IBM Puts Forward 5 Principles For Transparent Commercialisation Of Blockchain

By Rishma Banerjee

IBM has been actively working behind the commercialization of blockchain technology through its enterprise-grade version of Hyperledger Fabric, known as IBM Blockchain.

Recently, in a blog post, IBM elaborated on a set of 5 “blockchain for good principles” which points out how transparent and trustworthy blockchain enterprises can benefit organizations and society as a whole.

The principles put forward are:

1. Open is better

Blockchain networks should welcome all communities of open source contributors in order to promote innovation and ensure a better quality of coding.

“Open is always better when it comes to the cloud, artificial intelligence or the Internet of Things, but it has especially interesting implications when looked at from a blockchain context.” said Jerry Cuomo, Vice President of IBM Blockchain, as reported by Forbes.

2. Permissioned doesn’t mean private

Cuomo explained that permissoned networks are equally as important as privacy in order to develop a higher trust and confidentiality among members. A permissioned network ensures that the blockchain is not being utilised for illegal activity- a sharp contrast against anonymous blockchains like Bitcoin and Ethereum.

3. Governance is a team sport

IBM also believes that blockchains should accept universal and transparent governance so that networks may serve the needs of all participants and are managed according to their specific purposes.

“Governance means rules. These rules will define who the elected officials are, who is responsible for what roles and obligations, etc. Governance is mandatory in a blockchain network,” said Cuomo.

4. Common standards are common sense

IBM understands the need for blockchains to be constructed according to a common set of standards that are interoperable to accommodate innovators and help secure networks. Today, most blockchains are functioning independently but technology is evolving to support a network of networks.

IBM believes, to implement this interoperability, blockchains and their data models should be made visible to one another through a registry.

5. Privacy is paramount

Finally, IBM thinks that an enterprise blockchain should be able to control who can access data and under what circumstances. Blockchain networks must also abide by privacy regulations such as GDPR.