Yesterday IOTA announced a major platform release allowing data monetization using micropayments through their distributed ledger technology. The data solution has already garnered huge partnerships from Microsoft, Fujitsu, Bosch, Deutsche Bank Telekom, and others.
IOTA has already issued its tokens of the same name under their token sale earlier this fall. The company has created what it considers a better option in Blockchain technology evolution called ‘tangle.’ Through this system, the company is creating a way for connected devices to be able to transfer, buy and sell diverse datasets while creating access to data that often sits unused, all with substantial security.
A demo of the platform is scheduled to run through January and will be a way for companies to participate in the innovation. Partners will also be able to influence how the platform continues to function. IOTA co-founder David Sønstebø said:
“The goal is to enable a combination of a business-to-business data economy, as well as enabling researchers and even hobbyists to participate. The beauty of enabling fine-granular trade access is that we really don't know who or how it will be used, except that we know it is a completely new paradigm.”
The hope is that the structure of IOTA’s tangle technology, without miners or mining fees, will allow large-scale proliferation of micro-payments for datasets, providing access to data and building a network for companies to use and access that data for improvements to the Internet of Things (IoT).