Decentralization and the Blockchain

Linking Outside the Box

Decentralization has become a buzzword and often is quoted in the context of the sharing and collaborative economy, as well as alternative currencies like bitcoin. Per definition decentralization is the process of redistributing or dispersing functions, power, people or things away from a central location or authority. This concept can be applied to politics, economics or technology – among others. Generally speaking you could say that decentralization is about eliminating dependencies.

The vision of decentralization stems from the idea that local action enables direct impact and resilience of a communal ecosystem which is yet woven into a global network. Around the world local initiatives and platforms are popping up which cultivate the exchange between global knowledge and local action. The aspect of global resources takes over the role of former authorities – which is assumed to be much more efficient and pragmatic.

With Jolocom's app people can tie information to their identity, regardless of where it is stored. People can secure the data, yet share it directly between peers in mightily flexible ways. Information is exchanged using peer-to-peer using links and clever access-right-management. Be it files, chat messages, sensor data or any other kind of data – it is managed and shared schemaless, decentralized and disrupting the need for data silos. In order to achieve this, Jolocom is using technologies that have raised eyebrows in recent years. Including blockchain.