A Solution

PeerStorage is aimed at service developers.

It takes the form of a library of functions to include in applications. When a user opens an application built on PeerStorage, their device becomes a node of the network and serves its peers.

The library will be implemented in JavaScript so that it can run in the browser when the service is used as a website, and as a native library on the main mobile platforms when the service is delivered as a native app.

User consent will be required — for example when accepting the terms of access to the service — through a clause such as: “You agree to share a fraction of your device’s bandwidth and storage space in order to access the service.” That clause stands in contrast to the usual one: “You transfer all rights to your data to the service.”

Apart from that clause, the fact that a service uses PeerStorage should remain transparent to the user: they will never have anything extra to install on their device.

The PeerStorage name and logo may serve (under conditions still to be defined) as a label for services that use it — a signal to users that the service is trustworthy.

The business model of PeerStorage-based services will no longer be able to include exploiting users’ data.