Another idea I had recently while talking with a gentleman at a Christmas party, was to develop a compression-testing network for OTT (over-the-top) content delivery.
The companies themselves run testing through GPUs... they have to put the content on a central distribution node, then compress that into smaller packets, and deliver those packets. Maybe BOINC can help "perfect" this compression+delivery technology.
Anyone paying attention to the Net Neutrality fiasco, by now knows that the whole thing is just so the cable companies can broadcast their unwanted material through a portion of our (the end user) apportioned bandwidth.
Since money runs everything... this seems an inevitability, and nerds like us can't help but ease the brunt of it all. :D