South Korean telco to launch Web3 wallet with Aptos and Atomrigs Lab

November 7, 2023 Coin Telegraph

SK Telecom aims to expand its “affiliations with customer-preferred mainnets and decentralized applications (dApps)” using this tripartite agreement with the blockchain companies.

South Korean telecom giant SK Telecom (SKT) announced plans to launch a Web3 wallet service, T wallet, in partnership with layer 1 mainnet Aptos Labs and Atomrigs Lab.

SK Telecom’s vision to launch a blockchain wallet for cryptocurrencies and nonfungible tokens (NFTs) dates back to July 2022. The initiative at the time kicked off with SKT’s blockchain arm collaborating with AhnLab Blockchain Company and Atomix Lab to develop and operate a Web3 wallet.

SKT가 '웹3 지갑' 개발을 위해 안랩블록체인컴퍼니, 블록체인 전문기업 아톰릭스랩과 협력합니다. 웹3 지갑은 사용자가 블록체인 네트워크 상에서 발행된 다양한 유형의 토큰을 저장·전송·수신할 수 있는 디지털 자산 지갑입니다. ▶https://t.co/bi8SIDKK2M #SK텔레콤 #블록체인 pic.twitter.com/HFGCl3cIN8
— SK telecom (@SKtelecom) July 11, 2022

According to the latest announcement, SKT aims to expand its “affiliations with customer-preferred mainnets and decentralized applications (dApps)” using this tripartite agreement with the blockchain companies.

“Through the collaboration with Aptos, which marks our first non- Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) blockchain integration, SKT is committed to delivering a seamless and secure Web3 experience for our users.”

In an official tweet, SKT committed to delivering a seamless and secure Web3 experience for users.

SK telecom signed a tripartite agreement with #Aptos, a rapidly-emerging and scaling layer 1 mainnet, and Atomrigs Lab, SK telecom’s technology partner. Through the collaboration with Aptos, SK telecom is committed to delivering a seamless and secure Web3 experience for users. pic.twitter.com/Ga9qoZz84W
— SK telecom (@SKtelecom) November 7, 2023

The partnership will also see T wallet’s integration into Aptos’ decentralized application (dApp) ecosystem and adoption of its MoveVM blockchain technology.

South Korea’s National Tax Service (NTS) recently revealed that residents hold more than 70% of their overseas assets in cryptocurrency.

According to the official data, 5,419 entities reported their overseas financial accounts, holding a total of 186.4 trillion won ($140 million) in assets like cryptocurrencies and stocks, as well as deposits and savings.

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Vodafone, Sumitomo team up with Chainlink to explore trade documents network

October 24, 2023 Coin Telegraph

Chainlink

Vodafone’s Digital Asset Broker platform and Sumitomo have been working together since May on this proof-of-concept.

Vodafone Digital Asset Broker (DAB) has joined the Chainlink network as a node operator after completing a proof-of-concept with Japanese trading and investment company Sumitomo for exchanging trade documents across platforms. The companies hope to improve document transfer and processing of financial transactions in the $32-trillion global trade ecosystem, Vodafone said.

The proof-of-concept used oracle network Chainlink’s Cross-Chain Interoperability Protocol (CCIP). DAB “provide[d] security and interoperability across IoT devices at the edge of a network.” The proof-of-concept showed the potential of Vodafone Internet-of-Things devices and blockchains to provide data for use in contracts and AI applications. Potentially, a single interface could be created to transfer data and tokens, the company said:

“For example, a vessel detecting a cargo fire could autonomously relay data to smart contracts via DAB’s platform and CCIP, potentially triggering a marine cargo insurance process.”

Trade documents are a particular challenge because they may exist on paper or on digital platforms with low interoperability and need to change hands repeatedly.

International telecommunications company Vodafone launched DAB in February 2022 and first used it with Mastercard in a trial in the United Kingdom of an app to help electric vehicle drivers find and pay for the best charging options.

Vodafone teamed up with Sumitomo in May. The companies formed a new entity, in which Vodafone held 80%. Vodafone transferred DAB, as well as intellectual property, contracts, technology and software, into the new business. The two companies also invested jointly in Safaricom Ethiopia.

.@VodafoneBiz, a leading telecommunications firm in Europe and Africa, collaborated with @chainlinklabs on using CCIP for global trade and has officially become a #Chainlink node operator

Connecting the world to blockchains pic.twitter.com/MKDtnLGSSS
— ChainLinkGod.eth (@ChainLinkGod) October 24, 2023

Vodafone DAB partnered with enterprise blockchain Aventus in August intending to improve the supply chain in aviation.

CCIP launched on Ethereum’s Arbitrum One layer-2 in September to increase scaling. It also worked with Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ) to test an Australian dollar stablecoin the same month.

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Somalia bans Telegram and TikTok over misinformation

August 21, 2023 Coin Telegraph

Africa

Somalia has shut down crypto-friendly messaging app Telegram and gambling site 1XBet, while cryptocurrency investments aren’t banned.

The Federal Republic of Somalia is the latest country to ban cryptocurrency-friendly messaging app Telegram, alongside TikTok social media app and the online-betting site 1XBet.

Somalia’s Ministry of Communications and Technology (MOCT) officially announced on Aug. 20 that the government is shutting down Telegram, TikTok and 1XBet.

On Sunday, MOCT Minister Jama Hassan Khalif held a meeting on telecommunications and internet security in social media with the National Communications Agency and major Somali telecom firms. The minister said that the government of Somalia is “working to preserve the culture of Somali society,” as telecom and internet devices have “affected lifestyles and increased bad habits.”

The announcement by MOCT reads:

“It was considered important to shut down TikTok, Telegram and 1XBet gambling equipment, which had an impact on Somali youth, causing some of them to die.”

According to online reports, Somalia’s move to ban TikTok, Telegram and 1XBet also aims to limit the spread of indecent content and propaganda.

“The minister of communications orders internet companies to stop the aforementioned applications, which terrorists and immoral groups use to spread constant horrific images and misinformation to the public,” Khalif reportedly said. He added that Telegram and other applications were ordered to suspend their operations in Somalia by Aug. 24. “Anyone who does not follow this order will face clear and appropriate legal measures,” the official reportedly stated.

The Ministry of Telecommunications and Technology announces the ban of #TikTok, #Telegram and online betting platform of 1Xbet, a move to counter and prevent indecent activities & contents, and extremism propaganda.#Somalia pic.twitter.com/dphcpuH18a
— SNTV News (@sntvnews1) August 20, 2023

It’s not immediately clear whether Somalia’s decision to ban Telegram and other platforms have any implications for the country’s cryptocurrency adoption. In a similar way to many countries in Africa, investing in cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) is not banned in Somalia. In the meantime, many global jurisdictions often argue that crypto is associated with terrorism financing risks.

The MOCT did not immediately respond to Cointelegraph’s request for comment. This article will be updated pending new information.

The news comes just a few days after Iraq’s telecom ministry lifted the ban on Telegram in mid-August. The authority banned the messaging app in early August, citing personal data and security concerns.

In April, Telegram was temporarily suspended across Brazil as authorities were investigating neo-Nazi groups that were reported to use the messaging platform to incite school attacks. Telegram was reportedly fined roughly $186 million for not complying with an investigation into neo-Nazi activities on the platform.

Collect this article as an NFT to preserve this moment in history and show your support for independent journalism in the crypto space.

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Anti-TikTok RESTRICT Act could be turned against crypto and much else, think tank warns

March 29, 2023 Coin Telegraph

Coin Telegraph

Experts are speculating on ways the Act could be misused, if passed, and finding potential threats to technologies people love.

The RESTRICT Act, a bipartisan bill introduced earlier this month into the United States Senate, could be applied in broad and unexpected ways, including to threaten crypto, should it become law, think tank Coin Center warned in its blog.

The bill, formally known as the ‘‘Restricting the Emergence of Security Threats that Risk Information and Communications Technology Act,’’ and informally as the TikTok ban, has been introduced amid suspicions that the Chinese-owned TikTok app gathers user data on behalf of the Chinese government.

The Act gives the Commerce Department new powers that would “comprehensively address the ongoing threat posed by technology from foreign adversaries” by allowing it to “review, prevent, and mitigate information communications and technology transactions that pose undue risk to our national security.”

Under Title 15 of the Code of Federal Regulations, the foreign adversaries of the United States are China (including Hong Kong), Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Russia and the Maduro regime in Venezuela.

According to Coin Center, the bill is conceptually similar to the International Emergency Economic Powers Act that authorizes the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) to block Americans from transacting with sanctioned parties. Coin Center pointed to OFAC’s sanctioning of Tornado Cash immutable smart contracts as a misuse of that law to ban a class of technology and expressed its concern that:

“The RESTRICT Act creates blanket authority, with few checks, to ban just about anything linked to a ‘foreign adversary.’”

Not only that, the RESTRICT Act would be easier to apply and harder to challenge. “Its potential implications for the cryptocurrency space cannot be ignored, Coin Center said.

If you think the TikTok ban isn’t important, you’ve been missing the big picture - the Restrict Act (Bill S.686) will change the internet at the US currently knows it. It’s not just about TikTok - pic.twitter.com/hBjEHB0tRr
— Freckles (@FrecklesNFrce) March 27, 2023

The bill foresees penalties of imprisonment for 20 years and fines of $250,000. Legal experts say the act is vaguely worded and could be used to restrict a range of technologies, such as virtual private networks, or VPNs. Lead author of the bill, Democrat Mark Warner, said:

“We need a comprehensive, risk-based approach that proactively tackles sources of potentially dangerous technology before they gain a foothold in America.”

Kirsten Gillibrand, coauthor with Cynthia Lummis of the Responsible Financial Innovation Act, is among the sponsors of the bill.

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Meta files 8 digital asset and Web 3 trademark applications

March 23, 2022 Coin Telegraph

Blockchain

It appears the trademark applications cover just about every aspect of the Web3 metaverse.

Meta, formerly Facebook, has filed eight trademark applications with the United States Patent and Trademark Office, or USPTO, relating to blockchain technology and its proposed metaverse. The applications and their fields of interest are as follows, organized by serial number:

97320155: Online social networking and dating services, including a specific branch tailored for networking between cryptocurrency investors.
97320153: Design and development of computer hardware and software relating to Web3, including gaming, e-commerce, blockchain transactions, etc.
97320149: Entertainment and electronic publishing services, partly within virtual reality.
97320147: Telecommunication services for electronic assets held on its platform.
97320146: Financial transaction processing services relating to tokens, blockchain assets, cryptocurrencies and other virtual assets.
97320144: Advertising services via virtual or augmented reality networks and the metaverse.
97320140: Wearable peripherals for video games connected to virtual reality.
97320136: Downloadable software in the nature of a mobile application, such as for user authentication, online charitable fundraising and most notably, for hardware or e-wallets.

It can take up to eight months for the USPTO to process trademark applications since their initial filing. Similarly, Monster Energy and the New York Stock Exchange have also recently filed trademark applications relating to digital assets and the metaverse.

Last week, Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta, said that Instagram would soon be integrating NFTs across its various products. But not all crypto ventures have turned out positively for the Web3 giant. Around the same time, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission took Meta to court over allegations it engaged in “false, misleading or deceptive conduct” by publishing scam celebrity crypto ads on its platform that allegedly resulted in losses for investors.

Ava Labs and EV maker Togg to build smart contract-based mobility services

January 8, 2022 Coin Telegraph

Avalanche

The partnership aims to fast-track Togg’s Use-Case Mobility initiative, which involves producing cars with more functionalities as compared to traditional EVs.

Turkey’s electronic vehicle (EV) manufacturer Togg has announced a strategic partnership with Ava Labs to design and build smart contract-based services aimed at improving autonomous mobility.

Togg’s collaboration with Ava Labs, a team dedicated to supporting and developing the Avalanche public blockchain, was revealed at the CES 2022 event in Las Vegas. As Cointelegraph Turkey reported, the partnership aims to fast-track Togg’s Use-Case Mobility initiative, which combines different technologies and transportation solutions to produce cars with more functionalities as compared to traditional EVs.

According to the official announcement, Togg has been exploring use cases around blockchain and related technologies in EVs for more than a year. With Ava Labs’ partnership, Togg intends to infuse Internet of things (IoT) and machine-to-machine (M2M) communication to expand and accelerate its EV capabilities.

Togg will implement smart contracts and blockchain technology for allowing users to pick up a reserved scooter or taxi while charging their EVs, enabling seamless mobility. Gürcan Karakaş, the CEO of Togg said:

“Our collaboration with Ava Labs is built on taking the experience of Togg users to the next level, going beyond automobiles to empower partners, users and non-Togg users across the mobility ecosystem to benefit from this platform.”

Moreover, Ava Labs’ partnership will allow Togg to store vehicle maintenance and parts information over the Avalanche blockchain, which will be foundational to a reliable second-hand market.

Back in December, Dogecoin (DOGE) price went up by 25% soon after Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk announced plans to accept DOGE for Tesla merchandise.

Tesla will make some merch buyable with Doge & see how it goes
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 14, 2021

As Cointelegraph reported, Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView showed DOGE/USD climbing over 25% to become the only major cryptocurrency to deliver gains on the day.

*DOGE/USD 1-hour candle chart (Bittrex). Source: TradingView*

Indians opt for state-run blockchain platform amid bulk SMS regulations

September 20, 2021 Coin Telegraph

Coin Telegraph

India's SMS regulation requires businesses to comply with pre-registered messaging templates to counter spam and fraud.

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) established messaging regulations that require scrubbing consumer communication messages to ensure that the receiver of the message has opted in for such interactions. The drive is supported by BSNL DLT, a content verification platform built on ledger-based blockchain protocols.

As the SMS regulation is applicable for all industry verticals, the list of 7,477 registrations includes banks, educational institutions and private businesses. TRAI had reportedly warned about blocking communications of non-compliant entities, as an official said:

“The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India will accept no reason, give no consideration and no extension to all those who have not streamlined their SMS process. Let their businesses suffer 100%.”

Businesses using BSNL DLT will be subject to SMS screening against pre-registered messaging templates hosted on the blockchain. In case of a mismatch, the message will be blocked by the company’s telecom provider honoring consumer interest.

India’s commitment to blockchain adoption has strengthened after a state-run university, the Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IITM), joined 38 global organizations to govern the Hedera public ledger as a part of the Hedera Governing Council.

According to Professor Prabhu Rajagopal from IITM’s Center for Nondestructive Evaluation, the institution will test use cases around public blockchains for payments, healthcare, industry and digital media.

On July 27, Cointelegraph reported that a sizable Indian institute implemented LegitDoc, a tamper-proof credentialing system built on the Ethereum blockchain, to verify diploma certificates. Currently, other Indian universities are exploring and implementing similar strategies.

India’s state-owned telecom Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) has registered 7,477 businesses on its blockchain-based communication platform after authorities imposed new regulations to protect consumers from spam and fraud.

Leading South Korean telecom firm adopts blockchain for carbon ambitions

September 2, 2021 Coin Telegraph

Coin Telegraph

South Korean telecommunication giant KT Corp announced its intent to launch a blockchain digital document initiative to tackle carbon emissions.

A major South Korean telecommunication company, KT Corp, has outlined plans to create a fully electronic documentation service, utilizing blockchain technology to contribute to environmentally conscious ambitions.

The telecommunications firm currently provides around 90% of the nation’s fixed-line mobile networks, as well as a further 45% of broadband high-speed internet services.

The e-document venture titled “E-document Digital Transformation (DX) One Team” will be a collaborative effort among 14 businesses, with the established objective of reducing the network’s carbon emission output.

Once implemented, the initiative will digitize the entire tenure of the paper-based documentation process ranging from creation through to storage and finally customer distribution.

The numeral goal is to convert 4.5 billion paper documents into e-documents each year, considerably reducing carbon emissions by 129.6 billion tons.

In March 2020, the firm launched a blockchain-based platform called Paperless to support businesses and organizations in digitally creating and storing contract documents.

An official from KT Corp, Yoon Dong-Sik shared his views on the impact of the paperless system at the time:

“We expect KT Paperless Service to reduce corporate document management and costs so that it will improve the business process as well.”

Last week, Cointelegraph reported that supply chain management platform VeChain launched a similar blockchain initiative to support businesses in tracking and reporting their carbon production data.

US Authorities Indict a Canadian Telecom Provider in a Crypto Money Laundering Case With Encrypted Phones

March 23, 2021 Bitcoin.com

telecommunications

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