China CCTV: Blockchain is the second era of the internet, a machine that produces trust, and a technology 10 times more valuable than the internet.
Last night, China’s primary state broadcaster, China Central Television (CCTV), held a one-hour discussion about blockchain in a segment named “Dialogue”. This was the first discussion on this topic and was intended to educate the viewers about all things blockchain. Many positive things were said, but the most notable was a statement about the economic value of blockchain being “ten times more than that of the internet.”
The panel on stage was made up of many famous people, such as Don Tapscott, author of “Blockchain Revolution”, Zhang Shoucheng, Stanford University physics professor and founder of Danhua capital, and Chen Lei, CEO of Xunlei, a large Chinese tech company.
Zhang said:
“While the real value of the internet is aggregating individual pieces of information into one place, which is exactly what Google and Facebook does, we are now entering an era where information is being decentralized so that individuals can own their individual data. And that’s the real value of blockchain that makes it exciting.”
Other innovation-minded things said were: “Blockchain is the second era of the internet,” and “Blockchain is the machine that produces trust.” These were displayed on a massive screen in the background of the stage where the discussion took place.
While at times critical of some aspects of the new technology, including ICOs, the discussions during segment came off as mostly positive. It seems that China is changing their opinions quickly about the technology, despite their blanket ban on all things crypto in September last year. Recent news from China includes its president saying blockchain is a breakthrough, and Chinese google equivalent Baidu adopting blockchain tech.
