service they would spend money for. But “Price” becoming the only factor of decision is unhealthy for the market. 0% commission fee is an attractive feature for delegators. But, if delegators are constantly exposed to low commission fee, it would prevent delegators from choosing the validators who are actually actively making the network stronger. What delegators really need is not a cheap validator, but a healthy validator.
Concerns on limiting 0% commission fee
I only suggesting to limit 0% commission fee, not suggesting to agree on minimum fee. If Iris price goes up to $10k, 0.1% commission fee wuld be enough for node opeartion. But, 0% commission fee, regardless of Iris price, only means no profit. Thus, 0% commission fee should not be allowed.