Microsoft is set to host its annual Build event on May 6, and before it, the Redmond company has unveiled its fully managed blockchain service in partnership with banking giant JP Morgan. To clear the air, Azure Blockchain Service is not to carry out cryptocurrency transactions, albeit an enterprise service meant for businesses to allow them to build applications based on the service.
Microsoft has integrated its blockchain service with its Azure Active Directory, and there is a dedicated app to manage features like adding new members, granting permission to members and keeping an eye on the network’s health.
In the announcement post, Microsoft said: “With a few simple clicks, users can create and deploy a permissioned blockchain network and manage consortium policies using an intuitive interface in the Azure portal.”
JP Morgan’s Quorum, an Ethereum-based ledger, will be the first supported ledger on Microsoft’s blockchain service.
With its fully managed blockchain service, Microsoft wants to simplify the task of configuring and maintaining a blockchain network. Until now, setting up a blockchain network required using a host of command-line tools and also has limited developer IDE integration.
Microsoft is not the first company to launch a fully managed blockchain service; IBM and Amazon Web Service (AWS) already have their similar services.
The companies are slowly realizing the potential of blockchain technology and are slowly adopting it. This is a good sign as there are multiple benefits of the blockchain network beyond cryptocurrency.
