TBCASoft, IBM & SoftBank Corp. Announce Plans to Transform the Telecommunications Industry With Cross-Carrier Blockchain Solu...
23 October 2019 - 12:00AM
Business Wire
TBCASoft, IBM (NYSE: IBM) and SoftBank Corp. (TSE:9434) today
announced that they are entering into a strategic collaboration to
support the transformation of the telecommunications industry that
is intended to use cross-carrier blockchain technology designed to
enable new synergies throughout the industry, provide new services
to telecom carriers and their subscribers, and foster innovative
business models.
Based on the planned agreement, TBCASoft will bring technology
and solutions, IBM will bring its blockchain technology, experience
in integrating and scaling blockchain networks, and software
solutions, and SoftBank will bring its telecommunications expertise
to the collaboration. Together, the companies will aim to enable
carriers to leverage blockchain technology through the Carrier
Blockchain Study Group (CBSG) Consortium, a global carrier
blockchain consortium co-founded by TBCASoft and SoftBank.
The three companies share a common vision and believe that
carriers are well-positioned to harness the benefits of blockchain
technology. TBCASoft has created a cross-carrier blockchain network
that already includes 18 participants. This network is designed to
support several industry-specific use cases including cross-border
payments, digital identity, and telecom supply chain, leading to
substantial opportunities for industry members.
The first application to be launched by the CBSG Consortium is
the Cross-Carrier Payment System (CCPS), which will be designed to
allow traveling mobile subscribers to use their mobile payment app
with local merchants while abroad. TBCASoft blockchain technology
aims to help optimize transaction records and clearing between
different telecom carriers, also referred to as over-the-top (OTT)
payment solutions. CCPS provides interoperability across different
OTT payment networks, making established networks of merchants
instantly available to telecom carrier subscribers.
IBM has worked closely with TBCASoft to define the consortium
strategy, and, through this new strategic collaboration, will also
support the scaling of the ecosystem, leveraging the experience
gained through working with 80% of the world’s telecommunication
carriers. To provide telecom carriers added flexibility, TBCASoft
plans to use the IBM Blockchain Platform in its blockchain stack to
offer open technology that can be used in multiple cloud
environments.
SoftBank is one of the founders of the CBSG Consortium and the
first adopter of CCPS. The Japanese telecom leader is providing
industry expertise, strategic support and technical services to
make the launch of CCPS possible. SoftBank aims to launch the
payment system in Tokyo in 2020.
Ling Wu, Founder and CEO of TBCASoft, said, “As the global
pioneer of cross-carrier blockchain solutions, we have been working
closely with leading telecommunication carriers in the past 3 years
under the CBSG Consortium to drive adoption of the CCPS platform.
As the technology provider of CCPS, we are extremely excited to see
the strong momentum of the platform and how it is positioned as an
important pillar of the telecommunication transformation strategy.
We believe that this collaboration will bring greater combined
values to our customers, partners, and the telecommunication
industry.”
Utpal Mangla, Vice President & Partner for Blockchain, IBM
Telecommunications Services said, “As telecommunication networks
evolve and we move into the 5G era, carriers will help transform
into digital service providers and provide consistent customer
experiences across multiple platforms. Leveraging a
telecommunications blockchain network that can enable improved
cross-carrier relations, cross carrier payment can help transform
the way telecom carriers transact with partners and customers to
deliver innovative payment solutions.”
Daichi Nozaki, VP & Head of SoftBank Corp. Global Business
Division, said, “We are proud to contribute to this project, which
utilizes our expertise as the first adopter of the CCPS platform.
We look forward to working on this ecosystem transformation
initiated by the telecommunications industry, with carriers around
the world united as one through blockchain technology.”
Terms and details of the definitive agreement will be finalized
in the coming months.
About TBCASoft TBCASoft is a U.S.-based company
developing innovative blockchain technology specifically for
telecommunication carriers. Its consortium-based blockchain
platform enables telecommunication carriers to create innovative
services for their subscribers under a more secure, robust, and
efficient environment. TBCASoft is located in Sunnyvale,
California, the center of Silicon Valley. To learn more, please
visit TBCASoft at www.tbcasoft.com.
About IBM For more information about IBM, visit:
www.ibm.com
About SoftBank Corp. Guided by the SoftBank Group’s
corporate philosophy, “Information Revolution – Happiness for
everyone,” SoftBank Corp. (TOKYO: 9434) combines telecommunications
services with cutting-edge technologies to create and operate new
businesses. SoftBank Corp. serves more than 44 million mobile
consumer and enterprise subscribers in Japan, and as part of its
“Beyond Carrier” strategy, is redefining industries by leveraging
its unique strengths as a network operator to fully harness the
power of 5G, big data, AI, IoT, robotics and other key
technologies. To learn more, please visit www.softbank.jp/en/.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20191022005569/en/
TBCASoft, Inc. (USA) marketing@tbcasoft.com
IBM Marisa Conway IBM Media Relations conwaym@us.ibm.com
SoftBank Corp. Corporate Communications Matthew Nicholson
+81-3-6889-2301 sbpr@g.softbank.co.jp
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