Last updated on February 4th, 2018 at 08:10 am
There is an interesting movement happening within the technology industry that has many of its big players—Google, Microsoft, and IBM—abuzz and excited for the future. It is also being touted as the next step for the Internet of Things.
Learn more about why the Net is all hyped for blockchain.
What is blockchain and why is it so important?
Essentially, the theory behind blockchain is being able to securely transfer any sort of asset across the Internet without the use of a third party that needs to be “trusted.” To put it in simpler terms, the most common and only type of widely used blockchain is Bitcoin. Digital currency that is transferred from one person to another anonymously without having to deal with the banks is what blockchains are utilized for the most and may just lead the way for future implementation that could revolutionize business.
The why of its importance relies mostly on what companies want to do with this type of technology in the future. There is awareness around blockchain and its many uses. IBM has even announced their own version based on blockchain called ADEPT that will aid in the Internet of Things movement and have even partnered with Samsung for this project.
How does blockchain really affect business?
The real world effects of blockchain are there and are being built right now and the biggest vision that is being seen by IBM and Samsung is the product life cycle. A smart product, such as a smart fridge, can have the ADEPT technology included and the entire “life” of that fridge can be archived and monitored through the blockchain. That means right from when its manufactured to being bought and used by the customer. Scuh information the blockchain logs and passes along can then be stored in a type of “community” of other similar data from other smart fridges.
Where does this fit for B2B? Record keeping for larger databases of transactions, receivables, and other deliverables that cannot be altered or changed in some way because of the baked-in security. One way to think of it is a traditional ledger used in accounting and how several people can add information to the ledger but once it has been recorded, it is considered official and has a trail. Payments, tokens, and other types of payments or promotions that businesses use are recorded and don’t need the interference from a trusted third party such as a bank.
There are near endless ways that a blockchain can be added to an enterprise and tweaking the process that has been working for the last few years. However, most blockchain evangelists and experts see the most potential being in the financial industry as seen with Bitcoin.
Are there businesses using blockchain currently?
Since this is still very new territory for even the developers behind blockchain technology, there are only a handful of businesses just beginning to harness the potential behind it. As mentioned earlier in the article, IBM and Samsung are already working on ADEPT that is based on the blockchain technology.
However, Google and other major technology companies definitely have an eye on the innovation and may already have their own projects in the pipeline. It is also good to note that almost all of the Bitcoin businesses that are currently running more than likely use the blockchain technology since it is the foundation of Bitcoin already, such as Bitcoin ATMs, storage websites, and other types of places.
It is still wise to keep an eye on the future of blockchain, especially with contenders like IBM and Samsung creating their own technology.
