Posted on

How NFT is bringing ownership of digital assets back to content creators

Non-fungible Tokens (NFTs) are currently the red hot topic in town, but why has NFT rocketed in publicity in recent years? It will be more meaningful to discuss what value NFT actually creates and what achievements it unlocks.

The essential problem is that no matter what kind of business model, it will still be choked by various digital and social platforms. When people post on social media, upload photos, music, and even videos every day, they also copy these files to platforms such as Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok.

When copying and pasting, they also transfer the ownership of the content to the platform. When the social platform uses this content to realise and earn huge wealth, creators did not earn any rewards or incomes.

Moreover, today Instagram blocked your account, or the App Store removed your app, or even Facebook reduced its reach. You can report it to the platform but it does not mean your problem can be resolved, so the final decision is not in your hands.

A game player bought a virtual treasure in a certain game. This object appears to belong to the game player, but he cannot let the game player decide whether it can be used on other platforms. The reason is that the ownership of these digital assets does not belong to the individual creator or purchaser, but is dominated by various platforms.

However, NFT is a solution that allows the ownership to really return to the creator’s hands when creators can really decide whether to put their creativity on the platform or not.

Also Read: NFT minting platform Mintable nets US$13M from Ripple, ex-advisor to Bill Clinton, others

We started FomosArt a year ago when the founders recognised fundamental issues with the NFT infrastructure that could impact future widespread use.

Realising that many NFTs were being stored on centralised servers with no secure path to ownership, FomosArt identified a key solution to an industry-wide problem.

Using the power of blockchain technology, FomosArt validates and verifies copyright ownership as part of the NFT-minting process and supports all creative work including music, video, visual art, photographs, written works and more, revamping an outdated system and offering creators a faster, more effective, modern solution to a copyright system unable to keep up with the changing modern world.

However, there are many challenges for creators and collectors:

  • Most people still have doubts about crypto currency. There are many negative news
  • The entry barrier is high, artists not only need to understand NFT, but also need to understand cryptocurrency and blockchain as same as collectors
  • Artists don’t know how to create NFT how to display their NFT creations
  • Collectors don’t know how to buy NFT and find favourite crypto art and how to display their NFT creations
  • People still don’t understand and hesitate about NFT as much as cryptocurrency

So we assist artists in establishing their NFTs and displaying them on our platform so that collectors can see these works and even collect them. We want to enable young creators to understand NFT and hope they can understand and join this evolution.

Editor’s note: e27 aims to foster thought leadership by publishing views from the community. Share your opinion by submitting an article, video, podcast or infographic

Join our e27 Telegram group, FB community or like the e27 Facebook page

Image credit: 123RF

The post How NFT is bringing ownership of digital assets back to content creators appeared first on e27.

Posted on

How to firm up your IoT strategy to combat online risks

The Internet of Things (IoT) has been a fast-growing trend — especially with the demand for connectivity, as people get more physically distanced during the current global pandemic.

According to IDC projections, IoT spending in the Asia Pacific will rebound in 2021 to reach US$288.6 billion and will grow at an average yearly rate of 11.7 per cent from 2020 to 2024.

The commercial and industrial application possibilities for IoT are endless. Technology has especially played a significant role in manufacturing and industrial settings — connecting machines to machines, and machines to online systems. IoT has also been widely adopted in industries like transportation, energy and healthcare.

The benefits of IoT for businesses, naturally, are abundant, ranging from increased cost savings to enhanced productivity. It has also become vital for automation and robotics in many logistic hubs and factory floors.

Among the big four technologies of today — artificial intelligence (AI), cloud infrastructure and big data and analytics — IoT is expected to have the biggest impact on the Industry 4.0 revolution worldwide, according to Statista.

Cybersecurity risks and IoT

Nonetheless, IoT adoption does come with its fair share of challenges. Chief among them is increased cybersecurity risks. The more connected devices in a network mean a larger surface area for cyber threat actors to launch their attacks.

Perhaps the most infamous IoT hacking incident was the Mirai Botnet attack, which took down parts of Amazon Web Services and its clients, including GitHub, Netflix, and Twitter.

Also Read: In brief: Revere VC, Property Flow raise funding; Jim Rogers joins Life3 Biotech’s board of investors

More recently, hackers have also breached security-camera data collected by Silicon Valley startup Verkada — gaining access to footage from hospitals, police departments, prisons, schools, as well as companies such as Tesla.

Cybersecurity requirements are best addressed as a whole. Businesses require a secure network infrastructure that supports all aspects of their operation, and these include IoT connectivity, policy management for users and devices, applications such as communication and collaboration, and workflow automation.

A robust cybersecurity strategy also reduces risks across Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) policies, IoT, shadow IT and more.

New network technologies

Network performance is another key consideration in IoT planning. The hype in recent years is on 5G and Wi-Fi 6. 5G LTE is the latest mobile network technology— capable of carrying more information than ever before. It can also support communications in ultra-dense deployments due to higher and faster frequencies.

Wi-Fi 6, meanwhile, is the next-generation Wi-Fi standard known as 802.11ax. It is packed with newer technologies that allow connectivity to the Internet to be faster and more efficient.

Generally, 5G is ideal for large, outdoor environments that require longer-range connectivity. In smart transport IoT applications for instance, this can mean vehicle-to-vehicle or vehicle-to-road connectivity.

Wi-Fi 6 on the other hand, brings benefits like a lower cost for deployment and maintenance. Being a Wi-Fi network, it is also very scalable. This makes it optimised for most IoT strategies and means that it will continue to be the predominant technology for most campus and office environments.

Also Read: Why Malaysia is quickly becoming a cybersecurity hub for the rest of the world

However, both 5G and Wi-Fi 6 developments are relatively new. Many cities and facility owners across the region are currently still putting in place the necessary infrastructure to support these technologies. Also, many businesses are operating in fast-changing environments that require operations to be agile and flexible.

One good example is the quick pivot many businesses had to undertake in transitioning office- and factory-based workers to a largely distributed work-from-home workforce. Selecting the right network for a business IoT setup may not always be as straightforward as it seems.

Many devices, much to consider

Business and IT leaders need to have a clear idea of how their IoT devices will bring value to the overall operations in the first place, especially considering the investment and expertise required.

This means finding out what success would look like. Consider questions like: which processes should it cut down (or eliminate)? How often will the devices be used? Which features will be used the most? What will the cost of upkeep look like?

That is not all. Leaders still need to consider what deployment would look like, while factoring in the need for security and reliability.

As mentioned, businesses must take a holistic view of cybersecurity. Mainly, they ought to ensure that the entire network is not compromised in the event of one cyber attack incident. This means virtually segmenting all infrastructure and networks so devices can only access certain services and are blocked from communicating with all other micro-segments of the network.

Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise, for instance, has laid out a five-phase micro-segmentation strategy that can onboard IoT devices and keep them in their dedicated containers — helping to minimise security risks, without wreaking havoc on current processes.

Additionally, as businesses add more devices to their networks, they need to ensure that they have bandwidth and capacity ready to keep up with the demand.

Leaders must therefore look into robust network solutions that can address varied IoT deployment scenarios to simultaneously support multiple devices, sometimes of different makes and models, at once.

Connecting the dots

According to a McKinsey survey, the pandemic has brought about years of change in the way companies in all sectors and regions do business — accelerating their digitisation at a pace never seen before. This may just be the beginning, however.

Also Read: Mind the trust gap: How does a company develop consumer trust through data stewardship?

Ultimately, change is the only constant, and businesses need to be agile and nimble enough to embrace new technologies to build up resilience.

In essence, there is no denying that businesses will stand to benefit tremendously from adopting IoT. However, a great deal of thought and planning is required to ensure a smooth and secure transition.

A sound IoT strategy that is agile enough to allow for the businesses to pivot when required must be in place early in the process. Only then, will they be able to thrive in an efficient, safe, and secure connected environment.

Editor’s note: e27 aims to foster thought leadership by publishing views from the community. Share your opinion by submitting an article, video, podcast or infographic

Join our e27 Telegram group, FB community or like the e27 Facebook page

Image Credit: 123RF

The post How to firm up your IoT strategy to combat online risks appeared first on e27.

Posted on

Entrepreneurship is at an all time high, but are you doing it right?

entrepreneurship tips

Has the pandemic inspired your desire to embrace entrepreneurship? You’re not the only one. More are becoming their own boss, with the number of companies incorporated in Singapore increasing by seven per cent from 2020 to 2021 – that’s more than two times from the year before.

Of all the sectors, the retail trade industry saw the most significant growth, with a 71 per cent increase in company formation year-on-year, largely driven by more consumer shopping during the period. Even the beleaguered food and beverage sector, which was repeatedly hit by restrictions, saw a 37 per cent increase in the number of companies formed. What gives?

One likely factor is the billions of dollars in government support via grants and special funds for businesses. As part of its support of startups, the Singapore government channelled S$150 million into the Startup SG Founder programme, which aims to encourage entrepreneurship and innovation by providing mentorship and capital grants.

Earlier, the government allocated S$8.3 billion to support Singapore’s Transformation and Growth Strategy, which included S$300 million for the Startup SG Equity co-investment scheme.

A strong appetite for entrepreneurship is encouraging and essential as it drives innovation and creates new opportunities for Singapore’s economic recovery.

But with so many startups unable to survive past the first year, building lasting success is easier said than done. Here are three best practices to bear in mind.

Also Read: In brief: NUS partners Indonesian universities to foster entrepreneurship, OYO raises US$660M

Be hyper-focused on your mission and delegate the rest

Entrepreneurs are hyper-focused on building their business and bringing their ideas to fruition—and they should be—leaving the non-mission critical,  tedious, time consuming administrative tasks to professional and experienced advisers, secretaries and accountants.

Working through all the complicated and costly administrative hurdles to register your company? Keeping up with mandatory tax and regulatory compliance? Tracking finances and payroll? Not all entrepreneurs are equipped with the knowledge and training to handle these matters, and they don’t need to be, especially with professional services that can do the job for them.

In the process, entrepreneurs can focus on using their time efficiently and effectively to go out and hustle!

Hire the right people to fill the gaps

Business success depends on many people, including customers, investors, and team members. And, businesses need people who truly believe in their mission and vision, and are willing to hustle to achieve it.

However, one common mistake that entrepreneurs make is hiring generalists to build the team. Businesses need specialised talents to fill the gaps that entrepreneurs can’t.

For example, if you’re building a tech startup, it is crucial to hire engineers and designers to take the company to the next level, instead of relying on amateur skills self-taught from YouTube.

To ensure they build the dream team, entrepreneurs need to be honest about what skills and experience they currently lack and need in their new hires. Make sure to think long term and predict what expertise the company needs to grow and scale in the future.

To avoid high turnover rates common in startups, entrepreneurs also need to ensure that new hires are ultimately a good fit for the company. This includes being transparent about the company vision and growth and sharing expectations, responsibilities and objectives of the role.

Also Read: Emotional leadership in a post-COVID-19 business world

Invest in the right infrastructure and systems to support entrepreneurship

Entrepreneurs often feel compelled to go at it alone. But if there’s anything we’ve learnt in the last 18 months it is that businesses must have the right systems and processes in place to pivot and scale.

Having the right infrastructure and systems helps to offset the marginal cost of acquiring and serving new clients. For example, investing in a customer relationship management system to organise customer data and chase leads, while leveraging digital marketing channels allows a startup to drive awareness and leads.

As paperwork piles up, entrepreneurs should invest in an online platform and dashboard that can help create, edit, transfer and organise documentation into one place, making administrative matters more streamlined and convenient.

For example, using Sleek’s platform to manage financials, governance and compliance, has helped businesses save up to three hours per week and per employee.

Adopting e-signatures can also afford greater convenience and reduce unnecessary barriers such as printing and scanning, and losing your physical documents.

While the entrepreneurship journey may be fraught with challenges and difficulties, by strategically tapping on the right people, resources and systems, business success won’t be out of reach.

Editor’s note: e27 aims to foster thought leadership by publishing views from the community. Share your opinion by submitting an article, video, podcast or infographic

Join our e27 Telegram group, FB community or like the e27 Facebook page

Image credit: ronnarong

The post Entrepreneurship is at an all time high, but are you doing it right? appeared first on e27.