The development of variable renewable energy (VRE) and their massive installation are some of the challenges that the economies of a large part of the world will have to face in the coming years to help ensure a reasonable sustainability of the planet. On the other hand, the advances that have been happening in recent decades in the telecommunications sector and the expansion of the Internet have helped to create a new scenario, giving way to growth opportunities in different economic sectors and new business models. One of the most disruptive tools that has emerged in this new digital ecosystem is what is known as Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT). The opportunity and applicability to strengthen VRE expansion is discussed in this article. To this end, selected case studies and main findings of interviews with experts are discussed. The introduction of blockchain technology, in particular in its use as a platform for smart contracts, offers a great potential, highly valued by experts, in addition to adding other relevant characteristics such as efficiency generated in operational terms and traceability, but also new opportunities for consumers and prosumers to build strong energy communities committed with a sustainable energy transaction. However, among the elements to be improved, we highlight the regulatory uncertainty regarding smart contracts´ security in terms of automatic mechanisms and its legal endorsement for use within the EU; adopting standards to facilitate scalability; and other issues of a more technological nature that should also be improved for a massive implementation in terms of optimizing energy efficiency of the model.
The purpose of this paper is to assess the evolution of cryptocurrency including its demand factors, latent value propositions and regulatory developments. The cryptocurrency market has experienced unprecedented growth driven by improved ease of access, speculation, familiarity, media attention, network effects, mining activity, distrust of traditional banking, global instability hedging, and a demand effect from the initial coin offering (ICO) market. This had led to wide asset bubble speculation. The future of cryptocurrency is impossible to predict, and although it is unlikely that cryptocurrency will eliminate trusted intermediaries, and replace sovereign fiat altogether, it has numerous latent value propositions and long-term use cases including distributed ledger technology (DLT) and blockchain innovations (particularly in financial payments, settlements, clearing, supply chain, agriculture, and voting), identity and data protection mechanisms, crowd-funding, and decentralized business applications and services.There may also be benefits to a bubble including “long tail” successes, hype-financed research and development in DLT and blockchain infrastructure (that wouldn’t have otherwise received funding in a reticent market), and consumer familiarity benefits. The regulatory response to date has largely been enforcement based (emphasizing fraud detection and criminal deterrence), with public statements and interest across a diverse range of regulatory bodies, rather than unified rules. There are however inherent difficulties in regulating the cryptocurrency market, which will be discussed in detail in this paper.
Essence of cryptocurrencies is considered in the article, their risks and prospects of development in Ukraine and world. Advantages and disadvantages of crypto currency are described. Positions of foreign central banks and other financial regulators are lighted up in relation to cryptocurrencies and markets of cryptocurrencies. It is offered, that the experience of Japan, Switzerland, the United States and England in this question should be used as a fairway. It is marked that corresponding activity and financial services must be licensed by the state as a type of professional activity on the stages of formation of cryptocurrency (mining) and support of its circulation (trading and financial consulting).
A useful blockchain should possess the following properties, one or more of which many existing blockchain systems lack: 1) A sound consensus protocol. 2) An efficient transaction-processing system. 3) Immutability of history. 4) Decentralization. 5) An effective avenue for hard-forks and rule changes. We propose a system named the “Verex Blockchain” that will fulfill these requirements. This system employs an “Assigned-Majority-Validation” consensus protocol whereby only nodes within a specialized, designated network may vote on the correct state of the blockchain and add new blocks of transactions without proof of work or stake. New nodes to this network must be approved by existing nodes. These nodes will be controlled by entities with high public visibility such as governments or multinational technology companies, whose identities and actions will be made fully transparent on the blockchain. Transactions will be charged fees in cryptocurrency according to a fixed and known fee schedule, which will be earned by nodes in the designated network. Any user in the world may download the blockchain, receive and verify updates, and submit transactions, but only nodes in the specialized network may write updates to the blockchain.
Blockchain technology with its distributed ledgers attracts massive attention today and creates interest in many different industries. One of the most promising areas for implementation of blockchain technology is its use to create fully automated and decentralized contract solutions, so-called smart contracts. The blockchain technology is also expected to develop the concept of BIM by facilitating the creation of a common model. The problem addressed in this study is the limited amount of research carried out in the blockchain field and the potential use of smart contracts in procurement of services in the construction industry. The construction industry differs from many other industries as it is project-based with changing circumstances and conditions. The study shows that the construction industry is an industry focused on discussions and disputes, the majority of which are linked to payments and contractual interpretations. Two of the key concepts of the study are therefore moral hazard and opportunistic behavior. Opportunistic behavior can affect norms, the willingness for cooperation and the degree to which parties trust each other. Designing contracts to reduce the risk of moral hazard and opportunistic behavior is therefore an important aspect. The study has chosen to study both relationships that are hierarchical to nature but also peer-to-peer. The purpose of the study has been to conceptually reflect on percived opportunities and challenges with blockchains in the construction industry regarding two identified applications, smart contracts and BIM. To investigate this, a qualitative interview study has been conducted. The study points to the need for a more standardized building process that is subject to a certain degree of repetition to achieve successful use of a blockchain network and smart contracts. The study also shows that there is a positive attitude from the respondents regarding a possible development for several of the potential applications of blockchain technology. Blockchain technology and smart contracts have the potential to improve the reliability and credibility of logbooks, self-checks and work performed within a building project. Furthermore, the study highlights the importance of long-term relationships and confidence in reducing opportunistic behavior. Based on previous research and empirical analysis, the study contributes to an increased understanding of which levels in the construction industry smart contracts may be applicable. The study shows that smart contracts are not perceived suitable for complex contracts where the work to be performed can be changed many times during the contract period. The study, on the other hand, indicates that blockchain development with BIM is not demanded at the present time. Finally, the study points out that blockchain technology is perceived to have the potential to make the building process more transparent and open with reduced power conditions at the same time as it gets less centralized which opens up the need for research in that direction.
The world is becoming more and more digitized. Recently many industries have started to research the blockchain technology and particularly smart contracts. One industry that so far has not adopted new technology in the same pace as other industries, is the insurance industry so this interview study aims at finding opportunities and challenges for insurance companies that want to learn about smart contracts and its use cases.By doing a literature review and performing interviews with blockchain experts and insurance company employees, this study found that both IT companies working with smart contracts and the insurance companies have limited knowledge of the legal aspect of smart contracts. The lack of standards and regulations allows IT companies to freely create smart contracts without much quality control. The insurance companies must innovate themselves in order to not be disrupted. The blockchain technology will offer many new insurance types and if the insurance industry fails to adopt the blockchain technology they may face market disruption.There is much room for future research following this study. It would be beneficial to research how contract theory could be used in practice during the creation of legally binding smart contracts. Furthermore, research around fraud prevention in smart contracts would be interesting as would an in-depth exploration of the ecosystem of third party software and services around smart contracts.
Digitalization makes almost everything quicker, sleeker, and more efficient. Many argue cryptocurrency is the future of money and payment transfers. This paper explores how the unique nature of cryptocurrencies creates barriers to a strict application of traditional regulatory strategies. Indeed, state and federal regulators remain uncertain if and how they can regulate this cutting-edge technology. Cryptocurrency businesses face difficulty navigating the unclear regulatory landscape, and consumers frequently fall prey to misinformation. To reconcile these concerns, this paper asserts cryptocurrency functions as “currency” or “money” and should be treated as such for regulatory purposes. It also proposes each state implement a uniform cryptocurrency-specific framework following the Uniform Regulation of Virtual-Currency Business Act. Such a harmonious approach would reduce compliance costs for cryptocurrency businesses, protect consumers, and provide satisfactory state and federal oversight.
It is our great pleasure to welcome you to the WWW 2018 3rd International Workshop on Linked Data and Distributed Ledgers (LD-DL). We envision the workshop as a forum for researchers and practitioners from Distributed Ledgers and Linked Data to come together to discuss common challenges; propose solutions to shortcomings of existing architectures; and identify synergies for joint initiatives. The ultimate goal is the creation of a Web of Interoperable Ledgers. We received 6 submissions from all around the world. We evaluated them regarding relevance, quality, and novelty, selecting 3 short papers and 1 long paper (66% acceptance rate) --ScienceMiles - Digital currency for researchers--Can Blockchains and Linked Data Advance Taxation? --A distributed database with explicit semantics and chained RDF graphs--When trust saves energy: A Reference Framework for Proof of Trust (PoT) Blockchains. We hope that you will find the tutorial program interesting, providing you with a valuable opportunity to learn and share ideas with other researchers and practitioners from institutions around the world.
Permissioned distributed ledgers (permissioned blockchains) supporting smart contracts that automatically adjust accounts and coordinate records among multiple parties, present a valid platform opportunity for establishing a fully digital tax regime. We propose a permissioned blockchain-based system aimed at eliminating some of the losses that tax authorities globally are currently struggling with. These multi-billion flaws manifest themselves as the tax gap, or the inability to collect the full amount that is owed by a given entity to a particular authority. Illegitimate or inefficient tax operations could be prevented with a global suite of smart contracts deployed on top of a consortium distributed ledger with on-chain governance. We also introduce the vision for a VAT Invoice 2.0 modelled as a Linked Data document. A tax reference generated by a smart contract would allow anyone with the right permissions to immediately investigate the entire commercial chain for any taxable item on an ontology-based tax document.
Jan 1, 2018·Proceedings of the ... Annual Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences/Proceedings of the Annual Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences
Simon Albrecht, Stefan Reichert, J. Schmid, Jens Strüker · 6 authors
This case study analyzes the impact of theory-based factors on the implementation of different blockchain technologies in use cases from the energy sector. We construct an integrated research model based on the Diffusion of Innovations theory, institutional economics and the Technology-Organization-Environment framework. Using qualitative data from in-depth interviews, we link constructs to theory and assess their impact on each use case. Doing so we can depict the dynamic relations between different blockchain technologies and the energy sector. The study provides insights for decision makers in electric utilities, and government administrations.
Purpose The purpose of this paper is to conceptualise the chief aspects of policy interest in blockchain technology. Design/methodology/approach The paper outlines policymaking processes in the context of innovation and technological change, assesses generic variations in policy treatment towards blockchain, and identifies manifestations of policy entrepreneurship using national case studies of blockchain policies. Findings Favourable policy dispositions towards blockchain technology are interpreted as political efforts to develop local, blockchain-enabled economies. So-called “crypto-friendly” jurisdictions proactively clarify regulatory and tax treatments of cryptocurrency and other blockchain applications, and trial blockchain uses in fields predominated by public sector activity. Policymakers in countries hostile towards blockchain-related activity have instigated bans or strict limitations with respect to blockchain engagement by developers and users. Research limitations/implications Reliance upon case studies suggests the need for alternative study approaches (e.g. index construction, empirical research) as blockchain use consolidates throughout the global economy. Practical implications This paper provides insight to policymakers and blockchain practitioners regarding the attributes of accommodative policies towards distributed ledger technology. Social implications Countries and sub-national regions exhibiting a more welcoming policy stance are more likely to attract entrepreneurs and investors in the crypto-economic blockchain space. Originality/value This paper develops a policy “crypto-friendliness” construct to assess the extent to which policymakers enact accommodative policies for blockchain development.
Matti Pärssinen, Mikko Kotila, Rubén Cuevas, Amit Phansalkar · 5 authors
The 200-billion-dollar per annum online advertising ecosystem has become infested with thousands of intermediaries exploiting user data and advertising budgets. All key stakeholders in the value-chain are infected: advertisers with fraud, publishers with their diminishing share of advertising budgets, and users with their right to privacy. Blockchain presents a possible solution to addressing the critical issues in the online advertising supply chain. The question remains whether blockchain scalability, energy-efficiency, and token volatility issues can be solved in the coming years to the extent that online advertising could widely leverage trustlessness and the benefits gained from blockchain technology. This paper aims to review the current progress and to open a discussion to address the issues. We present new requirements for blockchain-based online advertising solutions. We have also analyzed the available solutions against the requirements and recommend directions for future research and solution development. Evidence from our research points out that blockchain is not yet ready to be widely implemented in online advertising. More research is needed, and new proof-of-concepts need to be developed before blockchain technology can be considered a trusted alternative for the current online advertising marketplace based on open real-time bidding.