Category "Events"

Another Turkish football club is capitalizing on blockchain
Blockchain, Events
12/09/2020
58

Another Turkish football club is capitalizing on blockchain madness

Turkish football club Trabzonspor is the latest team to issue their own fan tokens using the Blockchain voting and rewards app, Socios.com, which will be available via the Chiliz exchange.

According to the announcement, $TRA token holders will be able to vote in various polls and earn rewards for their engagement with the football club. Rewards could include VIP stadium attendee status, and even the ability to meet with players once the COVID-19 pandemic has passed.

Socios’ app will also enable users to compete to become the #1 fan in their region or country.

Sinan Zengin, general manager at Trabzonsport, commented:

“This situation is really exciting. This collaboration will allow us to implement developments, marketing opportunities, and other innovations in the digital world. I am sure that our fans will make the slogan ‘Everywhere is Trabzon For Us’ even more meaningful with their interest in the $TRA Fan Token Offering, which we will start next month.”

Back in July, Socios.com secured a major regulatory license allowing it to issue its own payments and loyalty card.

Source: https://cointelegraph.com/news/another-turkish-football-club-is-capitalizing-on-blockchain-madness

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(KFC) Implements Blockchain To Track Media Buying
Bitcoin, Blockchain, Events
15/06/2020
58

Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) Implements Blockchain To Track Media Buying

KFC announced its status as the first quick-service restaurant (QSR) in the MENA region to implement an innovative blockchain platform for its digital advertising and media buying. Ads, the backbone of any direct to consumer business, will have greater transparency through the new blockchain-based framework that KFC will implement.

KFC’s Foray Into Blockchain-Enabled Ad Buying

The digital advertising industry is fraught with conflict of interest. Companies can “fake” impressions and clicks through various methods such as robots and click farms. Consumer brands may end up paying for users or conversions that are not real or authentic because of the lack of transparency inherent in the ad buying space.

KFC believes that introducing a blockchain layer will help bring further transparency to the ad buying process and increase the brand’s visibility and penetration. The fact that blockchain is a real-time “living” database will enable faster feedback loops in the distribution of more timely and relevant messaging. The company also expects to reduce overall ad expenditure in certain areas as it concludes more quickly that some channels are not producing optimum ROI. This will maximize ad placements and optimize advertising revenue.

Ozge Zoralioglu, Chief Marketing Officer, KFC, Yum! Brands commented:

“Historically, marketers have collected data from various different sources and run a campaign pegged on these mismatched insights. Today, marketers must get to the original source of the data: the consumer. Blockchain technologies ensure that they get first-hand information from the target audience themselves.

By innovating with a sophisticated blockchain solution, KFC can now benefit from enhanced visibility of real-time data and the most updated insights – all with full confidence that information is authenticated, tamper-proof and hence credible. Leveraging blockchain technology’s immutability means that together, we are able to improve trust, transparency and efficiency in our supply chain.”

Quick Service Restaurants Dabbling in Crypto

CryptoPotato reported in January 2019 that KFC in Canada had launched a marketing campaign in which it launched a special edition item – the bitcoin bucket. For a limited time, you could pay for food using Bitcoin.

January 2020 also saw an increase in crypto adoption with Burger King Venezuela announcing a partnership with CryptoBuyer the option to use cryptocurrencies to purchase food at locations in Caracas.

It remains to be seen whether restaurants such as KFC will take a deeper dive into the cryptocurrency landscape by introducing their own tokens in the future. One thing is for sure – leveraging blockchain for advertising transparency may have synergies with bootstrapping ad audiences into a network of repeat customers through programs such as loyalty points. It remains to be seen whether KFC will expand accordingly into other blockchain verticals.

Source: https://cryptopotato.com/kentucky-fried-chicken-kfc-implements-blockchian-to-track-media-buying/

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Colombian city launches free online blockchain lessons
Bitcoin, Blockchain, Events
27/05/2020
63

Colombian city launches free online blockchain lessons

The city of Bogota has launched free online courses covering emerging technology such as blockchain and artificial intelligence. The courses seek to give the people basic understanding of these technologies and spur innovation in the South American country.

The courses are sponsored by the office of the Mayor of Bogota and are available to citizens above the age of 14. Other than blockchain, the other areas include cloud computing, artificial intelligence, big data, the Internet of Things and event-driven architecture. Each course has a basic and intermediate level, with each level taking four weeks to complete.

Under basic blockchain, the citizens get to learn “the meaning of blockchain, its advantages and disadvantages, the areas in which it exercises most strongly, the entry into the financial market, the use of Bitcoin and the impacts on the transformation processes in companies in the digital sphere.”

In the intermediate level, they will learn about the application and operation of blockchain, with the course describing it as “an alternative to maintain a permanent and secure record of information on monetary transactions, but whose potential is still much to be explored.”

Colombia is one of the South American countries that have sought to maximize on blockchain and digital currencies to grow their economy. Bogota, being the capital and largest city, has been the epicenter of this push. In 2019, the city hosted the Expo-Bitcoin International which brought together over 25,000 digital currency enthusiasts. The conference had over 200 commercial stands, with thousands of items on display. What was unique about them was that they only accepted payments in Bitcoin SV, an iconic display of BSV’s status in South America.

The Council of Bogota also recognized Dr. Craig Wright as Satoshi Nakamoto in 2019. Dr. Wright had been invited to speak about Bitcoin on the sidelines of the Expo-Bitcoin International conference. After his talk, the Council awarded him an official honor on behalf of the city, acknowledging his revolutionary work with Bitcoin.

Source: https://coingeek.com/colombian-city-launches-free-online-blockchain-lessons/

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blockchain-enabled-p2p-trust-for-first-time-in-history
Altcoins, Bitcoin, Blockchain, Events, Multimedia
25/05/2020
67

Don Tapscott: blockchain enabled p2p trust for first time in history

In the closing keynote for Virtual Blockchain Week, acclaimed author Don Tapscott argued DLT is the foundational technology of “the second digital era.”

To close out Virtual Blockchain Week, best-selling technology author and co-founder of the Blockchain Research Institute (BRI), Don Tapscott, delivered a presentation articulating what he describes as the shift from the internet of information to the internet of value.

In his presentation titled ‘Blockchain Revolution: The State of The Union,’ Tapscott argued that blockchain comprises the foundational technology that will underpin “the second era of the digital age.”

Transition to the second digital era

In writing the 25th anniversary edition of his 1994 best-selling book ‘Digital Economy,’ Tapscott noted that he “came to the conclusion that we’ve been through the first era of the digital age.”

Tapscott characterizes the first digital age as “the internet of information,” spanning technologies from “mainframes, mini-computers, PCs, the internet, the mobile web, social media, the cloud, [and] big data.”

Tapscott asserts that we are now transitioning into the second digital era, “where we have these extraordinary technologies infusing themselves into everything — into our physical world, into our processes, into our bodies.”

blockchain-enabled-p2p-trust-for-first-time-in-history

Double-spend problem defines first digital era

Tapscott argued that blockchain comprises “the foundational technology” of the second digital era:

“For 40 years … we have this internet of information,” stated Tapscot, adding: “But if I send you […] some information […], I’m actually not sending you the information, I’m sending you a copy.”

“But when it comes to assets, things that really matter in the economy, like money, and securities, contracts, deeds, and intellectual property, and the data on our identities, and the cultural assets — like art, or music, or votes, […] sending a copy of those or copying those is a bad idea. You don’t want someone copying your vote, or your identity, and if I send you one-thousand dollars it’s really important that I don’t still have the money.”

“So cryptographers have called this the ‘double-spend’ problem for a long time, and the way that we manage this problem in our economy is through middlemen,” he added.

“Banks, stock exchanges, transfer agents, escrow agents, credit card companies, sometimes governments, now big technology companies — and overall they have done a pretty good job, but there are growing problems […] we need a new approach.”

Blockchain is ‘the biggest innovation in human history’

For Tapscott, Satoshi’s cracking of the double-spend problem is “the biggest innovation in human history,” creating the possibility of a societal and economic reorganization away from middle-men toward trusted peer-to-peer networks.

Describing distributed ledger technologies (DLT) as “a native digital medium for trust,” Tapscott asserted that blockchain allows anonymous individuals to trust one another without intermediaries for the first time.

“For the first time ever, people could trust each other peer-to-peer, and trust is not achieved by an intermediary, but by cryptography, collaboration, and some clever code.”

Challenges to widespread adoption

Despite his optimism for blockchain technologies, Tapscott noted that blockchain still faces significant barriers to widespread use and acceptance.

Tapscott emphasized that DLT challenges “very deep structures” and multi-trillion dollar industries that will not disappear overnight. He argued that DLT is driving the creative destruction of the industrial age corporation and a profound shift toward distributed value creation.

He also highlighted the challenges of scalability and interoperability for blockchain platforms, and noted the image problem that crypto may exhibit to many segments of mainstream society.

Lastly, Tapscot noted that blockchain is still facing significant challenges in developing efficient and effective governance processes, citing Pindar Wong in stating:

“Just because it’s decentralized, doesn’t mean it has to be disorganized.”

Source: https://cointelegraph.com/news/don-tapscott-blockchain-enabled-p2p-trust-for-first-time-in-history

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How Blockchain Could Bolster The Economy Following COVID-19
Altcoins, Bitcoin, Events, Multimedia
22/05/2020
65

How Blockchain Could Bolster The Economy Following COVID-19 According To The World Economic Forum

  • A report which delved into how the deployment of blockchain could address the efficiencies that have been exposed since COVID-19 was released this week.
  • The world economic forum released a blockchain toolkit intended to help the government in changing their supply chains to adapt. 

A report was recently published by the world economic forum which delved into how the deployment of a blockchain-based solution could address the supply chain efficiencies and failures that have been so clearly exposed since the pandemic of COVID-19 spread throughout the world.

The economic forum also released a blockchain deployment toolkit which was intended to help the government and many small businesses in changing their supply chains to adapt to the new economic climate. Furthermore, this toolkit will help the economy rebound following the crisis of coronavirus.

Published earlier this week on the 28th of April, the report looks into the strong response of private and public supply chains which have been tested during this outbreak. Most notably, supply chains of pharmaceutical and medical products/supplies are the ones that have been hit the hardest during these uncertain times.

On top of this, the report makes the point that the efficiency of supply chains heavily relies on transparency and makes an attempt to further plug blockchain amongst these supply chain stakeholders.

Following the development of the other mentioned tool kit, contributions from more than 100 public and private sector bodies got involved. Speaking on the blockchain deployment toolkit is the world economic forum is Nadia Hewett who said the following:

“The blockchain deployment toolkit is essential for designing solutions that work for a multitude of actors, including smaller players who may not have access to the resources required to unlock the value of blockchain technology.”

Source: https://cryptodaily.co.uk/2020/04/blockchain-bolster-covid-19

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why the post halving bitcoin price drop isnt guaranteed
Bitcoin, Events, Multimedia
19/05/2020
71

Why the post halving bitcoin price drop isn’t guaranteed

Bitcoin price faces strong resistance at $9,000 but if the upsurge continues post-halving, BTC could reach new range highs.

The Bitcoin (BTC) block reward halving is set to occur on May 12 and traders have mixed opinions on the direction of BTC price following the event. Some believe that a “sell the news” type drop will occur after the event while others foresee bullish continuation.

If BTC, the top listed asset on CoinMarketCap, rises in price after the halving and breaks out of its 315-day cycle wherein it saw five consecutive failed attempts at an extended rally, a powerful upsurge could occur.

Will bullish momentum continue post-halving?

The upcoming Bitcoin halving is the only mechanism that exists which affects the production and supply of BTC. Given that Bitcoin is a deflationary currency due to its unalterable monetary policy, anything that affects its supply will have an eventual impact on its price.

Traders have come to anticipate a sell-off following the halving because it is an event that is set in stone. A halving occurs once every four years and previous halvings were triggered in 2012 and 2016.

In previous halvings, the price dropped afterward, recovering over the months that followed and eventually reaching new highs 10 to 11 months later.

The highly expected nature of the halving increases the probability of a market dump in the aftermath of its activation. But, if that does that happen, BTC can potentially rally towards the macro range high at $11,500 and $12,400.

A chart shared by a crypto trader called “Galaxy” portrays the possible price trend if it does not correct after the halving.

why the post halving bitcoin price drop isnt guaranteed

“The fact that BTC is going to $13K simply cannot be ignored,” said the trader while exploring the scenario of Bitcoin if it cleanly breaks out of the $9,500 to $9,900 resistance area.

Such a scenario playing out for Bitcoin in the short-term would result in the dominant cryptocurrency entering an entirely new price cycle and securing a fresh start to a new multi-year range.

Most technical indicators signal a pullback

The probability of an extended Bitcoin rally immediately after the halving without any correction still remains low.

Another crypto trader known as “Byzantine General” stated that virtually every major technical indicator suggests a pullback for Bitcoin is due following a 150 percent price surge since March.

why the post halving bitcoin price drop isnt guaranteed

“Sell signals. Sell signals everywhere. Currently flat, waiting for a good setup,” the trader said.

Other sell signals that may threaten the recovery of Bitcoin include the Relative Strength Index overhead resistance dating back to 2017 and record-high sales that occurred in the over-the-counter market when BTC was at $9,400. Both strengthen the argument for a post-halving drop.

While selling pressure in the cryptocurrency market outweighs buying demand, there is still a possibility that a post-halving upsurge happens. Historically, Bitcoin has shown that it can remain bullish despite glaring sell signals

Source: https://cointelegraph.com/news/sell-the-news-why-the-post-halving-bitcoin-price-drop-isnt-guaranteed

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uk university develops blockchain certificate to protect consumers from covid19 risks
Blockchain, Events, Multimedia
29/04/2020
55

Uk university develops blockchain certificate to protect consumers from covid19 risks

British researchers are trialing a new blockchain-based certificate designed to manage COVID-19 risks across supply chains.

In a statement on April 21, Professor Nassim Belbaly, director of Birmingham City Business School, noted that “coronavirus represents a crisis of trust because we cannot any longer automatically trust goods or suppliers.”

New, secure and automated solutions are therefore being sought to help reassure consumers and suppliers that goods across the value chain do not pose health risks to themselves or to others.

To tackle this post-pandemic landscape, a newly-launched “4th Fourth Industrial Revolution Technologies Centre” is trialing a blockchain-based Coronavirus Clearance Certificate (CCC), issued by The Transnational Transparent Procurement Foundation (TTPF) in the U.K.

The center is also known as “BCU-CCEG 4IR,” an acronym for the two collaborating founders behind it; Birmingham City University (BCU) and the non-profit Centre for Citizenship, Enterprise and Governance (CCEG).

Since its founding in 2013, the CCEG has operated as a global think tank, with 165,000 members contributing to its research and development of social value tools that use emerging technologies such as blockchain, artificial intelligence, Internet of Things and 5G.

What the certificate offers

The CCC certificate can reportedly be issued to organisations, products and even people to confirm that they have followed appropriate steps to mitigate risks from COVID-19.

The challenges posed by the current public health crisis tie in to wider concerns about compliance and ethical practices in modern logistics and value chains. As Olinga Taeed, a visiting professor of blockchain at Birmingham City University, argues:

“[The certificate] confirms that a supplier adheres to highest standards of public health, sustainability, anti-bribery and even modern slavery. And in this case, we can verify the level of supply risk due to the coronavirus. It represents the future of supply chain management.”

As a vehicle for tracking the life cycle of any given product, for example hand sanitizer, the certificate will initially be trialed in the U.K. Midlands, a region that has been severely impacted by the pandemic.

uk university develops blockchain certificate to protect consumers from covid19 risks

Tailoring the blockchain to public health challenges

As reported, the International Association for Trusted Blockchain Applications recently announced a partnership with the European Commission and University College London to coordinate various blockchain solution providers that are tackling the coronavirus pandemic.

Blockchain specialists and IoT firms have also stepped in to adapt their solutions to COVID-19-focused data management and sharing.

Source: https://cointelegraph.com/news/uk-university-develops-blockchain-certificate-to-protect-consumers-from-covid-19-risks

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dutch-central-bank-ready-to-play-a-leading-role-with-digital-euro
Altcoins, Bitcoin, Events, Multimedia
27/04/2020
67

Dutch central bank ready to play a leading role with digital euro

The Dutch central bank wants to be the proving ground for central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) in the European Union.

In a 45-page report released by the bank on April 21, the De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB) said it was “ready to play a leading role” with research and development into its own digital currency as well as a Europe-wide digital currency.

A digital Euro is expected to make cross-border payments faster and cheaper for all member states who participate. The Netherlands would be a suitable testing ground, the report said.

Though not the primary target of the report, the DNB singled out cryptocurrency Libra as a possible threat to monetary stability and conceded it was “the reason why the DNB and other central banks are now considering issuing their own digital currency.”

Use of physical currency declining

According to the report, the move is partly in response to the decreasing use of paper money and coins in the Netherlands. Nearly two thirds of all payments in the nation are digital.

In developing a digital currency, the DNB report questions “whether central banks should provide a new type of money that is better attuned to the needs of citizens and firms.”

dutch-central-bank-ready-to-play-a-leading-role-with-digital-euro

Digital solutions for pandemic

With the pandemic measures shutting down many businesses worldwide, the DNB report notes that those that remain open are avoiding physical cash:

“Many stores now ask clients specifically not to pay in cash, which effectively means that only private money is accepted.”

As the money we use becomes more risky — both physically due to the risk of passing on COVID-19 and financially due to an uncertain economic future — the race for CBDCs is accelerating.

The People’s Bank of China issued a statement on April 4 saying that it will “undoubtedly continue” its CBDC development, calling a digital yuan one of its “top priorities.” Both South Korea and Sweden launched pilot programs to assess the feasibility of issuing a CBDC.

Netherlands leading the CBDC charge

EU members like France have recently begun experimenting with a digital euro, with even the European Central Bank president supporting the bank’s involvement developing a CBDC. However, as the DNB report notes, any decision on a digital Euro would require cooperation between member states.

Source: https://cointelegraph.com/news/dutch-central-bank-ready-to-play-a-leading-role-with-digital-euro

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Wishes for happy easter
Events
17/04/2020
55

Wishes for Happy Easter

The last 2 months have found us locked up in our house trying to face an invisible enemy named “Coronaios”

Without discriminating against who will hit whom, man or woman, rich or poor, young or old, he continues even today, sowing panic and fear both for today and for the effects of tomorrow. So we took a breath before the Holy Easter days to be home and not be able to go anywhere, not even to our loved ones.

“We Greece”, wanting to pass on its own message of love and hope, wishes you and your families good health and not to lose hope for a better tomorrow.

“Even through these difficulties that we all experience, there are positive things to see and understand that nothing can be a given. To feel the loss of care, love, freedom, joy, smile, health, company, friendship and much more to appreciate.

Now we know how important it is that today we cannot have and think about tomorrow how we will be and what we need to change. Change must be us for ourselves and so some things around us will change.

So “We Greece” wishes the Resurrection of the Lord to find us stronger and healthier, wiser and more open-minded but also more ready to face challenges, giving us the opportunity with our choices to set a better tomorrow.

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italys-top-news-agency-uses-blockchain-to-fight-fake-coronavirus-news
Blockchain, Events, Multimedia
09/04/2020
62

Italys top news agency uses blockchain to fight fake coronavirus news

Amid the global pandemic crisis, the importance of ensuring trusted information is getting more crucial as fake coronavirus news poses a direct threat to life and health of people worldwide.

While some global jurisdictions are imposing fines and imprisonment for spreading false coronavirus information, a major news agency in Italy is hoping to stop fake news by implementing blockchain technology.

All the news that’s fit to hash

ANSA, Italy’s main news agency and an international publication owned by 24 national newspapers, has launched a news tracking system based on blockchain to bring more trust between the company and its readers. Called ANSAcheck, the blockchain-powered tool purportedly allows users to verify the origin and history of news published on its platforms, its affiliated publications as well as third parties such as social media or other platforms, ANSA announced on April 6.

Additionally, the technology implementation allows ANSA to keep track of its content use and link ecosystem actors, publishers and web agencies, the firm said.

ANSA readers can verify articles with blockchain by clicking on a special label

According to the announcement, the system was developed in collaboration with Big Four accounting firm Ernst & Young. Specifically, the system provides a news article with a tracking label “Notizia d’origine certificata” (“News of Certified Origin”). The label links a news piece to a page containing details like date and time of recording or publishing the article, registered blocks for relevant events, as well as links to relevant blockchain transactions on blockchain browser Etherscan.

italys-top-news-agency-uses-blockchain-to-fight-fake-coronavirus-news

ANSAcheck is based on Ethereum

According to a local ANSA report, the ANSAcheck system is based on Ernst & Young’s proprietary EY Ops Chain Traceability solution, which is based on the Ethereum blockchain. Particularly, the platform is implementing smart contract technology by linking a news article to a digital representation and creating a specific cryptographic string, ANSA noted.

As previously announced, EY Ops Chain was launched in April 2017 in order to enable enterprises to represent their operations on a blockchain using digital tokens and smart contracts.

italys-top-news-agency-uses-blockchain-to-fight-fake-coronavirus-news

Stefano de Alessandri, CEO at ANSA, outlined that the news agency has become aware of frequent fraudulent use of ANSA brand to provide false information. The executive noted that ANSA is the first agency to implement the tech to tackle the problem:

“We are therefore particularly proud to be the first to launch a highly innovative project, carried out for all our readers and the clients of the Agency […] Starting today, we can track the origin of the news and – at the same time – support the professionalism of our journalists.”

Source: https://cointelegraph.com/news/italys-top-news-agency-uses-blockchain-to-fight-fake-coronavirus-news

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