Cover for The Content Layer

The Content Layer

A Constitutional Upgrade to the Browser Start Page

Browsers are the world's most universal software, yet their first mile remains blank. The Content Layer proposes a constitutional upgrade: replacing the empty browser start page with user-chosen premium dashboards like Netflix, Xbox, Disney, Civics and routing a small, ring-fenced revenue skim into a Defense Fund for the Open Web. The model converts wasted real estate into a recurring civic dividend, establishing predictable funding for digital infrastructure while preserving market competition and user choice.

GovernanceDigital InfrastructurePublic Utility DesignCivic Technology
Published: October 13, 2025
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The Approach

Scott Jellen is an independent researcher working at the intersection of protocol design, rights modeling, and interoperability across digital and public systems. His work includes standards-oriented drafts, reference models, and whitepapers that explore how incentives, governance, and infrastructure can be represented clearly. He is currently establishing the Jellen Protocol Lab as a future home for this work. Flagship research includes the Universal Sports Graph (USG), spanning RFC-style specifications and an early reference registry.

© 2026 Scott Jellen. Licensing varies by publication.