Oyster Pear announcement of Oyster Shell Token and what it means for the free internet

Dawn of a new era

Regardless of what you think of crypto, privacy, security, Oyster, or any coin/project on the market. This to me is a huge step forward in securing ourselves in the future, taking our privacy back and being more in control of our digital selves. I don't care who does this first, or who does it best as long as it gets done! (please give the article a read, its short and has more than what I highlight below)

The internet is constantly threatened by governing bodies worldwide concerning censorship, regulation, and spying. Internet users have resorted to calling their elected officials to try and remedy the problem, which is the last place the problem will get solved. Internet Service Providers (ISPs) are collaborators in the degradation of the connectivity that we depend on.

So what do we do about it ?

Today I am introducing Oyster Shell (SHL). Shells are used to pay for connectivity and Dapp operation across the Oyster meshnet, whilst Pearls are used for static data retention on the tangle. Shell is not pegged to storage like how Pearl is. In the future you will be able to use Shells to access the decentralized web, connectivity that entirely bypasses ISPs and centralized infrastructure.

Potential use case scenarios:

• You want to call your friend in a decentralized and secure way. The app on your phone looks for peer-to-peer connections (Bluetooth and WiFi) with other phones running Oyster nearby and a meshnet call is made, therefore bypassing the ISP. SHL is used to pay for connectivity instead of a monthly ISP bill. No third party can trace, block or listen into the phone call.
• The Oyster chat group migrates from Telegram/Slack to the Oyster chat Dapp. The Oyster team pays the Oyster network in SHL and PRL to run the group chat Dapp.
• You want to access content that is blocked by your ISP and avoid getting tracked, your computer connects directly to the Oyster meshnet by finding a peer-to-peer neighbor (Bluetooth, WiFi, LiFi). Your SHL wallet is used to fund connectivity and bandwidth usage.

This is not a silver bullet, but this is a use case and solution that I think is viable and exactly how I envisioned blockchain being used in the future .... which I guess is going to be real soon!