Microsoft Integrates Ethereum in Azure. Is IBM Next?

Technologies
30.10.2015

Ethereum went up in price following the news stating that Microsoft had presented developer toolkit for creation of Ethereum-based apps. At the moment of writing, 1 ETH costs $1.2.

Thanks to the corporations partnership with ConsenSys, business customers of Mircosoft-owned cloud service Azure may access the Ethereum system named Blockchain-as-a-Service, which is expected to be announced at Ethereums DEVCON1 in London.

Integration of the cryptoplatform will allow Microsoft customers to create private and public blockchains, as well as using Ethereums public nodes with a single click at Azure.

IBM, Ethereum, and Smart Contracts

Developer toolkit issuance for Microsoft Azure is yet another step towards mass adoption of cryptotechnologies. One might reasonably assume that IBM is the next in line to use Ethereum products; it already operates IBM Bluemix, and hatches some ambitious plans regarding smart contracts.

Bluemix is a cloud platform for development and management of applications. If combined with cryptotechnologies and smart contracts, it could serve as a perfect base for establishment of decentralized autonomous entities.

The aforementioned assumption aligns with IBMs latest statements. This September, the company declared it was going to launch an open source platform for work with smart contracts. This year dozens of the companys scientists were engaged in development of a proprietary blockchain-based technology to maintain security for smart contracts.

The most crucial problems the system is set to solve is maintenance of contract scope secrecy, including protection against unauthorized access, as well as simplicity of inclusion / automatic execution of mutual requirements of the counterparties thereto.

Ethereum, Communtiy, and Chinese Cars

About a month ago, the community was raging following the decline of ETH cost and subsequent statement by Vitalik Buterin as to Ethereum Foundations bankruptcy. Moreover, the foundation had experienced some management-related issues. According to Buterin, enormous financial losses were caused by decline of Bitcoin / USD exchange rate.

However, Ethereum remains one of the most successful crowd-sale projects, as the blockchain-based app-development platform managed to invoke 31,529 BTC, which equals $18.4 million (at the moment) via pre-sales of Ether tokens (ETH).

Anyway, after the successful crowd-sales were complete, the developers had postponed the projects release date several times. According to some experts, even current version of Ethereum is rather shoddy. Failed organization, obviously, resulted in ETH price. This September, ETH cost started its decline towards $0.60, and on October, 21, a single token was worth only $0.50. Combined with the founders statement, it all caused a disturbance within the community.

By late September it was clear that Chinese giant Wanxiang would help the project solve its financial problems and save it from complete and utter bankruptcy. It was deus ex machina for Ethereum ironically, Wanxiang is engaged in various machinery-related activities. Wanxiang also announced its plans to launch a non-profit dubbed Blockchain Labs.

Notably, it is not the first time when the Chinese conglomerate saves failed companies. In the period of 2012 to 2014, Wanxiang bought two bankrupt companies from auctions: in 2012, it bought lithium-ion battery manufacturer, A123 systems, for $256.6 million, while in 2014 the Chinese corporation purchased hybrid sport-car manufacturer Fisker Automotive for $149.2 million.

It all can be construed as natural processes, so Ethereums further evolution is subject to assumptions. Will it become a subdivision of a giant corporation, or continue leading a free life? Only time will tell. However, general evolutionary trend of cryptotechnology, and smart contracts / decentralized autonomous entities in particular, seems way more important.

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