Alternative L1 networks are already generating less fees than Ethereum's L2 networks like Optmism or Arbitrum. As the service suggests, Optimism currently generates more than $340,000 in fees, while Arbitrum reaches almost $100,000.
The throughput of Optimism allows for making cheaper Ethereum transactions thanks to the optimistic rollups technology that offers improved scalability as they do not do any computations. After a transaction on the network is made, rollups propose a new state to mainnet, which approves the transaction.
Additionally, Optimistic rollups are written in the main Ethereum chain as calldata, which optimizes them further and reduces the cost of transactions.
Issues with Ethereum's scalability still exist on the market despite one of the lowest fees the network saw in a long time. During network congestion, users had to pay hundreds of dollars for a transaction and even more for more complicated operations like NFT minting.
Optimism and other Layer 2 networks got their 15 minutes of fame during the NFT craze back in Summer 2021. For users who were not willing to invest in an NFT collection or mint any other tokens, L2s became the only way to make day-to-day transactions without paying humongous fees.
The spike in revenue already beats alternative networks like Cardano and Solana, which shifted toward creating their own ecosystems rather than becoming "cheap Ethereum" alternatives.
Previously, Vitalik Buterin stated he sees no future in "layering" as a solution to scalability issues, as it creates additional loops for users and even pushes some of them away from using Ethereum or other networks.
For example, Cardano, Fantom and NEAR together do not make Optimism's revenues, suggesting significantly lower usage and less profitability for miners or stakers.