Good Day Steemit Crypto Academy!

Today, we are discussing a topic for the homework task posted by @besticofinder. We are going to talk about Cloud Mining, the platforms offering it, and its advantages + disadvantages. Read on!

_{Cloud Mining Graphics. Edited from CoinFunda.}

Cloud mining is a service that allows users to purchase mining power (hash) for hardware/equipment from platforms by crypto mining companies. When people purchase hash, they go into a contract for a fixed time period. The users will then get a percentage of the mining company's profits depending on how much power they have purchased.

There are a range of companies providing this service that caters to both bitcoin mining and other altcoins cryptocurrency mining.

This is a risky investment to go in, because there are a lot of scam companies that appeared, so doing research for cloud mining is not really an easy task. We will provide some companies in this article, so be sure to read about them!

As I said above, there are many websites that are offering cloud mining services so I have only picked a few of them. Those who are reliable, trusted, and are well-known players of this market. Here's my list:

• Genesis Cloud Mining https://www.genesis-mining.com/

_{Genesis Cloud Mining Logo | Source.}

• Hash Nest https://www.hashnest.com/

_{Hash Nest Logo | Source.}

• Hash Gains https://www.hashgains.com/

_{Hash Gains Logo | Source.}

• ECOS Mining https://mining.ecos.am/

_{ECOS Mining Logo | Source.}

• IQ Mining https://iqmining.com

_{IQ Mining Logo | Source.}

Be sure to check the websites that I have linked above for each of those cloud mining services, and always do proper due diligence and research these companies properly. Make sure that you already have proper understanding of the process and their contract before ever purchasing power from them. Next up, the advantages and disadvantages of using cloud mining:

Now, let’s take a look at the following advantages that can be associated with cloud mining:

• You do not own the mining equipment. Which means that you will not encounter the noise and heat of the equipment used to do this service. You will also not have additional utility billed for your electricy.
• No hardware maintenance. Since you do not own the equipment, the burden of checking that everything works properly or even selling hardware when you will not use it anymore is not going to be on you.
• Plug and play. Simply sign up and purchase a contract and you are all set.
• Profitability. These cloud mining companies will make sure that they earn so their setup has been optimized for higher returns.

Now, here are some of the disadvantages that you may encounter with cloud mining:

• Mining operations cost are oftentimes included in the contract that you purchase.
• Unpredictable. The risk with cloud mining is that not everytime everything is going to be profitable, it really depends on the market prices of the coin that you are mining.
• Possibility of scams. As mentioned above, some companies that offer these services are just plain scams, so remember to be doubtful and do proper research!

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This is the article's end. Keep in mind that anything that requires investments has risks. With cloud mining, returns may not be guaranteed and are as volatile as the cryptocurrencies you're mining. Mining difficulty is also another factor. Investing in cloud mining can be a good one for mid to long term gains especially if you will hold onto your coins and expect that the future markets will be bullish. If you're going to start investing in cloud mining, I wish you the best of luck and may the crypto god be ever in your favor!

Thanks for reading!

Source: Some images used were made in Photoshop or gotten from Internet Sources: . Information listed here have been gathered from multiple/different sources, like . Thanking and tagging Professor @besticofinder, @steemitblog, @steemcurator01, & @steemcurator02.