> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.premia.blue/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.premia.blue/the-premia-protocol/governance/operator-and-facilitator-role/operational-expenditure-and-maintenance-costs.md).

# Operational Expenditure and Maintenance Costs

While it would be nice if the protocol were a cost-free automaton, there are several user-experience upgrades and protocol features that require continual expenditure & upkeep. These are the main expenses used by the Premia protocol:

* [Chainlink Network](https://chain.link/)
  * Chainlink Price Feeds for accurate Pool pricing
  * Chainlink Automation
    * Auto exercise of expired options
    * Convert protocol fees to PREMIA rewards
* [The Graph Network](https://thegraph.com/en/)
  * On-chain Data Indexing for Premia smart contract events used on the front end
    * Wallet & Protocol analytics
    * Third-party tooling
* <mark style="color:purple;">Cloud Infrastructure</mark>
  * Volatility Surface Oracle
  * Front-end APIs and RPCs
  * E2E Testing and Verification
* Contract Deployment & Servicing
* Contributor Compensation
* Traditional Business Expenses (Legal, Marketing, Recruitment, etc)
* Strategic Service Providers & Partnerships
* Misc. Compute & Infrastructure Costs

Some of these must be maintained on a per-chain basis, causing expenses to scale per additional chain supported.


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