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Bitcoin Giant Bitfury Enters Music Industry with Its New Blockchain-Based Platform

Bitcoin giant bitfury enters music industry with its new blockchain-based platform

Bitcoin Giant Bitfury Enters Music Industry with Its New Blockchain-Based Platform

Photo: bitfury surround

Photo: Bitfury Surround

Games, shopping, healthcare, and other spheres of our life have already adopted blockchain, but the music industry is something new. Some companies attempted to make waves there, but the most significant initiative has been introduced by a major player in the blockchain world.

BitFury, the largest private Bitcoin Blockchain infrastructure provider and transaction processing company, has announced it will enter the notoriously opaque music industry to decentralize it. The company is planning to launch Bitfury Surround, a music entertainment division that will create an open-source music platform secured by the cryptocurrency blockchain.

The open-source platform, named SurroundTM, is secured by blockchain. Addressing the challenges in the music industry, the platform will help artists and other rightsholders. The platform’s aim is to streamline the secure transfer of copyright assets including better monitoring and management systems. With such a view, SurroundTM will allow sharing and monetizing intellectual property and provide transparent management functions and trusted data.

Stefan Schulz, CEO of SurroundTM and a 20-year music and entertainment industry veteran, said:

“There is a very strong momentum for an open entertainment-related blockchain where market participants themselves would be participating in the market venue, not only from a transactional value point of view.”

Schulz further said:

“The Surround ecosystem will foster transparency and trust, save administrative costs and improve a secure and transparent flow of content from artists to consumers on the blockchain, making efficiency gains available to all market participants fairly.”

According to Bitfury, SurroundTM will lead the way in promoting innovation within the music industry. The Bitfury Surround business division will be based in Europe, with operations in Amsterdam and Berlin. Other offices are set for Los Angeles, Tokyo, Seoul, and Moscow.

As Bitfury’s CEO stated, the platform won’t launch “for some time.”

Schulz said:

“The actual platform is being put together and developed as we speak. Several parts have already been in place.”

The Bitfury Group to Become the Largest Mining Company

BitFury is one of the largest crypto mining companies. Founded in 2011, the company is now based in London. It sells gear used to mine cryptocurrencies and develops blockchain technology for clients including the Ukrainian government.

Late last year, the Bitfury Group raised $80 million in a round of private financing. Among the investors were such companies as Macquarie Capital, Asian financier Dentsu, European companies Armat Group and Jabre & Lian Group, and the merchant bank founded by billionaire and ex-Goldman Sachs Group Inc. partner Mike Novogratz.

Such success of funding pushed Bitfury’s valuation to USD 1 billion. Moreover, the round allowed BitFury to be among the top five manufacturers in the crypto mining hardware market, along with AMD, Bitmain, Canaan, and Baikal Miner.

Published at Mon, 21 Jan 2019 09:53:01 +0000

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Japan: Bitcoin Payments Could See 260,000 Stores by Summer

bitcoin payments may be accepted at over 260,000 stores in Japan by this summer following partnerships between the country’s bitcoin exchanges and major retailers.


Bic Camera to Trial bitcoin Payments

Japanese electronics chain Bic Camera has partnered with Tokyo-based bitFlyer, which runs the country’s largest bitcoin exchange that currently comprises about 10% of the bitcoin market.

This Friday, Bic Camera’s flagship shop in Tokyo’s Yurakucho district along with Bicqlo Bic Camera, a hybrid outlet with Uniqlo, will begin a trial run using bitFlyer’s bitcoin payment system, according to the official release.

Customers will be able to pay up to 100,000 yen (~$900 USD) with bitcoin, which will also include reward points at the same rate as for cash payments. The trial will determine if Bic Camera will expand bitcoin payments to its other 39 nationwide locations.

260,000 Merchants Can Now Accept bitcoin

Meanwhile, another Tokyo bitcoin exchange, Coincheck, has partnered with Recruit Lifestyle, the retail support arm of human resources conglomerate Recruit Holdings.

Coincheck, which currently holds 99% of the bitcoin payment market share in Japan, will bring bitcoin payments to shops that use AirRegi, a point-of-sale app developed by Recruit Lifestyle, by this summer.

To pay with bitcoin, customers can simply scan the barcode displayed on the app. Coincheck will process the transaction, converting the bitcoin into yen for the merchant.

Additionally, the app also supports Alipay, China’s leading third-party payment solution. However, Chinese tourists visiting Japan will be able to finally spend their bitcoin, something they cannot do in their home country.

Today, the most popular electronic payment options in Japan include Suica and Rakuten’s Edy, which are accepted at 380,000 and 470,000 locations, respectively. But with these recent moves, virtual currency could soon enter their ranks as AirRegi terminals are already used at 260,000 eateries and other retail locations nationwide.

Japan: Land of the Rising Bits

bitcoin transaction volume in Japan began to increase significantly since 2016, and in January 2017 its volume exceeded 541.1 billion yen (about 20 times compared to the same period last year).

Just recently, on April 1, 2017, Japan’s Payment Services Act for virtual currencies went into effect, recognizing bitcoin as a legal payment option while forcing cryptocurrency exchanges to register with the government. Starting in July, purchases of virtual currency will be exempt from the consumption tax.

Overall, the new regulations and tax incentives are expected to boost consumer confidence and growth of the domestic virtual currency market, which already had over 4,000 locations accepting bitcoin.

Will these new partnership make bitcoin a mainstream payment method in the country? Share your thoughts below! 


Images courtesy of Shutterstock, air-regi.com, 

The post Japan: Bitcoin Payments Could See 260,000 Stores by Summer appeared first on Bitcoinist.com.