Using decentralized eSIMs, travelers and digital nomads can easily access global mobile networks and the Internet without having to use traditional carriers or pay expensive roaming charges.
Boundless, the latest entry in the growing decentralized physical infrastructure network (DePIN) sector, will launch its app for internal testing later this week and is targeting mid-November for an official launch. The Boundless service provides internet access, is private and does not require KYC to purchase, according to Isaac Rodgin, Head of Business Development at Liquify, a blockchain infrastructure provider that manages validator nodes and supports blockchain projects.
Boundless is launched in partnership with Dent, developers of the Dentnet blockchain.
“Every time I fly to another country, I have to buy eight eSIMS,” Rodgin said, claiming Boundless will solve that problem.
“It’s not a blockchain infrastructure play, and it’s not the 5G marketplace,” he added. “It is this new product that is a comfortable front end for purchasing 5G data. We offered to take away all the complexity and just give a Web2 user interface to connect to complicated things.”
Rodgin said Boundless’s main selling point is privacy. “The privacy benefit, because of decentralization, is the obfuscation of data,” says Rodgin. “Your data is sent to an aggregated pool, and basically obfuscated and not linked to your account.”
Of course, this anonymity is only as secure as the user’s websites and activities. “If you do malicious things, you can be caught and tracked, and you should be,” he said.
Competitors building decentralized telecommunications technology include Bloxsim, Helium, DCConnect Global and Roam. E-commerce website BitRefill offers eSIM cards that customers can purchase with Google Pay, Apple Pay, credit cards, and a growing list of cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, USDT, and Dogecoin.
According to Rodgin, when the Boundless service fully launches next month, 5G data plans can be purchased with a credit card, Bitcoin, Ethereum, USDC or DentX, the native token of the Dentnet blockchain. While pricing hasn’t been announced yet, Rodgin acknowledged that a Boundless plan could be expensive and is aimed at people who aren’t afraid to pay a bit more for privacy.
“Price is not where we outcompete people,” he said. “If someone is just trying to save a few cents, we may not be the best solution. And that’s okay too. It is really aimed at people who want pseudonymity and crypto payments.”
