My take on the definition of blockchain

The internet that we are using today is a centralized system that is run — maintain and rule — by some certain institution depend on its purpose.

For instance, the government will maintain the public internet structure, or the social media company will be monetizing the internet service to align with terms and rules. In fact, there is a superior controller to the system, and the controller is able to rewrite or change the record to anything in the database.

There are two problems with the whole system. First, the database’s owner has an exclusive control over the use of all the data, hence any data, including personal one, could be unknowingly leveraged. Second, the authenticity of the data can be manipulated internally or hacked by an external force.

Blockchain is the technology that allows internet users to participate in complete peer-to-peer networks.

A blockchain has a “shared memory” that records all the activities in the network to a public record, and no individual or organization owns an exclusive control to that public record. Each participant will have a proprietary ownership to all the data that the upload to the network, others can only access to the date when they have permission to do so. Transactions, either exchanging a very small piece of information or a large digital asset, are truly one-to-one and automatically recorded. The result will be a decentralized network will real-time updates for all participants.

Bitcoin is a blockchain. It was specially designed for cryptocurrency. Blockchain allows the currency to be completely digitized and not regulated by any institution, banks, or governments. All participants themselves will validate and executive all the transaction before it is recorded to the public ledger — the shared memory that every participant can see, but can’t change any record unless making a real transaction.

Bitcoin created a business case that a network’s history can be recorded wholly and transparently while eliminating the role of any third party from the process. Hence, blockchain has the potential to not only solve the trust problem between individuals but also bring enormous economic values to organizations.

Blockchain technology is feasible to enhance the efficiency of almost every industry.

Both tech and non-tech giants are working toward the future of private blockchains that could help all type of organizations gain more transparency in operation, and the ease of keeping records. While still keeping the most important features like peer-to-peer communication process and the immutable ledger, private blockchains will create certain rules for its own participants.

Retrieved from Bloomberg — May 18, 2017

At the moment, blockchain perhaps playing its best in industries where the business process still relies much on a third party such as monetary and financial services, online trading, and supply chain management. Another good example is in the music industry when musicians can sell their music directly to the listeners with the help of Music Coin or Mycelia. In the near future, blockchain will be the main factor to reduce overhead costs and bring more automation to many businesses of all types.

Source of Reference
https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/high-tech/our-insights/how-blockchains-could-change-the-world
https://www.investopedia.com/news/public-vs-private-blockchains-challenges-and-gaps/
http://www.wired.co.uk/article/blockchain-disrupting-music-mycelia
https://www.bloomberg.com/view/articles/2018-05-17/maybe-blockchain-isn-t-as-cool-as-it-thinks-it-is
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-03-21/google-is-said-to-work-on-its-own-blockchain-related-technology