Disruptive yet Inevitable Blockchains could revolutionize the world economy

Blockchain represents the second generation that convey openness and efficiency to transform   business, government, and society in perhaps even more profound ways. There is a new type of technology on the block that possesses the potential to change how the supply chain communicates and operates known as blockchain technology. This technology lining bitcoin has captivated billions in venture capital funding, the interest of almost every global bank, and the attention of government around the world.

Blockchain allows securities to be settled in minutes instead of days. It can also be used to help companies manage the flow of goods and related payments, or enable manufacturers to share production .The application of this emerging technology is showing great promise across a broad range of business applications. The idea has been around for a couple of decades, but came to prominence in 2008 with the invention of Bitcoin, the digital currency.

Transactions which are kept confidential on permission blockchains, are formulated in particular interest for banks and offerors of financial services  which assist to abridge risk since all parties therein are trusted. Secondly cost may be reduced as only transactions from members need be validated and brought into the blockchain consensus. All parties agree to the transaction and validate it via the peer network. Blockchain technology can be utilized to create a permanent, public, transparent ledger system for compiling data on sales, storing rights data, and tracking digital use and payments to content creators.

If banks and other financial institutions are able to spur transactions and take costs out of the system, it should mean cheaper, more efficient services for us. For example, sending money abroad could become almost instantaneous. Regardless, banks do make mistakes. But BlockChain technology can make reducing these errors easier by creating a finite paper-trail to isolate where the problem occurred. Therefore, the company can verify all operating systems that were affected and make changes to prevent the problem from occurring again. 

BlockChain have certain potential advantages, for instance it helps to eliminate digital rights theft and In the world of digital transactions recorded in real time, illegal transactions become extremely difficult to conceal.

In the current economic world, there have been a lot of advancement identified  to blockchain technology Last year, investment bank Goldman Sachs and Chinese investment firm IDG Capital Partners invested $50m (£35m) in Circle Internet Financial, a start-up aiming blockchain technology to improve consumer money transfers.

The blockchain ecosystem is to be on display in about three weeks during the International Blockchain Week when the blockchain world is expected to descend on Shanghai for one of the biggest event of the year, held by Wanxiang Blockchain Labs, where leading blockchain developers, entrepreneurs, visionaries, CEOs and directors of global companies are to present.

Various projects like Decentralized Capital (DC) converts cash deposits such as dollars and euros into DC assets, a form of digital currency that is secured by the Ethereum network and collateralized by customer deposits. In other words, the project turns dollars into dollar coins, which then can easily be transferred allowing for decentralized exchange.

Further Blockchain technology provides a new platform for creators of intellectual property to get the value they create. Consider the digital registry of artwork, including the certificates of authenticity, condition, and ownership. A new startup, Ascribe, which runs on the blockchain, lets artists themselves upload digital art, watermark it as the definitive version, and transfer it, so similar to bitcoin, it moves from one person’s collection to another’s. The technology solves the intellectual property world’s equivalent of the double-spend problem better than existing digital rights management systems; and artists could decide whether, when, and where they wanted to deploy it.

KAUSHAL SHAH & ASSOCIATES: Freedom of speech isn't freedom from consequences

KAUSHAL SHAH & ASSOCIATES: Freedom of speech isn't freedom from consequences: If  you would take a man's life, you owe it to him to look into his eyes and hear his final words. And if you cannot bear to do t...

Freedom of speech isn't freedom from consequences

If  you would take a man's life, you owe it to him to look into his eyes and hear his final words. And if you cannot bear to do that, then perhaps the man does not deserve to die.” ― George R.R. Martin. Likewise, the very fact that we have un censored freedom of speech in India, it comes with a responsibility and duty not to abuse that freedom by being hateful or offensive.

Freedom of speech though delivers increased diversity, it should not be construed as tolerance. As we watch the JNU fiasco in disenchant as to the actions of our youth generation is indeed shocking.  I do not write this blog because of my love of journalism or my love of political satire but purely because of my love for my country. The JNU controversy is probably the attack on perhaps one of the most important human rights democracy ever founded, built and sustained upon - freedom of speech and expression, Liberty.  

Laws strive to maintain peace and safety in the society. Laws are necessary as they provide resolutions of disputes, for the promotion of common good and moral habituation. Thus, The Constitution guarantees freedom of speech and expression to all its citizens but with exceptions, viz, Indian Penal Code which has several clauses that make it contingent upon the person “expressing” himself or herself not to hurt sentiments or cause public discord such as Section 153A which deals with words, spoken or written, or representations that promote disharmony and feelings of enmity, hatred or ill-will between groups. Section 292, which makes obscene publications (book, paper, pamphlet, writing, drawing, painting, representation, figure or any object) an offence. Section 295A criminalizes “deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings, including words, signs, visible representations and Section 298 which penalizes the “utterance of words” that might hurt the religious feelings of any person.[1]

Further, with the world getting progressively more linked through the web and India on the brink of digital revolution, we are in a dire need of clear cyber security laws and cyber management policies without causing danger to free speech and without the government intervening by banning or curbing the use of social media, that is, maintaining an equilibrium between arresting for merely expressing opposition by liking or commenting on a Facebook post and an actual act of sedition.  Today, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram have become everyday places to hangout, the threat of mass rage or retort increases manifold but the subsequent responsibility of using these platforms is still budding.

Freedom is a huge requirement of every human being and with freedom comes a sense of responsibility and respect.  As a citizen of a free country, I like many millions of others feel deeply affected. This blog also does not take an opinion on any political identity of a group responsible for events, rather it looks at the discussion detailing freedom of speech and liberty.  Free speech is an important component for the development of the nation and it is up to people how  they use or abuse it.  As much as free speech is enjoyed in our Nation, it needs to be respected and upheld.

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[1]New Delhi Published: Jan 16, 2015, 1:08

A Beacon of Hope

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India's government has unveiled a budget aimed at boosting farm growth and appealing to the rural poor.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said he planned to double the income of struggling farmers in the next five years.

Having overtaken China as the world's fastest-growing economy, India is seen as a bright spot in the global economy.

But it has been hit by slowing global demand and severe droughts affecting rural areas.

"We are grateful to our farmers for being the backbone of the country's food security," Mr Jaitley said of India's estimated 120 million farmers.

"We need... to give back to our farmers a sense of income security."

He said the government had allocated $12.7bn (£9.15bn) for "rural development as a whole".

Analysts say Mr Jaitley has announced increased spending on rural economy, health and social sectors with an eye on boosting his party's prospects in the coming state elections.

They include a pledge to set up 89 projects for irrigation, doubling investments in rural roads to help farmers get produce to market, getting cooking gas to millions of poor households and funds for women entrepreneurs from underprivileged families.

The government would raise spending on a massive rural employment scheme, a crop insurance programme and increasing rural access to the Internet.

It would also work to ensure all the country's villages had electricity within two years, Mr Jaitley said.

He said the government would achieve its goal of cutting the fiscal deficit to 3.5% of gross domestic product (GDP) for 2016-17 from 3.9% the year before.

Since coming to power in 2014, Mr Modi has promised to improve business and investor climate in the country with tax reforms and major infrastructure projects.

That policy has been criticised by the opposition as being too business-friendly and coming at the expense of social spending and welfare projects.

The country's huge rural population has been hit by severe droughts and recent regional elections have shown dwindling support for Mr Modi.

With crucial elections in largely agricultural states like West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh due this year and next, the government is under pressure to address the rural economy.

Analysis by Simon Atkinson, Editor, India Business Report

From irrigation to better roads - this was a budget heavily geared to rural India where two thirds of the population live.

That's partly because agriculture has suffered after two years of poor rainfall. But perhaps there was some pragmatism too ahead of elections in four states over the next year where rural voters are key.

There was support for start-ups - from tax breaks to funds for women entrepreneurs.

And while it has not been able to push through any real tax reforms - it has used the budget to remove 13 different taxes which should go some way to simplifying doing business.

But what we were lacking were the specifics of revenue-raising - especially given the finance minister is not loosening its fiscal deficit target.

Pollution taxes on new cars and up to 15% tax on cigarettes will only go so far.

Heavy one-off taxes and penalties on undeclared income - with a promise of no questions being asked and no prosecutions - might get a few takers.

But we need more details on things like potential sell-offs of government businesses before we can judge this budget. [1]

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[1] http://www.bbc.com/news/business-35684214

NEW COMPETITION LAW - THE GAME CHANGER

“Competition is always a good thing. It forces us to do our best. A monopoly renders people complacent and satisfied with mediocrity.”               - Nancy Pearcy

She might or might not be advocating a competitive economy in the above quote but her words fit perfectly at macroeconomic level as they would anywhere else. A healthy competition is the key to growth and it is in the interest of a country to ensure and maintain competition in its economy. And for that purpose competition laws become essential for growth of an economic system. The British could rule the World only because they encouraged open market system hence being able to enter international market.

Every economy has its set of competition laws – In the USA, it is called antitrust law, China and Russia have anti-monopoly law, in Australia and the United Kingdom it is referred to as trade practice law.

Foundational step towards the development of competition policy in India was laid down as a consequence of World Trade Organisation’s Singapore Ministerial Declaration in 1996. A group of professionals were appointed by the Union Ministry of Commerce, Government of India, in Oct, 1997, to analyse matters relating to the interaction which included anti-competitive agreements and the impact of company mergers and amalgamation on rivalry aspect of Indian Market.

In 1969, The Monopolies and Restricted Trade Practices (MRTP) Act was enacted with a view to prohibit monopolies and prevent restrictive and unfair trade practices. The objective behind the legislation was to prevent concentration of power in the hands of few.

After the introduction of the New Economic Policy and end of the “Licence Raj” and introduction of new concepts like globalisation and free trade, the MRTP was rendered irrelevant. Thus in 2003 Competition Act was passed and Competition Commission was established for its implementation. The act has since been amended twice by Competition Act, 2007 and Competition Act, 2009.

    

Bellow are a few important elements of the Competition Act, 2002 –

      I.         Anti-Competitive Agreements

The Section 3 of the Act deals with Anti-Competitive Agreements. Whenever any organization attempts to confine competition by developing agreements such as collusive agreements in order to fix prices and outputs they need to be prohibited through legal strategies mentioned under Competition law, 2002.

For a better understanding of what are Anti-Competition Agreements below are a few types of such agreements businesses get into in order to minimise competition.

Cartels are those kinds of agreements which are between two or more parties to avoid battlefield when it comes to pricing, product, services or customers. These may result in in higher prices, poor quality and limited choice for goods or services. One of the world's best-known cartels is the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).

Bid-rigging is defined as any agreement between enterprises or persons engaged in identical or similar production or trading of goods or provision of services, which has the effect of eliminating or reducing competition for bids or adversely affecting or manipulating the process for bidding.

Tie-in arrangement is an agreement in which a vendor conditions the sale of a particular product (“tying product”) on a vendee's promise to purchase an additional, unrelated product (“tied product”). Not every tying arrangement is illegal under the law of unfair competition. The following four elements must be proved to establish that a particular tying arrangement is illegal:

·         The tying arrangement must involve two different products. Manufactured products and their component parts, such as an automobile and its engine, are not considered different products and may be tied together without violating the law

·         The purchase of one product must be conditioned on the purchase of another product. In order for it to a Tie–in Agreement it must be impossible to buy the tying product separately and on indiscriminatory terms.

·         A seller must have sufficient market power in a tying product to restrain competition in a tied product.

·         Must be shown to appreciably restrain commerce. Evidence of anticompetitive effects includes unreasonably high prices for tied products and unreasonably low prices for competing products in a tied market.

    II.         Abuse of Dominance

Section 4 of the Act deals with Abuse of Dominance. Abuse of dominant position destroys the scope of having fair competition between different firms, exploits consumers in two ways first with respect to relevant product and second with respect to geographic market. It includes conditions like predatory pricing, limiting production/market or technical development, creating barriers to entry, denying market access, and using dominant position in one market to gain advantages in another market.

   III.         Combinations   Regulation

The term ‘Combination Regulations’ include regulations relating to mergers, amalgamations and acquisitions. With this provision the Act would not only apply to Indian businesses but also to entities established overseas. The Act makes pre-notification of combinations voluntary of parties but if the parties choose not  to notify they could be subjected to post-combination investigation by the CCI, if the combination adversely effects the market and the competition therein.

  IV.         Intellectual Property Rights and Competition Law

If taken in its strictest sense Intellectual Property Rights(IPR) would be opposite of  Competition laws. IPR majorly include patents, copyright, industrial design rights, trademarks, plant variety rights and trade secrets. It seeks to assign monopoly of the “Intellectual Property” to its designated owners. Whereas Competition Laws include legislations and policies aimed at preventing anti-competitive practices and promote competition and benefit the consumers by providing a free and fair market.

Therefore it is imperative to strike a balance between the two and find a middle ground to benefit both, the consumers and the innovators and owners of such “intellectual Properties”.

Conclusion

Competition Law isn't about protecting competing businesses from each other, it's about protecting competition itself on behalf of the public. The intent of the Competition Act, unlike the MRTP, is not to prevent existence of monopolies. It strives to develop healthy competition in the market and create conditions suitable for fair trade practices. The Act safeguards the interests of consumers as well as businesses specially those not in a position of dominance. What the Act prohibits are the ‘malpractices’ employed by businesses to ensure their power in the market. A business that by fair means commands dominance over a market does not come within the preview of the Act.