Ethereum Watch

If rumors surfacing from London’s recent Blockchain Expo are true, the Enterprise Ethereum Alliance (EEA) might be about to take its next big step toward helping its roughly 450 member companies get the most out of their Ethereum experience. As the consortium puts it, the EEA seeks to provide “resources for businesses to learn about Ethereum and leverage this groundbreaking technology to address specific industry use cases.”

According to reports, ConsenSys chief of staff and EEA board member Jeremy Millar said the EEA intends to release an unknown number of common standards for the blockchain later this year.  

Although the EEA lists leveraging existing standards on its website as a main part of its vision, the nature of blockchain technology doesn’t always fit into existing standards models, much in the same way that data privacy doesn’t always neatly align with existing privacy laws.

Larger standards bodies, such as the International Organization for Standardization and Standards Australia, have already expressed the importance of having common rules for emerging distributed ledger technology (DLT); creating organizational standards for EEA members has long been a goal for those wishing to stay the Ethereum course.

Although details surrounding the comments from London earlier today are sparse at best, the EEA did confirm to ETHNews that it has “a series of announcements coming up.” Incoming EEA executive director Ron Resnick had previously stated:

“As executive director, my focus is to drive the further development of Ethereum-based technology best practices, open standards and open-source reference architectures to evolve Ethereum into an enterprise-grade technology.”

While the standards in question could be technical, social, or other, their creation would mimic the desires of larger organizations coming to grips with the challenges of DLTs, such as the Ethereum blockchain. 

Bronwyn Evans, the CEO of Standards Australia – who pioneered perhaps the largest effort to create blockchain-based standards, ISO/TC 307 – told ETHNews earlier this year: 

“Standardization can, and does, play a pivotal role in supporting innovation, providing businesses with confidence and empowering consumers. Standards are the floor, not the ceiling. That is, they are intended to provide baseline assurance for investors, decision-makers, and consumers that the technology is safe, efficient, and fit-for-purpose, which can also mean interoperable.”

ETHNews will be closely monitoring this story as it develops.

Jordan Daniell is a full-time staff writer for ETHNews with a passionate interest in techno-social developments and cultural evolution. Jordan enjoys the outdoors, especially astronomy, and likes to play the bag pipes and explore southern California on foot in his spare time. Jordan lives in Los Angeles and holds value in Ether.

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