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Blockchain and cryptocurrencies have been around for what seems like forever, and yet governments around the world have only begun to pick up the ball last year.
There is still a lot of confusion surrounding blockchain and the community that is working with it, which has resulted in several political knee-jerk reactions.
More crypto-crackdowns in China
Whilst regulators in various countries have begun setting up stricter limits for ICOs, cryptocurrency exchanges, traders, and miners, there is one country that takes a much harder line than the others.
That country is the People’s Republic of China.
Not only has the government placed restrictions on ICOs, they have issued a complete blanket ban on anything related to cryptocurrencies.
Chinese citizens have expressed an incredible enthusiasm for blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies in general, but it would seem that the more interest they showed, the more restrictions the government placed on them.
A series of shutdowns
Miners of cryptocurrencies have had their computers confiscated, and this is not without reason.
Given the incredibly large coal reserves China has, the government is able to subsidize electricity for its citizens.
As anyone with knowledge of crypto-mining know, the process of mining requires a lot of energy.
Hopeful miners have attempted to capitalize on the government subsidization of their electricity, but it has been shut down.
Last year, the government banned fundraising (ICOs) related to blockchain projects, as well as some of the cryptocurrency exchanges.
Early this year, the turn came to peer-to-peer (P2P) and similar trading networks, which were shut down promptly.
Offshore exchanges were not saved either: just a month later, the government shut them down too.
The bans are not just limited to the traders and miners, however.
Even entrepreneurs looking to produce new solutions based on blockchain technology are being shut down.
Just this month, an entrepreneurial event in Shanghai was shut down by the government to prevent the spread of ideas related to the blockchain.
What these bans and shutdowns have made a lot of people consider, is that China’s government is completely hostile to blockchain technology and cryptocurrency.
This would be a wrong assumption to make.
In fact, China’s government is investing heavily in blockchain technology, and are exploring the possibilities of engaging with cryptocurrencies.
Method to the madness
The Xiong’An Global Blockchain Innovation Fund is a great example of how the Chinese government is investing in blockchain – even if doing so indirectly.
Xiong’An Global Blockchain Innovation Fund is offering as much as $1.6 billion to Chinese startup companies working with blockchain.
The Chinese government and the People’s Bank of China know that the future lies in blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies.
They want to be in control of the process, however.
This is not necessarily due to malice or ill-will towards independent Chinese entrepreneurs, traders or miners.
Rather, the Chinese government is, in their own way, acting in the interest of China.
They want to ensure that no money is flowing out of the country, whilst still benefiting from the technological advances offered by blockchain.
XYO Network Review
Being able to track the location of items and people has been invaluable since the invention of the first map.
Being able to actually prove that something is where it is supposed to be, in real-time, has also proved extremely useful since the first radio-based navigation systems like LORAN.
Modern-day Global Positioning Systems (GPS) are more precise because they actually cross-reference multiple sources of information in order to provide us with the actual coordinates.
Whilst this should provide a Proof of Location, the issue is that false location signals will also be picked up on.
Previous blockchain projects have attempted to remedy this issue by using the decentralization and time stamping possibilities offered by the blockchain technology.
Combined with non-blockchain (off-chain) technology, this should provide a reliable enough Proof of Location.
However, the reliance on an off-chain Oracle makes the crypto-location solutions just as flawed as the more traditional methods of determining location.
About the XYO Network
The XYO Network aims to create an entirely new ecosystem, which will be more reliable.
Here, the Oracle (which the off-chain data source) moves around in the real world, as opposed to having a fixed and centralized location. Because of this difference, the team being XYO Network has dubbed it “Sentinel”.
The main innovation of the XYO Network team, however, is to create a Proof of Location that is created by a protocol based on crypto-location.
This will create a trustless and decentralized system consisting of multiple Oracles, which will be much more resistant to any false signals caused by hackers.
Not only will this system developed by the XYO Network team make it more resistant to attacks, but it will also increase the reliability of the tracking and the accuracy of the reported location.
How will they do this? By implementing a series of abstractions that will make it more difficult for anyone to interfere with the signals.
The components of the system has been fitted with zero-knowledge proofs, and uses a network of connected devices to produce the accurate data as and when requested.
Users of the XYO Network will then be able to make queries about the location of the data on the blockchain, similar to when transactions are made with cryptocurrencies.
What about the tokens?
The XYO Network are offering investors XYO tokens for helping to fund their ICO.
When users of the network make a query about the data located somewhere on the blockchain, they will use the tokens as payment.
The amount of tokens spent will determine the accuracy and reliability of the data yielded from the query.
Users will, in other words, be able to set the level of reliability they desire for a specific location when making their query.
More reliability means that more resources and data will be needed to respond to the query – thus more tokens will need to be paid.
The XYO team aim to invest in 1,000,000 devices to be located across the globe, and the tokens will help fund the maintenance of these device.
Other Information:
– bitcointalk XYO Network ANN
– bitcointalk XYO NEtwork BOUNTY
– Telegram
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Traxion Tech Review
Ten years after the financial crash of 2008, and we are still facilitating the same financial system that led to the crash – and the crashes before it.
But now financial experts have predicted that the banking system as we know it will not be around in 10-15 years.
The emergence of blockchain technology has made it all too apparent that change is on the way.
The banks, with their current legacy systems, will either have to adapt or give way to the rapidly growing crypto-economy.
At least that’s what some believe.
Many ICO projects are aiming to help make the transition from the current economic system based on fiat money to a new economic system based on digital currency.
So what could the future economy look like? The team behind TraXion seem to have the answer.
What is TraXion?
The team behind the project recognise the potential of blockchain technology to decentralise a number of services, including banking.
Traxion is an ecosystem that consists of three components: TraxionWallet, TraxionChain, and TraxionContract. Each will form part of what the team calls a user’s digital financial infrastructure.
The first one is TraxionWallet, which will function like your current banking app, except that it can do much more. Not only will you be able to transfer money with it, but it will be like going down to the actual bank. You can use it to lend and borrow as well.
Business users will be able to take advantage of the TractionChain, which is an inter-business blockchain for tracking their results. This way, business professionals will be provided with another tool for measuring their commercial progress.
Finally, TraxionContract is the component that applies smart contract technology to ensure safety and reduce corruption. Similar to many other ICOs who make use of smart contracts, TraxionContract will put control in the hands of professionals.
TraXion will be using the latest IBM Hyperledger Fabric technology to create what they call a “permission-based distributed ledger.”
What is the aim?
There are three key aims of the TreaXion project that interested parties should be aware of.
The first one is to ensure that merchants and customers can send and receive payments seamlessly. This will solve the issues of customers not being able to make a payment unless they know the merchants bank account details. With TraXion, they can simply scan a QR code and make a mobile payment.
The second aim is to end poverty. This may sound like a very ambitious aim, but the team is aware that ending poverty requires a holistic solution. However, they point out, blockchain may be part of that solution. By creating an affordable financial platform, TraXion aims to put developing countries on an equal footing with the OECD.
The third aim is to make aid transparent. The team highlights how charities will be able to benefit from smart contracts in order to reduce corruption. But not only charities will be able to make use of this technology. Any donation make to anyone will be able to be verified for extra security by the use of smart contracts.
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Howdoo Review
Social media platforms like Facebook, which has over 2 billion users worldwide, are raking in a lot of money in advertisements for other companies.
It seems like a good deal for everyone involved.
Users have a social media platform where they can connect with their friends and family for free. Advertisers have access to their target audience and can spend their ad budgets more wisely. Facebook facilitates these advertisements and takes a slice of the pie.
But what there was an even better deal? What if you, as a social media user, not only could decide how many advertisements you are exposed to, but also get paid for it?
Howdoo μDoo is an ICO that will attempt to make social media a better deal for users, and reward them for engaging with the platform.
What is Howdoo μDoo exactly?
In the face of it, Howdoo μDoo could be considered just another social media platform on which users can message each other, share photos, leave comments, and so on.
And it does have all those capabilities. It is a place where content creators, merchants, artists, news media, and other groups can connect with each other.
However, the platform is built on the blockchain. And, like many other ICOs, the platform is using the popular Ethereum blockchain.
There are also some other key differences between Howdoo μDoo and other social media platforms.
The platform will put users in control of their digital footprint, so they know what their data is being used for and by whom.
Users will also be able to choose how many adverts they see, and from whom. More importantly, they will receive compensation for the ads they see.
Rather than having one company police content on the platform, Howdoo μDoo aims to put the user community in charge of regulating anti-social content.
How does it work?
As a Howdoo μDoo user, you will be in complete control of the advertisements you are exposed to. You can select maximum ads for maximum revenue, or no ads for no revenue.
As a content creator, you are in an even better position to earn money. By uploading content, you will receive compensation proportionate to how popular and shared your content is.
As an advertiser, you will have much more control over where your advertisements are displayed, and to whom.
The currency being used on the platform to facilitate all the transactions between users, content creators and advertisers will be the µDoo token.
Who is the team behind it?
Howdoo μDoo was founded last year by David Brierley, who has worked as a Director of Business Analytics at SAP, as well as being Senior Vice President of Pyramid Analytics.
In addition to Brierly, who is also Chief Initiator, Neil Harper is the Chief Storyteller, Nakul Shah heads Research & Development, Mark Perring is Chief Engagement Officer, James Farlow works as a Senior Technical Architect, Tony Loan heads the Invention department, and Beth Lawton works in Development.
What do you think about the concept of getting paid to engage with ads on social media, and being able to choose how much and when? Leave your comments below!
My ETH adress:
0xcD3347Bd7595750473b2dC8d2F32f28a32C868b7
bitcointalk username: Ico Friends