A report from industry analysts Quocirca suggests that adopting blockchain technology could open up possibilities for the print industries.
According to Quocirca’s The Blockchain Opportunity report, there are five areas of opportunity for the print sector including IoT printer security, content management and storage and 3D printing.
The report argues that vendors could use blockchain technology to make their managed print services (MPS) offering more efficient and secure as it essentially validates transactions across networks, which means they can be trusted.
Blockchain can become a pivot point around which vendors and channel partners can evolve their MPS offering and build efficiencies in process workflows and management. The growing awareness of the threat posed by IoT-enabled devices such as MFPs means controlling, patching and monitoring the print ecosystem will require an enhanced degree of security and integrity, which blockchain can offer.
In terms of 3D printing, blockchain can help resolve the challenges of digital rights management and licensing which is inherent in additive manufacturing processes. Safety concerns and commercial risks require a solution that creates a “chain of trust” between licensee and service provider and also delivers visibility over the production process, which blockchain could provide. read the rest here