IBM revealed the new version of its Enterprise Blockchain platform intended to work with even more cloud services, thus increasing its reach and scope. It also added support for app management and deployment platform Kubernetes.
IBM announced IBM Blockchain Platform Multicloud meaning that their blockchain solution will now run on other clouds, be that Azure or Amazon Web Services as well as on premises.
Jerry Cuomo, vice president of blockchain technologies for IBM explained that until recently, you could use only the IBM Cloud. Many enterprise networks are consortia, and even if the founding members used IBM, new participants are likely to have existing cloud deployments on other networks. It also added support for app management and deployment platform Kubernetes.
Cuomo added that IBM is already supporting around 1,100 blockchain networks, with about 10 percent of those officially in production. Support for Kubernetes should make faster the rate at which the IBM Blockchain Platform is deployed in a production environment because organizations will be able to leverage all the sunken costs of a widely supported open source platform. He said:
“This hybrid and multicloud approach will allow blockchain networks to work effectively across multiple environments. Developers can now easily move from development to test to production from a single console. Included within the extension are code samples and tutorials, enabling any developer to easily become a blockchain developer.
The IBM Blockchain Platform meets developers where they are, offering support for smart contracts to be written in JavaScript, Java, and Go languages.”
For those who may be interested in trying out the new platform, IBM promised they will allow scalable payments. It means that users who are only starting out, can purchase only the services that they need in order to get started with access to features that go along with the price. As their business grows, clients can pay more for IBM to give them more features to work with.
From the company they added:
“We understand that not all participants in a blockchain network will have the same requirements; therefore, the next generation of the IBM Blockchain Platform gives users the flexibility to deploy only the blockchain components you need, where and when you need them.
Whether it’s just a peer, ordering service, or certificate authority, users can manage these components all in one place.”
IBM Blockchain CTO Gari Singh added that they can finally leverage all the great things that are in Hypeledger Fabric, and also support their users wherever they need to be.
next“And we can also help to support networks that want to work with IBM, but they have other members that don’t.”