BT, Telsta and Telefonica join telco blockchain initiative

A number of telcos, including BT, Telsta and Telefonica, have signed up to a blockchain Proof of Concept (PoC) initiative.

Colt and PCCW Global, in conjunction with blockchain start up Clear, revealed in March that the businesses had undertaken a trial that demonstrated how the inter-carrier settlement of wholesale international services, could be automated through the use of blockchain.

By using blockchain technology, the PoC was able to reduce this labour-intensive process from hours to minutes.

The initial PoC used historical data as a test of the technology and its use case for the sector. Now, the parties have taken the trial a step further by ingesting actual live data feeds into the ledger, enabling traffic to be automatically verified and settled between carriers.

While the original two carriers are now using live data to verify and settle traffic, other members of the GLF have also seized the opportunity to get involved in the initiative.

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The aim is to expand the bilateral testing between Colt and PCCW Global to encompass a multilateral series of relationships among the wholesale telecommunications industry as a whole.

Fellow GLF members now getting involved include; BT, HGC Global Communications, Telefonica and Telstra.

Marc Halbfinger, Chief Executive Officer of PCCW Global and the Chairman of the GLF, said: “We are very pleased that this Proof of Concept is expanding to include more carriers.

“A lot of the conversations at the GLF have been around how innovative technologies such as blockchain can be used to improve the overall efficiency of the industry, and with the PoC expanding to include more carriers, it is clear that the industry is seeing the benefit of becoming further aligned. Industry cooperation in this area will be incredibly powerful for the whole sector.”