[ArchD]

He means the blockchain application in TFA is bullshit but the other situation he described regarding hinterland transportation is one that could benefit from a proper decentralized blockchain system but there is no such system.

[miohtama]

This is correct. I watched a presentation long time ago (way too early) about a blockchain pilot for container and document transfer between Finland and Estonia.

https://www.porttechnology.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/03...

The author of the pilot told quite clearly that it is a killer for small and medium sized businesses, like few trucks and a man and a dog companies. Efficiencies could go up greatly. But then, when he pitched the idea to three letter logistic giant, he was thrown out from the board room because any decentralised network would kill the edge large logistics companies have. One of the main competitive edge for a large logistics company is that their internal IT systems work well and there is no problem with the information flow. They do not want to have a level playing field here.

[sidewndr46]

This is something lots of people often miss. The barriers to entry and the difficulty of using any system is someone's else's market edge. It's part of the reason why healthcare in the US is such a clusterfuck. It is the only industry with a degree of government mandates around price obfuscation. If you fix that, most hospitals would lose their edge in the market. Even the notorious automobile industry has clearer pricing.

[wnissen]

Exactly! IBM had a number of these that all involved "blockchain" but somehow also required that IBM host the blockchain in their cloud. I am no blockchain expert, but if you have IBM running the show, why not simply let them be the authority who runs a standard shared database with an API on top? Decentralization takes extra work, but it's worth it when it allows two parties to transact who, crucially, have no reason to trust each other and no convenient intermediary.

[simne]

I'm slightly involved in business, not in subject, but could answer.

There are hundreds large ports in this world, and when ship transport your payload, owner MUST communicate with many govt and private structures.

And these structures are not friends to each other, remember, for example one of channels is nationalized by Egypt govt, near it strait owned by Turkey, and they are not in war state just now, but near, and they all don't love US, and from time to time make nonfriendly actions, and could achieve US sanctions.

And complex software needs good communication with vendor.

Now imagine, how consultants from same US company will work, when one country is US ally, but other is under US sanctions? - Communications will be extremely hard.

Open protocols and decentralization give perfect answer - nonfriendly countries will use blockchain, which is not owned by any subject, so they have not any reasons to block communications.

[oblio]

They haven't thought this through.

If the US wants to sanction country A, and country A uses a blockchain to circumvent sanctions, what do you think will happen next? The US goes: "ah, blockchain, foiled again!!!"?

Is any blockchain really resistant to country level attackers? I highly doubt that, especially against the US.