Microsoft to Use Blockchain Technology in Anti-Piracy Measures
Introducing the Argus Blockchain Incentive System
Microsoft to Use Blockchain Technology in Anti-Piracy Measures
It is an undeniable fact that piracy of Microsoft's Windows operating system and Office document processing software runs rampant. In order to effectively cut off piracy routes, Microsoft plans to use blockchain technology in its "anti-piracy measures" to take advantage of the transparency feature.
Microsoft Research recently released a report titled "Argus: A Transparent Incentive System for Anti-Piracy", which primarily studied a blockchain-based incentive system called "Argus" that encourages people to report users using pirated software in support of anti-piracy measures. It is notable that people from Alibaba and Carnegie Mellon University were also involved in this research.
The report states that the Argus blockchain system will be built on top of Ethereum and will use a "watermark algorithm" to trace the source of pirated content. It will also ensure the uniqueness of the report through hidden programs and prevent duplicate submissions by the reporter. According to the report, "We believe this is one of the problems with decentralized systems. In the implementation process, we have overcome a series of inevitable obstacles while ensuring system security and maintaining transparency."
The report states that they hope to achieve "truly effective" anti-piracy activities through a secure and transparent incentive mechanism. In addition, the system will reduce the reporting fees on the chain to 1/14 of regular chain transactions.
However, while researching the new system, Microsoft quietly announced that its Azure blockchain service for enterprise customers will be officially closed on September 10th. Existing customers must quickly migrate to ConsenSys' blockchain service Quorum. The initial goal of Microsoft's Azure blockchain service was to further simplify the management and governance of enterprise blockchain networks, boasting of creating a new alliance chain network with just "a few clicks." Its main advantages are efficiency and low cost, which can more effectively alleviate the problem of Ethereum congestion and deploy flexible Ethereum applications tailored to enterprise environments. However, Microsoft has not provided any official explanation for why they chose to close this service.
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Argus: The Anti-Piracy Blockchain Incentive System
It is yet to be seen whether the anti-piracy blockchain incentive system, Argus, can ultimately be developed and survive.
Argus logo
What is Argus?
Argus is an anti-piracy solution that uses blockchain technology to incentivize users to report piracy by rewarding them with a cryptocurrency token called ARG.
How Does Argus Work?
When a user reports piracy, the report is verified by a network of validators. If the report is confirmed to be true, the user is rewarded with ARG tokens.
Diagram of how Argus works
The Future of Argus
With the rise of illegal piracy and the need for stronger anti-piracy measures, there is certainly a place for blockchain-based solutions like Argus. However, the success of Argus and other anti-piracy blockchain systems ultimately depends on their ability to garner widespread adoption and successfully incentivize users to participate.
Anti-piracy measures