Daily Byte: Tuesday, November 13, 2018

Here is some of what’s happening for Tuesday, November 13, 2018:

Smart Contracts Platform Developer Discovers Bug in Ethereum Virtual Machine

Netta Lab, a quality assurance platform developer for smart contracts, says it has discovered a bug in the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM).

While many doubted the validity of the claim due to it coming from a Twitter account that had never been used before, Ethereum creator Vitalik Buterin ended the speculation by confirming the bug, according to FXStreet. The vulnerability apparently only affects a Python version of the EVM, and not the Geth or Parity clients.

The Ethereum Virtual Machine is where all transactions take place and all smart contracts and decentralized applications are run.

People’s Bank of China to Blockchain: “We’re Not Impressed”

In a recently published report by the People’s Bank of China (PBoC), the Chinese central bank says it doubts that cryptocurrency or blockchain technology could dislodge fiat currency.

Calling blockchain technology a “utopian fantasy,” the report challenges the merits of decentralization, calling it idealistic. It also finds the idea of crypto upstarts overtaking major financial institutions unfeasible, as the technology is largely unscalable currently.

The report suggests that blockchain, however, could be used to improve upon existing financial functions, such as cross-border payments, instead of being an outright replacement.

The PBoC has banned cryptocurrencies for use in banks and with banking transactions throughout the country. It has also banned ICOs. However, personal use and possession of cryptocurrency is allowed in China.

Oil Industry Blockchain Platform to Go Live by End of 2018

Major oil companies BP, Shell, and Equinor will be teaming up with several major banks and trading houses to launch Vakt, a blockchain-driven energy commodity trading platform, S&P Global reports.

Speaking from the S&P Global Platts Digital Commodities Summit yesterday, product development vice president of Vakt Lyon Hardgrave indicated that Vakt will be launched by the end of November for the North Sea oil market. “In 2019 we will look at ARA barges, waterborne markets and US crude pipelines,” Hardgrave said to S&P Global. “And by January we expect the first licensees will come on board, in addition to our shareholders.”

Hardgrave believes the platform could cut up to 40 percent of post-trade resolution costs. He also indicated that Vakt has received requests to look at US gas.

Vakt will include the banks ABN Amro, ING, and Société Générale and the trading houses Gunvor, Koch Supply & Trading, and Mercuria. Plans for the platform were first announced November 7 by Reuters.

Film and TV Rights Company Fintage House to Accept Cryptocurrency

The film and television rights company Fintage House has signed a deal to accept TTU tokens as payment for rights transactions, per Variety. TTU tokens are issued by TaTaTu, a social entertainment platform that recently partnered with Johnny Depp.

“We are thrilled to see the entertainment business community embrace TaTaTu and the TTU Tokens that can now be utilized for transparent, highly efficient deal-making on any transaction,” TaTaTu head Andrea Iervolino told Variety.

Fintage House is a Dutch company that represents more than 1,000 movie and television companies worldwide. Among the rights secured by the company are titles like “Crash,” “Terminator 3,” “The Hurt Locker,” “Paranormal Activity,” and “Precious.” TTU tokens are used by TaTaTu users to pay to view digital content and by companies to pay for advertising; they also are used to compensate content creators. TaTaTu completed a $575 million token presale this summer.

Among the projects announced by TaTaTu are the feature film adaptation of J.M. Coetzee’s novel “Waiting for the Barbarians” – which will star Depp – a biopic on Ferruccio Lamborghini starring Antonio Banderas, and the drama “The Sound of Freedom” starring Jim Caviezel.

Be fast, be clever, be wise. Most importantly, be here tomorrow for your Daily Byte.

Frederick Reese is a politics and cryptocurrency reporter based in New York. He is also a former teacher, an early adopter of bitcoin and Litecoin, and an enthusiast of all things geeky and nerdy.

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