The Role of Blockchain in Creating Unique Digital Assets

Blockchain technology is a solution to create unique digital assets (UDAs). To understand the opportunities of blockchain it is important to consider the uniqueness of digital products. But let's start with a common example.

If we write a text on a word document that text is on our computer and is inimitable. The moment we send it to a colleague, that same text as well as on our computer will be present on a mail server and on our colleague's computer. Already so we have a series of duplication of the same document. That text can of course be shared in turn and sent to other parties who will have a copy of it. 

As we well know there are no limits to this duplication and as we well know that same document can be modified and changed. Our word document is a digital asset (DA) and as it becomes apparent it is certainly not unique: it is "started" from our computer and maybe in a very short time it has multiplied in thousands of copies. That same encrypted asset in a blockchain ledger could become a unique asset. Just like in the physical world: if we pass the same word document printed on paper to a colleague we lose possession of it, that document comes out of our control to enter the domain of a colleague.

In other words, if in the digital world the transition automatically implies duplication, the blockchain allows you to "recapture" to the digital world the concept of scarcity of real-world goods and at the moment when through the blockchain you pass a DA from our computer to a colleague, that document is no longer in any way under our possession and is totally in the head of our colleague. If he too needs to share it, he will lose possession in favor of another subject. The document will remain unique and you will not be able to duplicate it. One of the characteristics of blockchain, which will accompany us in our service, is in its ability to create UDAs.

The Importance of Unique Digital Products (UDAs)

To understand the importance of UDAs, we present our example related to a generic word document whose possible duplication does not pose any particular problems. On the contrary, if we think about duplication of assets that represent a value, it is clear that the guarantee of uniqueness represents an absolute value. Duplicating an asset designed to represent a currency digitally means demeaning this value until it is cancelled. That's why the world of finance first understood the value of blockchain in its ability to ensure the uniqueness of a DA.

The same value is well understood by many other sectors that are representing digital products and services and who have in turn understood that digital allows you to manage in a much more efficient way exchanges and transactions only and exclusively if you guarantee the ability to avoid duplication, that is, only if you guarantee the uniqueness of the asset. Just like in the real world.