Many people are confused when they see the laboratory interface fee of a certain DEX protocol. In fact, this thing is just a software service fee — covering the revenue sharing from trading applications developed by the protocol team, official website, wallet products, and third-party API integrations.

How exactly is it calculated? Suppose you add liquidity directly on the official website; the basic LP fee is 0.3%, plus the laboratory interface fee of 0.15%, making the total fee 0.45%. But here’s a detail — if you enter through a third-party aggregator, this software fee is waived.

Why charge this fee now? In the early days, protocols were completely free, but maintaining the system, recruiting R&D teams, and operating network infrastructure all cost money. Although the treasury has funds reserved, which theoretically belong to all token holders, the amount allocated to the official team is always limited, and VC funding cannot support long-term operations. So, the team can only sustain itself by generating revenue.

From another perspective — the protocol provides the underlying infrastructure (land), and the official team builds application ecosystems on top and profits from them (land appreciation and monetization). The relationship between the two is a complementary one.