How can such heavy topics be conveyed? On the second day of the event, the keynote and prenote dealt with the topic of blockchain.Ingo Rübe, founder and CEO of BOTLabs GmbH, dissected the possibilities and limits of blockchain technology in detail and explained in juxtapositions the potential it has to fundamentally change the Internet.
It was IT hardcore pure and simple.In contrast, ARD digital expert Jörg Schieb conveyed the topic in a much more relaxed manner.“That was like an instructive TV show in terms of blockchain,” said one participant.
Ingo Rübe is the founder and CEO of BOTLabs GmbH, a Berlin-based start-up that develops a solution for self-determined digital identities using block chain technologies.The company was founded in January 2018 together with the minority shareholder, Burda.
Ingo Rübe has created a blockchain protocol for decentralized, self-sufficient data management, which enables numerous new business models around the resource “trust”.What is blockchain?
What is blockchain and where are the concrete applications? Blockchain is a decentralized accounting system, a continuously expandable chain of data records (blocks), which are linked together with cryptographic procedures.Each block typically contains a secure code from the previous block, a time stamp and transaction data.
Ingo Rübe is the founder and CEO of BOTLabs GmbH, a Berlin-based start-up that develops a solution for self-determined digital identities using blockchain technologies.
“Decentralized accounting system because the proper status is documented, since many participants are involved in the accounting process.What is to be documented is initially irrelevant.What is decisive is that later transactions build on earlier transactions and confirm them as correct by proving knowledge of the earlier transactions,” Rübe noted.“This makes it impossible to manipulate the existence or content of earlier transactions without simultaneously destroying all later transactions.
Other participants who have knowledge of the subsequent transactions would recognize a manipulated copy of the blockchain by the fact that it contains inconsistencies in the calculations”.This also explains what Rübe means by “trust” in connection with blockchain.Two diagrams from Jörg Schieb’s presentation that illustrate the principle of blockchain: The structure is decentralized (left) and tamper-proof.Whoever takes out a single chain destroys the entire structure.
Any manipulation would be immediately noticeable.
When comparing the advantages and disadvantages of a central database and a blockchain, it became clear why many industries and companies are currently thinking about how they can use the blockchain technology to their advantage.“A central database is comparatively simple to administer, is cost-efficient and fast, but is also susceptible to corruption, failure and attacks from inside and outside, and is also highly undemocratic,” explained Rübe.“A blockchain, on the other hand, is resistant to corruption and attacks, is fail-safe and democratic – but is complicated to administer, expensive to operate and slow due to the necessary consensus”.Alternative to the broken Internet
The most important applications for blockchain are – after ten years – apart from the crypto-currency Bitcoin and the advance of Facebook (Libra), applications in the area of DeFi (decentralized finance) which have remained largely unknown to the public.Nevertheless, it is already a 500-billion-dollar market, noted Ingo Rübe.
“But blockchain can become an alternative to the broken Internet,” he explained.
“Then there will be a level playing field for application providers, data sovereignty for users and independence from US cloud providers.”
For in the current Internet, power is centralized.A handful of companies control the memory, computing power, identities and data of Internet participants.Cloud storage is mainly offered by Amazon, Google, Microsoft and Apple.Only a few cloud services are therefore storing the world’s information.
Facebook and Google hold our digital identities.Our personal information is stored in central profiles controlled by the companies that also control the storage.The monopoly of a few platforms has repeatedly led to criticism and the desire to take away the power of the Internet giants.This could be achieved with blockchain technology.
But, says Rübe: “First of all, the user-friendliness must be increased for a mass application.To achieve this, the blockchain community, industry and regulatory authorities must work together,” explained Rübe.
Afterwards, blockchain could be an infrastructure for the next development of the Web and accumulate an even higher value than the Internet industry.A decentralized financial system could emerge, crypto currencies could become “digital gold”, stable coins would be accepted by industry and banks, and security tokens could replace stocks, bonds and other financial instruments.
It all sounds futuristic, but according to Ingo Rübe’s assessment it will surely come to pass.Blockchain creates pressure
Jörg Schieb explained the development and background to the current hype in the tech and financial world and listed the effects that blockchain will have on society and industry and the influence it could also have on the online print industry.” blockchain will not only change the way production processes work but could also replace paper and printing.But before it can enter the mainstream, it has to be established where the benefits for the individual actor really arise – be it companies, end customers or technology providers,” says Schieb.“There are opportunities in the blockchain concept for us all.Because blockchain is an extremely interesting technology,” explained ARD digital expert Jörg Schieb.
Those who want to understand blockchain, however, have to rethink, said Jörg Schieb.“Because the mechanisms and the way it works are different from what we have seen so far.Data is no longer stored centrally in one database, but in many at the same time.
Everything is securely encrypted and chained.Change or manipulate a transaction afterwards? Not possible,” says ARD expert and author for digital topics.That is also what makes blockchain so charming.Procedures are transparent and transactions are safe from manipulation.
This alone makes blockchain attractive in many areas.Online business and trade could switch to crypto currencies, payment with credit cards etc.It could become even simpler and more secure – as could the electronic identity card.
That means there are a lot of chances in it.German companies are currently developing solutions that could soon be of interest worldwide and are developing into an enormous competitive advantage – particularly in the printing industry.
” This is because on the one hand blockchain can replace paper and printing, but on the other hand it can also accelerate and make processes in the production chain more secure,” analyzed Schieb.Blockchain in the media world
Currently, many industries and companies are thinking about how they can use the blockchain technology to their advantage.Soon it could become standard practice to transfer and hand over data using blockchain technology – and thus protect it from manipulation.“This will happen sooner or later – sooner rather than later! – a challenge for the printing industry as well.
Not only to exchange data in the production chain via blockchain, but also to ensure that the information to be printed is transmitted in encrypted form and is tamper-proof.
If texts, photos, graphics or other contents are transmitted via blockchain, it is possible to trace who sent which data and who may have made corrections up until the printing presses are turned on.It is then impossible for unauthorized persons to change anything – for example, to exchange a word or replace a picture.“I can easily imagine that it will soon be a standard requirement to support blockchain in Print because it often involves sensitive data and processes,” Jörg Schieb explained.
However, blockchain could also have a considerable influence on the way photographs are handled, which are now purchased from picture agencies.“In the future, all those who need photos could help themselves to a pool of offered photos and pay the photographers directly via Smart Contracts.
The same with texts.So it is important for the printing industry to be integrated in this process,” says Schieb.
“Intermediaries are becoming less important.Authors could be paid for their texts, while readers could simply pay.The same applies to music, videos and other content.
It will become easier to offer the content and earn a profit from it.Everyone can see who owns the content – and whether it has been manipulated.There will be interesting opportunities for all of us.” My Take: Blockchain is an informational structure that is based on the Internet and consists of a chain of data blocks.This also applies to Industry 4.0, as everything is stored in the chain and is more transparent.At the same time, blockchain technology reduces the risk of monopoly formation, while intermediaries become less important.
The retention of data, deposits and fees merely for mediation will become less relevant.This could weaken agencies, advertising and internet giants.However, not completely and also not overnight.
But it is conceivable in the medium term.After all, various start-ups are working on solutions to break the dominance of the big players.
Summary OPS 2020: Where are there blockchain applications? Description How can such heavy topics be conveyed? On the second day of the event, the keynote and prenote dealt with the topic of blockchain.Ingo Rübe, founder and CEO of BOTLabs GmbH, dissected the possibilities and limits of blockchain technology in detail and explained in juxtapositions the potential it has to fundamentally change the Internet.Author.
