Oyster Pearl (PRL) Protocol Overview

Storage User:

A user that spends Oyster Pearls to upload a file
Responsibilities
• Pay the correct amount of Oyster Pearls to two Broker Nodes.
• Despite automation, has final discretion in choosing which two Broker Nodes to use.
• Encrypt and split file locally in browser before sending parts to chosen Broker Nodes.
• Verify the integrity of the Data Map installed by Broker Nodes.
• Share Broker Node contracts via the Distributed Reputation System.
• Securely store the Oyster Handle to retrieve the file from the Tangle at a later time.
Reward
• Their file is securely, reliably, and anonymously stored.

Broker Node:

A network device with access to the Tangle and Blockchain
Responsibilities
• Maintain connectivity to the Tangle via mutual neighboring Nodes.
• Provide Web Nodes and Storage Users with access to the Tangle.
• Perform Proof of Work for new file uploads where applicable.
• Submit the Storage User's Pearls to a buried state in the Oyster Contract.
• Unlock discovered treasure if it's Proof of Work was performed.
• Maintain a positive balance of ETH to unlock discovered treasure.
• Build a reputation score on the Distributed Reputation System.
• Broker peer-to-peer connection initiations between Web Nodes.
• Send new Treasure Maps to Web Nodes that perform Proof of Work.
Reward
• Earn Oyster Pearls by collecting leftovers from newly buried treasure.
• Earn Oyster Pearls by collecting fees from newly discovered treasure.
• Pass on Proof of Work burden to Web Nodes where applicable.

Web Node:

A web browser that is visiting a web site
Responsibilities
• Search through Treasure Maps via Proof of Work to discover embedded Oyster Pearls.
• Submit discovered Treasure to a Broker Node for claiming on behalf of the corresponding Website Owner.
• Perform Proof of Work for Broker Nodes to get Web Node identities and new Treasure Maps.
• Perform Proof of Work for Web Nodes to get Web Node identities and old Treasure Maps.

Website Owner:

An organization or individual that runs a website
Responsibilities
• Provide content/goods/services to Web Nodes.
• Add the Oyster Protocol script to their website HTML.
Reward
• Get paid in Oyster Pearls that have been discovered by Web Nodes.

IOTA Tangle:

A distributed ledger known as a Directed Acyclic Graph
Responsibilities
• Retain data for which the Proof of Work has been performed.
• Geographically distribute redundant copies of data.
• Load balance storage burden, such as with Swarm Intelligence.
Reward
• Network experiences increased resistance against attack vectors.
• Faster average confirmation time for transactions.

Ethereum Blockchain:

A distributed ledger with Smart Contract capabilities
Responsibilities
• Provide Smart Contract Framework that produces the properties inherit in Oyster Pearls (as tokens).
Reward
• Blockchain miners receive fees paid in ETH from the Broker Nodes.