11h August, Chengdu, China,  BlockCDN, the distributed content delivery network has announced its crowd sale scheduled for August 30th. The blockchain-based service aims to allow ordinary web users to speed up their internet connection through its global marketplace for unused bandwidth.

In the years since the Global Financial Crisis, the rise of the Sharing Economy or Collaborative Economy has become well established. Now BlockCDN plan to harness the peer-to-peer nature of blockchain to enable a sharing economy to grow from users excess bandwidth. Ordinary people can connect directly with one another through the BlockCDN marketplace, and start earning revenue from their idle devices. Individuals and businesses seeking faster internet download speeds can use BlockCDN to bypass the normal gatekeepers of such services and enjoy lower costs and improved access.

Traditional CDNs meet the Sharing Economy

Content delivery networks (CDNs) are networks of servers that ensure webpages are delivered reliably to end users. The requirements placed on the distributed network of servers depends on the location of both user and webpage, as well as its content. The bandwidth required will fluctuate according to traffic volumes, requiring the CDN to adapt according to minute-to-minute demand.

This is the space that BlockCDN is seeking to disrupt by merging the Sharing Economy with distributed content delivery.

The Uber of content delivery networks

BlockCDN will allow web users all over the world to use their idle web-connected devices as caching nodes, providing data uploading services to other users in their geographic proximity in return for a small fee. Almost any device can be used, from PCs, smartphones and tablets to routers and TV boxes. These provide valuable unused bandwidth without the user having to make any further investment. Website and end user are connected via a transparent blockchain smart contract.

Like many other instances of the Sharing Economy, this approach has significant advantages over traditional, centralised systems. Dealing direct means there are no middlemen to impose high fees, and the free market ensures efficient price discovery. As a result, users are paid for bandwidth from their unused devices without needing any specialist hardware, whilst web publishers are likely to enjoy savings of up to 90% compared with traditional CDNs – with faster and more reliable access too.

400 million BCDN tokens will go on sale with Early bird bonus of 15% available on 15th and 16th August. A further 8% bonus will be available on 23rd – 24th August. The main token sale will open on 30th Aug for one month. For more information, or to receive updates on the token sale visit
http://www.blockcdn.org/index_en.html