This is a topic I've thought about for many months, and with increasing restrictions on current Internet usage, it is becoming more relevant. The thought was triggered by a personal project by @JackG and I'd be interested to know how he got on with it. He was attempting to find a new block using a pencil and paper. Obviously this was just done to improve his understanding of Bitcoin, and not in the expectation of making any gains. I suspect that submitting a new block via the postal services may not be the most efficient way to claim a reward. However, it is my understanding that the essential mechanism of Bitcoin is not based on the Internet. The Internet is just used as a convenient method of communication between nodes and miners. The mining is done on local machines, and the blockchain is also stored on thousand of local machines. The Internet is just a fast and convenient way to communicate between nodes. I did look at LoRa to see if there were possibilities there in the even of an Internet outage, but it is too local and slow.. Satellite services may provide a better alternative. However if those were to be used in parallel with the existing Internet, then nodes would need to monitor two channels to keep the blockchain synchronised.
Do you guys think that this will be a viable option in the future, or will governments refuse to allow it to happen?
It's true that Bitcoin currently uses the internet as the primary means of communication between nodes, but technically, we can see that Bitcoin isn't solely dependent on the internet. Its underlying mechanisms are Proof of Work, consensus, and blockchain storage, all of which are distributed across thousands of nodes worldwide. This means that Bitcoin can operate on any communication layer as long as the protocol can deliver transactions and blocks between nodes.
Here are some technical perspectives that I believe support this:
- Independence from a Single Infrastructure
Bitcoin itself only requires a communication network; it doesn't have to use the current public internet. It can be via radio, LoRa, satellite, mesh network, or even offline (sneakernet) connections. Experiments with Blockstream Satellite have already been conducted, allowing nodes to receive blockchain data without a conventional internet connection. You can read it here:https://www.wired.com/story/cypherpunks-bitcoin-ham-radio/?utm_ - How to Deal with a Parallel Internet or "Splinternet"
If China, Russia, or another bloc of countries were to develop a separate Internet, Bitcoin would still be able to adapt. Due to its open protocol, nodes can operate on multiple networks simultaneously. This dual use (global Internet + alternative networks) could further strengthen Bitcoin's resilience. - Decentralization as a Key Strength
The threat of government control over the parallel network does exist, but I believe that technically, Bitcoin nodes can still maintain global consensus. As long as these nodes continue to communicate across networks (gateways between systems), the blockchain cannot be "monopolized" by a single party. - Extreme Restriction Scenarios
Even under national or global internet restrictions, Bitcoin can still survive longer than traditional financial systems. If the internet were to shut down completely, banking, payment systems, and government servers would also cease to exist. In fact, Bitcoin's resilient peer-to-peer nature will allow it to continue offering alternative communication options that aren't dependent on it.
So, technically, I don't think Bitcoin's future will be determined by whether we continue to use the current global internet or a parallel internet created by a superpower. Bitcoin can run on both, and is even more robust if run in parallel. While governments may try to restrict it, I don't think it will be able to stop it, as each decentralized layer of Bitcoin's communication network and implementation is agnostic to the medium used.