[ad_1]
International Business Machines Corp is looking to partner with Indian telecommunications companies to offer blockchain solutions that can be used in mobile number portability and "Do Not Call" registries.
"We have completed proof of concepts and pilot projects with all major telecommunications providers and with TRAI in this space," said Sriram Raghavan, vice president of IBM Research and chief technology officer of IBM India and South Asia. "We expect to start the new year, we will begin to see the blockchain solutions that are spreading".
He did not call the telco.
The Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) and telecommunications providers have collaborated with technology companies such as IBM to learn how blockchain could address multi-party coordination issues related to Do Not registries Call and number portability.
Everything from the customer's consent to the Do No Call service to the fact that consent is respected is recorded on blockchain, Raghavan said. "This gives the TRAI greater visibility of the controller and jeopardizes the malfunction quickly," he said. "Even mobile number portability is a multiparty process that involves at least two telecommunications providers, in which blockchain can play a role."
TRAI completed a review of the demonstration of concepts on blockchain, or distributed ledger technology (DLT), in February. After evaluating what was possible with DLT, the regulator came out with a series of regulations in May. The next step in this process is that telecommunications service providers select suppliers and configure systems in accordance with the TRAI guidelines.
"We had a meeting (Monday) and telecommunication service providers are now in the process of aligning their suppliers," said a TRAI official.
The companies promised to implement DLT-based systems in the next two months, the person said. The Do Not Call register would be the first to move to DLT.
Blockchain, emerged for the first time as the system behind the popular bitcoin of cryptocurrency, is a collection of digitally distributed records in which each person or entity on the network has a copy of the ledger. All participants must agree to make changes.
But unlike public blockchain networks such as bitcoins, IBM and other businesses use blockchain private networks that aim to enable sharing of sensitive corporate data between trusted parties.
One way to think about it is that "a private network involves a group of people and the public network is out there where anyone can join," Raghavan said. "You can also have public networks authorized, here, the network is open to the public, but you can not simply download a code to merge it in. You have to be authorized Sometimes these two dimensions get mixed up."
For corporate networks, the authorized approach is clearly fundamental as it mainly involves sharing sensitive company data, he said. "Companies do not do business anonymously, you should not do business anonymously, it's mandatory by law and regulation, so the authorized networks work," he added.
IBM has also made a number of blockchain pilots in India looking for use cases in the provenance of the parts, in tracing the quality and understanding the implications of the GST supply chain. The company plans to see the adoption of technology in production and insurance spaces in the coming months in India.
