At first, the residents did what they had long been waiting for the government and major service providers to do. They built their own communications network, connected their homes, and trained local specialists. In places where there had previously been no reliable internet access, a functioning infrastructure emerged—one that was their own, easy to understand, and managed locally.
Now the network has users, technicians, and a waiting list for new connections. But along with this success came the following question: How can we pay people for their work, maintain what we’ve built, and continue to grow if the small payments from families aren’t enough and grants can’t last forever?
Когда сеть уже построена, начинается новая задача
In the first phase, the main goal was to establish connectivity. To do this, we had to negotiate, secure funding, install equipment, lay lines, learn how to maintain the network, and assist users.
Thus, the neighbors ceased to be mere consumers of someone else’s service. They became the builders, organizers, and experts of their own communication system. Instead of waiting for an outside solution, the community created one on its own.
But a functioning network requires constant attention. Someone has to monitor its condition, connect new homes, troubleshoot problems, and maintain public access points. This work cannot be done for free indefinitely.
The most obvious source of funding is the monthly subscription fee. Families use the Internet and pay what they can each month. Organizations may pay more. Separate fees can be charged for installation and other services provided by local technicians. At the same time, some access remains public—for example, in places used by all residents.
This model is intuitive. It directly links the service to payment: those who are connected contribute to the maintenance of the network.
The problem arises when local users’ resources aren’t sufficient to handle all the tasks. It’s difficult to raise rates: the network was created precisely to make communication accessible. But we also don’t want to cut back on service or postpone expansion. So the community once again begins looking for grants, donations, or a government program.
This creates a strange situation. The infrastructure belongs to the people, the experts are right there, and there is demand—but the network’s future still depends either on families’ limited incomes or on the decision of an outside sponsor.
Привычная карта источников средств неполна
A network is usually viewed first and foremost as a way to provide Internet access to a specific subscriber. Take a home, a school, or a small organization, for example. They connect to the network, gain access, and pay for it.
In this scenario, the network's primary value lies in the number of users. The more users there are and the higher their payments, the more funds are generated to cover operating costs.
But the community has more than just a subscriber list. It already has a physical infrastructure in place: lines, connection points, coverage in a specific area, and available capacity. All of this was created through a collective effort and is already serving a useful purpose.
And here we can ask another question.
Не только: сколько жители могут платить за интернет?
Но и: какую дополнительную полезную работу способна выполнять сама сеть — и кому за пределами сообщества может быть нужен этот ресурс?
This shift in perspective opens up a new opportunity.
Платить могут не только соседи
Let's think of the network not only as a local service, but also as part of a broader communications infrastructure.
In various locations, there are physical resources owned by different people and communities. Each of these operates independently within a limited area. However, if such resources are brought together into a single decentralized system, they can complement one another and work together to accomplish a larger task.
The local community can contribute to such a system by providing what it already has: lines, coverage, connection points, and available capacity. The broader network gains a valuable physical resource, and the owners of those resources receive compensation for the work they perform.
Это и есть ключевой поворот: поступления могут появляться не только тогда, когда сосед покупает доступ в интернет. Сама принадлежащая жителям инфраструктура способна предоставлять полезный ресурс более широкой сети.
The community doesn't have to start from scratch or become an external operator. The main work has already been done. The network is in place, people have been trained, the infrastructure is operational, and it serves the public good.
Now this same asset can be viewed in a broader context: not simply as an expense item that needs to be maintained, but as a collective resource capable of contributing to the overall communications economy.
Общественная польза и новые поступления не противоречат друг другу
The community network has one important feature: it wasn't created solely for financial gain. Its purpose is to connect people, maintain service availability, ensure the community's self-sufficiency, and create local jobs.
This new opportunity does not require us to give up on these goals.
If the infrastructure continues to be owned by the residents, then the revenue it generates can remain within the community. This revenue can be used to pay local professionals, maintain the network, and connect new users.
At the same time, traditional sources of revenue aren’t going anywhere. Family plans, business connections, paid technical services, and public access can all remain in place. It’s just that another source of revenue is emerging alongside them—revenue generated by the infrastructure itself through its useful operations.
This changes the community's situation. Previously, the options were limited: raise fees, slow down development, or seek outside funding again. Now, the range of possibilities is expanding.
An existing network can be more than just a means of delivering services to residents. It can become a productive asset that is part of a larger system and helps sustain itself.
От потребителей связи — к владельцам полезного ресурса
Major providers have conditioned us to see things in simple terms: the company owns the infrastructure, and people buy access. Even when the network is built by the community itself, the habit of viewing it solely as a service provider often persists.
A decentralized infrastructure economy offers a different role. People and communities can not only use the network but also contribute their own physical resources to the collective effort.
In this scenario, the local network ceases to be an isolated island. It remains under collective control and continues to serve residents, but at the same time becomes part of a broader network of interactions.
This is a particularly natural next step for those who have already proven that they are capable of building and maintaining infrastructure on their own. There’s no need to convince people all over again of the value of connectivity. There’s no need to search for a purpose for the existing equipment. All that’s needed is to see the network that has been created for what it already is: a useful resource that belongs to the community.
And then the main question changes. It’s no longer “How else can we ask residents to pay for the network?” but “What broader initiatives can our network be a part of?”
Следующая дверь уже открыта
Behind this idea lies an entire world in which owners of physical infrastructure pool their resources into decentralized networks and are rewarded for their useful work.
For a first look, one insight is enough: a community network can sustain itself not only through payments from neighbors and temporary external assistance. Its lines, coverage, and available capacity can themselves contribute to a broader communications system.
This does not negate the very purpose for which the network was created. On the contrary, this perspective helps preserve what matters most: local control, jobs for local professionals, public access, and the opportunity for continued development.
Когда в уже построенной инфраструктуре становится виден не только способ подключить дом к интернету, но и коллективный производящий ресурс, следующий шаг возникает сам собой — посмотреть, как устроена эта новая инфраструктурная экономика. Именно с этого начинается GUIDE to DePIN WORLD.
Если у сообщества вместе со связью уже есть компьютеры или серверное оборудование, его экономику можно отдельно проверить в калькуляторе доходности DePIN-сервера.
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