And this morning, a little drama: after an argument on Twitter, IOTA confirmed that it has not actually 'partnered' with Microsoft, contrary to popular belief. Was the partnership a lie on IOTA's part, or inaccurate reporting on the part of the media? Let's take a look.
Name-dropping leads to price increase
IOTA's coin, MIOTA, surpassed Ripple last week to become the fourth most valuable cryptocurrency in the world. Partly responsible for the rise in price was the announcement that the network had 'partnered' with monolith Microsoft.
It was widely reported in November when IOTA co-founder David Sønstebø said: “We are very excited to announce the launch of our data marketplace. This will act as a catalyst for a whole new paradigm of research, artificial intelligence, and democratization of data.” This marketplace was created in partnership with more than 20 companies - including, apparently, Microsoft.
Omkar Naik, Microsoft Blockchain
Blockchain
Blockchain comprises a digital network of blocks with a comprehensive ledger of transactions made in a cryptocurrency such as Bitcoin or other altcoins.One of the signature features of blockchain is that it is maintained across more than one computer. The ledger can be public or private (permissioned.) In this sense, blockchain is immune to the manipulation of data making it not only open but verifiable. Because a blockchain is stored across a network of computers, it is very difficult to tamper with. The Evolution of BlockchainBlockchain was originally invented by an individual or group of people under the name of Satoshi Nakamoto in 2008. The purpose of blockchain was originally to serve as the public transaction ledger of Bitcoin, the world’s first cryptocurrency.In particular, bundles of transaction data, called “blocks”, are added to the ledger in a chronological fashion, forming a “chain.” These blocks include things like date, time, dollar amount, and (in some cases) the public addresses of the sender and the receiver.The computers responsible for upholding a blockchain network are called “nodes.” These nodes carry out the duties necessary to confirm the transactions and add them to the ledger. In exchange for their work, the nodes receive rewards in the form of crypto tokens.By storing data via a peer-to-peer network (P2P), blockchain controls for a wide range of risks that are traditionally inherent with data being held centrally.Of note, P2P blockchain networks lack centralized points of vulnerability. Consequently, hackers cannot exploit these networks via normalized means nor does the network possess a central failure point.In order to hack or alter a blockchain’s ledger, more than half of the nodes must be compromised. Looking ahead, blockchain technology is an area of extensive research across multiple industries, including financial services and payments, among others.
Blockchain comprises a digital network of blocks with a comprehensive ledger of transactions made in a cryptocurrency such as Bitcoin or other altcoins.One of the signature features of blockchain is that it is maintained across more than one computer. The ledger can be public or private (permissioned.) In this sense, blockchain is immune to the manipulation of data making it not only open but verifiable. Because a blockchain is stored across a network of computers, it is very difficult to tamper with. The Evolution of BlockchainBlockchain was originally invented by an individual or group of people under the name of Satoshi Nakamoto in 2008. The purpose of blockchain was originally to serve as the public transaction ledger of Bitcoin, the world’s first cryptocurrency.In particular, bundles of transaction data, called “blocks”, are added to the ledger in a chronological fashion, forming a “chain.” These blocks include things like date, time, dollar amount, and (in some cases) the public addresses of the sender and the receiver.The computers responsible for upholding a blockchain network are called “nodes.” These nodes carry out the duties necessary to confirm the transactions and add them to the ledger. In exchange for their work, the nodes receive rewards in the form of crypto tokens.By storing data via a peer-to-peer network (P2P), blockchain controls for a wide range of risks that are traditionally inherent with data being held centrally.Of note, P2P blockchain networks lack centralized points of vulnerability. Consequently, hackers cannot exploit these networks via normalized means nor does the network possess a central failure point.In order to hack or alter a blockchain’s ledger, more than half of the nodes must be compromised. Looking ahead, blockchain technology is an area of extensive research across multiple industries, including financial services and payments, among others.
Read this Term specialist, was quoted at the time: “We are excited to partner with the IOTA Foundation and proud to be associated with its new data marketplace initiative.”
IOTA published this quote on its blog, and apparently corrected Reuters' report on the development, requesting that the word 'Microsoft' be in the headline.
An argument on Twitter
Yesterday, The Next Web published a tweet headlined "IOTA admits it has no formal partnership with Microsoft".
Co-founder David Sønstebø responded angrily, calling this claim "an absolute fabrication". An argument ensued.
IOTA admits it has no formal partnership with Microsoft https://t.co/yJpM2i3uIt
— TNW (@TheNextWeb) December 12, 2017
An open relationship
There is a banal explanation to all of this. IOTA co-founder Dominik Schniener told TNW in an email: “We have never mentioned that any of the companies which are participating in the marketplace are our ‘partners'...We call them participants.”
He goes on to explain that there is an active, working relationship between the two parties: “We are in touch with multiple divisions at Microsoft (Chicago, Paris, Munich)... [and] are Hosting
Hosting
Hosting refers to the location of a broker’s technology stack. This is one of the most crucial elements of a brokerage that helps prevent the company from losing money due to being unable to mitigate latency risks.Brokers or exchanges are traditionally very vulnerable to latency arbitrage due to the speed with which financial markets move. The traditional datacenter locations for forex brokers are all centered at Equinix facilities around the globe. What Are the World’s Foremost Data Centers?Since most forex infrastructure is located at a couple of locations globally, it is wise for the broker to co-locate its infrastructure. The industry’s hotspots are London’s LD4 and LD5, New York NY4 and NY5, Tokyo’s TY3 and Hong Kong’s HK1.Hosting services can be handled internally directly with the datacenter or by using one of the available hosting solutions providers servicing the industry. The world’s most advanced data centers offer specialized products that support evolving equipment standards and technology requirements. This is essential for brokers or exchanges, many of which require a blend of physical security and power usage with turnkey relocation services and support globally.In addition to overall speed, such connections are also very helpful in minimizing security threats. Many companies even outside the finance industry prefer to rely on these types of advances hosting services.The advent of cloud hosting has also led to efficiency improvements, especially for execution and operations. This technology also gives banks a greater opportunity to drive out complexity. Hosting through the cloud also helps develop and launch new and bundled products and services, either on a stand-alone basis or in partnership.
Hosting refers to the location of a broker’s technology stack. This is one of the most crucial elements of a brokerage that helps prevent the company from losing money due to being unable to mitigate latency risks.Brokers or exchanges are traditionally very vulnerable to latency arbitrage due to the speed with which financial markets move. The traditional datacenter locations for forex brokers are all centered at Equinix facilities around the globe. What Are the World’s Foremost Data Centers?Since most forex infrastructure is located at a couple of locations globally, it is wise for the broker to co-locate its infrastructure. The industry’s hotspots are London’s LD4 and LD5, New York NY4 and NY5, Tokyo’s TY3 and Hong Kong’s HK1.Hosting services can be handled internally directly with the datacenter or by using one of the available hosting solutions providers servicing the industry. The world’s most advanced data centers offer specialized products that support evolving equipment standards and technology requirements. This is essential for brokers or exchanges, many of which require a blend of physical security and power usage with turnkey relocation services and support globally.In addition to overall speed, such connections are also very helpful in minimizing security threats. Many companies even outside the finance industry prefer to rely on these types of advances hosting services.The advent of cloud hosting has also led to efficiency improvements, especially for execution and operations. This technology also gives banks a greater opportunity to drive out complexity. Hosting through the cloud also helps develop and launch new and bundled products and services, either on a stand-alone basis or in partnership.
Read this Term two meetups today in Chicago and on Thursday in Paris which are hosted at the Microsoft offices.”
So perhaps IOTA allowed this semantic misunderstanding to spread as an exercise in name-dropping. But as Sønstebø pointed out on Twitter, if Microsoft itself used the word partnership, the onus was not on IOTA to correct it.
It should be noted that the TNW article in question uses the word 'clarifies' in the headline, but the original title used the more incendiary word 'admits', prompting the angry response from IOTA.
IOTA offered an official response after the publication of the story:
“We have never stated that there was any formal partnership with Microsoft, and instead always referred to them as a participant to the marketplace. The media has overblown the story into a “IOTA launches Data Marketplace with Microsoft”, which couldn’t be further from the truth, as we are working together with more than 30 of the largest companies in the world on the marketplace as a co-innovation exercise. When it comes to our communication and the involvement of Microsoft, we have asked for written and explicit approval of the press release, quote and logo beforehand and have stayed within the boundaries with what we were allowed to do.”
What is IOTA?
IOTA is a blockchain network which has been very successful recently.
The IOTA blockchain differs from that of Bitcoin in that it is much lighter and faster. A new block of data is added to the chain automatically with every transaction, and transactions can take place offline too, to be added later. For this reason it is quicker to use, and can be operated from mobile devices.
It was designed to be integrated with the internet of things, a system in which everyday household appliances are all connected to the internet. An internet-connected toaster was presented at a conference in 1989, and the idea has been discussed ever since.
The ease of use of the IOTA network - called 'the Tangle' - has made it very popular.
And this morning, a little drama: after an argument on Twitter, IOTA confirmed that it has not actually 'partnered' with Microsoft, contrary to popular belief. Was the partnership a lie on IOTA's part, or inaccurate reporting on the part of the media? Let's take a look.
Name-dropping leads to price increase
IOTA's coin, MIOTA, surpassed Ripple last week to become the fourth most valuable cryptocurrency in the world. Partly responsible for the rise in price was the announcement that the network had 'partnered' with monolith Microsoft.
It was widely reported in November when IOTA co-founder David Sønstebø said: “We are very excited to announce the launch of our data marketplace. This will act as a catalyst for a whole new paradigm of research, artificial intelligence, and democratization of data.” This marketplace was created in partnership with more than 20 companies - including, apparently, Microsoft.
Omkar Naik, Microsoft Blockchain
Blockchain
Blockchain comprises a digital network of blocks with a comprehensive ledger of transactions made in a cryptocurrency such as Bitcoin or other altcoins.One of the signature features of blockchain is that it is maintained across more than one computer. The ledger can be public or private (permissioned.) In this sense, blockchain is immune to the manipulation of data making it not only open but verifiable. Because a blockchain is stored across a network of computers, it is very difficult to tamper with. The Evolution of BlockchainBlockchain was originally invented by an individual or group of people under the name of Satoshi Nakamoto in 2008. The purpose of blockchain was originally to serve as the public transaction ledger of Bitcoin, the world’s first cryptocurrency.In particular, bundles of transaction data, called “blocks”, are added to the ledger in a chronological fashion, forming a “chain.” These blocks include things like date, time, dollar amount, and (in some cases) the public addresses of the sender and the receiver.The computers responsible for upholding a blockchain network are called “nodes.” These nodes carry out the duties necessary to confirm the transactions and add them to the ledger. In exchange for their work, the nodes receive rewards in the form of crypto tokens.By storing data via a peer-to-peer network (P2P), blockchain controls for a wide range of risks that are traditionally inherent with data being held centrally.Of note, P2P blockchain networks lack centralized points of vulnerability. Consequently, hackers cannot exploit these networks via normalized means nor does the network possess a central failure point.In order to hack or alter a blockchain’s ledger, more than half of the nodes must be compromised. Looking ahead, blockchain technology is an area of extensive research across multiple industries, including financial services and payments, among others.
Blockchain comprises a digital network of blocks with a comprehensive ledger of transactions made in a cryptocurrency such as Bitcoin or other altcoins.One of the signature features of blockchain is that it is maintained across more than one computer. The ledger can be public or private (permissioned.) In this sense, blockchain is immune to the manipulation of data making it not only open but verifiable. Because a blockchain is stored across a network of computers, it is very difficult to tamper with. The Evolution of BlockchainBlockchain was originally invented by an individual or group of people under the name of Satoshi Nakamoto in 2008. The purpose of blockchain was originally to serve as the public transaction ledger of Bitcoin, the world’s first cryptocurrency.In particular, bundles of transaction data, called “blocks”, are added to the ledger in a chronological fashion, forming a “chain.” These blocks include things like date, time, dollar amount, and (in some cases) the public addresses of the sender and the receiver.The computers responsible for upholding a blockchain network are called “nodes.” These nodes carry out the duties necessary to confirm the transactions and add them to the ledger. In exchange for their work, the nodes receive rewards in the form of crypto tokens.By storing data via a peer-to-peer network (P2P), blockchain controls for a wide range of risks that are traditionally inherent with data being held centrally.Of note, P2P blockchain networks lack centralized points of vulnerability. Consequently, hackers cannot exploit these networks via normalized means nor does the network possess a central failure point.In order to hack or alter a blockchain’s ledger, more than half of the nodes must be compromised. Looking ahead, blockchain technology is an area of extensive research across multiple industries, including financial services and payments, among others.
Read this Term specialist, was quoted at the time: “We are excited to partner with the IOTA Foundation and proud to be associated with its new data marketplace initiative.”
IOTA published this quote on its blog, and apparently corrected Reuters' report on the development, requesting that the word 'Microsoft' be in the headline.
An argument on Twitter
Yesterday, The Next Web published a tweet headlined "IOTA admits it has no formal partnership with Microsoft".
Co-founder David Sønstebø responded angrily, calling this claim "an absolute fabrication". An argument ensued.
IOTA admits it has no formal partnership with Microsoft https://t.co/yJpM2i3uIt
— TNW (@TheNextWeb) December 12, 2017
An open relationship
There is a banal explanation to all of this. IOTA co-founder Dominik Schniener told TNW in an email: “We have never mentioned that any of the companies which are participating in the marketplace are our ‘partners'...We call them participants.”
He goes on to explain that there is an active, working relationship between the two parties: “We are in touch with multiple divisions at Microsoft (Chicago, Paris, Munich)... [and] are Hosting
Hosting
Hosting refers to the location of a broker’s technology stack. This is one of the most crucial elements of a brokerage that helps prevent the company from losing money due to being unable to mitigate latency risks.Brokers or exchanges are traditionally very vulnerable to latency arbitrage due to the speed with which financial markets move. The traditional datacenter locations for forex brokers are all centered at Equinix facilities around the globe. What Are the World’s Foremost Data Centers?Since most forex infrastructure is located at a couple of locations globally, it is wise for the broker to co-locate its infrastructure. The industry’s hotspots are London’s LD4 and LD5, New York NY4 and NY5, Tokyo’s TY3 and Hong Kong’s HK1.Hosting services can be handled internally directly with the datacenter or by using one of the available hosting solutions providers servicing the industry. The world’s most advanced data centers offer specialized products that support evolving equipment standards and technology requirements. This is essential for brokers or exchanges, many of which require a blend of physical security and power usage with turnkey relocation services and support globally.In addition to overall speed, such connections are also very helpful in minimizing security threats. Many companies even outside the finance industry prefer to rely on these types of advances hosting services.The advent of cloud hosting has also led to efficiency improvements, especially for execution and operations. This technology also gives banks a greater opportunity to drive out complexity. Hosting through the cloud also helps develop and launch new and bundled products and services, either on a stand-alone basis or in partnership.
Hosting refers to the location of a broker’s technology stack. This is one of the most crucial elements of a brokerage that helps prevent the company from losing money due to being unable to mitigate latency risks.Brokers or exchanges are traditionally very vulnerable to latency arbitrage due to the speed with which financial markets move. The traditional datacenter locations for forex brokers are all centered at Equinix facilities around the globe. What Are the World’s Foremost Data Centers?Since most forex infrastructure is located at a couple of locations globally, it is wise for the broker to co-locate its infrastructure. The industry’s hotspots are London’s LD4 and LD5, New York NY4 and NY5, Tokyo’s TY3 and Hong Kong’s HK1.Hosting services can be handled internally directly with the datacenter or by using one of the available hosting solutions providers servicing the industry. The world’s most advanced data centers offer specialized products that support evolving equipment standards and technology requirements. This is essential for brokers or exchanges, many of which require a blend of physical security and power usage with turnkey relocation services and support globally.In addition to overall speed, such connections are also very helpful in minimizing security threats. Many companies even outside the finance industry prefer to rely on these types of advances hosting services.The advent of cloud hosting has also led to efficiency improvements, especially for execution and operations. This technology also gives banks a greater opportunity to drive out complexity. Hosting through the cloud also helps develop and launch new and bundled products and services, either on a stand-alone basis or in partnership.
Read this Term two meetups today in Chicago and on Thursday in Paris which are hosted at the Microsoft offices.”
So perhaps IOTA allowed this semantic misunderstanding to spread as an exercise in name-dropping. But as Sønstebø pointed out on Twitter, if Microsoft itself used the word partnership, the onus was not on IOTA to correct it.
It should be noted that the TNW article in question uses the word 'clarifies' in the headline, but the original title used the more incendiary word 'admits', prompting the angry response from IOTA.
IOTA offered an official response after the publication of the story:
“We have never stated that there was any formal partnership with Microsoft, and instead always referred to them as a participant to the marketplace. The media has overblown the story into a “IOTA launches Data Marketplace with Microsoft”, which couldn’t be further from the truth, as we are working together with more than 30 of the largest companies in the world on the marketplace as a co-innovation exercise. When it comes to our communication and the involvement of Microsoft, we have asked for written and explicit approval of the press release, quote and logo beforehand and have stayed within the boundaries with what we were allowed to do.”
What is IOTA?
IOTA is a blockchain network which has been very successful recently.
The IOTA blockchain differs from that of Bitcoin in that it is much lighter and faster. A new block of data is added to the chain automatically with every transaction, and transactions can take place offline too, to be added later. For this reason it is quicker to use, and can be operated from mobile devices.
It was designed to be integrated with the internet of things, a system in which everyday household appliances are all connected to the internet. An internet-connected toaster was presented at a conference in 1989, and the idea has been discussed ever since.
The ease of use of the IOTA network - called 'the Tangle' - has made it very popular.
