I agree that the number of active nodes needs to be increased on Peerplays. Currently there are 11 - 12 nodes operating as what we class as credible trusted witnesses and another 7 running Peerplays Bitcoin Sidechain nodes.
For the Hive-SPK-SONs sidechain 15 nodes each will be required. It can run with a smaller number such as 7 if we decides to operate with fewer nodes. The more nodes plus backup nodes the better the scenario is for decentralization and resilience.
Ideally the number of witness nodes should be increased. We hope that as the project grows and interest gathers, with the community's support and input, alongside the Bitcoin and HIVE sidechains there will be more participation from operators.
It is technically very easy to run the Peerplays node & the hardware requirements are very nominal. Its also possible to run the nodes along side Hive or Bitcoin Sidechain nodes too. The size of the chain is around 16 GB at this point and assuming one is using docker or a pre-built binary, the cost to operate a node will be only around 20-25 USD per month. The technology to operate this node system is built and in place, now it needs the people to get involved to further decentralise. We see this as a great opportunity therefore for Hive and Peerplays community collaboration to build something the sum of which is greater than its individual parts
Threespeak will also run initiatives to help incentivize further decentralization of Peerplays, should this be necessary and as the time comes. Additionally, it may be that the SPK Network itself also distributes some of its rewards to users running Peerplays nodes in order to further decentralize that eco system. This has not been decided yet, and will be incorporated should further decentralization of Peerplays be required at the time