IBM Blockchain Platform

Score9.7 out of 10

46 Reviews and Ratings

Community insights

TrustRadius Insights for IBM Blockchain Platform are summaries of user sentiment data from TrustRadius reviews and, when necessary, third party data sources.

Pros

Immutability in Transactions: Users have appreciated the concept of immutability, ensuring that transactions are permanently recorded.

Distributed Ledger Feature: Customers value the transparency and decentralization brought by maintaining their own ledger copy on a blockchain network.

Security Measures: Reviewers have praised the security provided through authentication using public and private keys.

Rich Documentation Repository: The availability of a rich documentation repository is highly praised, facilitating learning and development for users.

Efficient Tools: Users find the tools provided to be amazing, aiding in task efficiency.

Reviews

17 Reviews

Building blockchain based solutions rapidly using IBM Blockchain Platform

Rating: 10 out of 10

Incentivized

December 31, 2020

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We are using IBM Blockchain Platfrom as part of our clearing solution.

This is a solution meant for serving TELCO operators in clearing their roaming traffic using a new mandated specification called Billing & charging evolution.

Built-in features of blockchain technology like Provenance, Distributed ledger, immutability of transactions & security has made us to choose blockchain technology as part of solution.

Pros

Immutability - Transactions once made are there forever.
Distributed ledger - Allows customers to maintain their own copy of ledger by joining their node onto a blockchain network.
Security - Help secure sensitive data, users and devices can be authenticated using the public and private keys.
Provenance - Transactional history. Allows seamless dispute resolution.

Cons

More promotion towards hybrid cloud or private cloud could attract customers to host/maintain the blockchain networks with in their "own trusted" infrastructure.
Building prototypes on IBM Blockchain Platform and exporting importing them onto a private/hybrid cloud would be really great feature.
Both of the above features has their own CONs as it will lose the easy maintenance/upgrade of their blockchain networks more challenging. But not all customers can afford IBM Blockchain Platform costs and hence there must be a easy way of allowing them to setup the blockchain networks of their choice.

Likelihood to Recommend

In my personal opinion, IBM Blockchain Platform is an off-the-shelf ready blockchain service offering. Customers can focus on building their solution rather than understanding the nitty-gritty of blockchain network setup, implementation & maintenance. Gives the advantage of Time to market.

With IBM Blockchain Platform customers could potentially launch their blockchain based solutions in a very short timeframe.

Verified User

Director in Research & Development (1001-5000 employees)

Vetted Review

2 years of experience

Best solution in the market--flexible and easy to deploy

Rating: 10 out of 10

Incentivized

December 30, 2020

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We are using IBM Blockchain Platform across the whole organization to sign transactions, documents, videos and any other type of documentary evidence. We are designing a solution that makes the verification process easy and understandable to the final consumers, making the data record friendly and readable

Pros

Rich repository of documentation
Amazing tools
Easy to understand
Fast to start
Good technical and sales support

Cons

Does not have a free trial
Some general error messages in extension of VS Code

Likelihood to Recommend

This is a very flexible solution that can be used in almost any sector. They have very good documentation and use cases to help you understand the power of the tool. The deployment is simple and there is a lot of documentation that can be reviewed before your implementation. The use cases are in different sectors, you can invite your team to review the demonstrations to better understand the scope of the solution.

Verified User

Engineer in Engineering (1-10 employees)

Vetted Review

1 year of experience

Very Useful Platform

Rating: 8 out of 10

Incentivized

December 28, 2020

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

IBM Blockchain Platform is used to develop and manage the blockchain network of an insurance organization's solution with other companies. The main organization works as the Certificate Authority and the other companies make everyday transactions.
IBM Blockchain Platform is used to manage and change the chain code, review the peers and the peer's configuration, manage the channel, track the transactions that are made, etc.

Pros

The UI is quite intuitive and easy to learn how to use
Peer and chain code management is very useful and easy to understand
Both the VS Code extension and IBM Blockchain Platform work pretty well and complement each other

Cons

Sometimes when I try to instantiate a chain code, it won't let me and the error messages aren't clear so I can't work on a solution
When a peer is not working, it's hard to know why just from the console

Likelihood to Recommend

It's a really useful platform, specially if you're learning Blockchain and how to create a network, how it works, etc. Using it with the VS Code IBM Blockchain extension can also help you learn a lot.

Verified User

Engineer in Information Technology (10,001+ employees)

Vetted Review

1 year of experience

IBM Blockchain Platform Rules

Rating: 8 out of 10

Incentivized

December 3, 2020

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We use the IBM Blockchain Platform to offer the best secure and reliable solutions to our customers. The sectors are: financial, medical, and banking.

Pros

Security
Reliability
Stability

Cons

Efficiency
Cost optimization
Starting and shutting down IBM Blockchain Platform--make it easier and more user friendly

Likelihood to Recommend

There is still something to improve, like efficiency. The security and zones are really well implemented and allow us to offer customer-tailored solutions.

Jerzy Giersz

CEO / Owner in Information Technology at KLG Solutions Sp. z o.o. (11-50 employees)

Vetted Review

2 years of experience

View profile

Blockchain PoC and deployment made quick and easy

Rating: 9 out of 10

Incentivized

November 30, 2020

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We are a startup with a focus on developing next generation applications using enterprise blockchain. We use IBM Blockchain Platform for all blockchain-related development and offer solutions to our clients that are backed by IBP. We are addressing two business problems 1) we are simplifying how covid test results can be provided by the users/patient to the employers or business for easy and secure access and 2) we are working to improve traceability in the fashion & apparel supply chain.

Pros

IBM Blockchain Platform simplifies the whole process of deploying Hyperledger Fabric to business applications. Once you have understood the concepts of Hyperledger Fabric, IBM Blockchain Platform makes it straightforward in terms of deployment. The UIs are very intuitive and setting up the desired network is a matter of minutes.
Also, IBM Blockchain Platform maintains a very rich repository of documentation, which makes it easier for first-timers to get going. All of our developers were getting into blockchain for the first time, however, we found it very easy to follow the documentation to get started and then build our application taking cues from the documentation or the blogs.
IBM Blockchain Platform makes it easy to scale up the solution as network grows, a very important aspect to take the PoCs to production environment.

Cons

We did observe some idiosyncratic errors at times, those are difficult to reproduce. However, we have logged them as issues and have been resolved from IBM's side.
IBM Blockchain Platform Extension in VS Code provides very general error messages, which doesn't provide much insight. So, at times, it becomes difficult to identify the actual issue and resolve it.
Some of the the more nuanced but important topics such as Private Data Collection has fewer examples. We understand that most beginners may not be interested in them but when we take the solution to actual businesses, privacy concerns are paramount and these advances concepts come up in implementation.

Likelihood to Recommend

IBM Blockchain Platform is very well suited for quick PoCs and deployment. We have used the platform for developing applications in two separate industries and things worked out well.

However, if you are working under a tight budget or the client is expecting a cost comparable to normal cloud platforms, then it may become hard to deliver that with IBM Blockchain Platform. It is a bit expensive for sure.

Verified User

Director in Corporate (1-10 employees)

Vetted Review

1 year of experience

Try IBM Blockchain Platform together with Cloud Foundry and Kubernetes Service

Rating: 8 out of 10

Incentivized

November 5, 2020

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We use IBM Blockchain Platform to develop students' projects for learning purposes. Students analyze the potential of Blockchain technology in several fields, like industry, legal, finance, commerce, [and] social relationships, and study its economic, social, and behavioral impact on people, procedures, and society. Then, they implement several uses cases using IBM Cloud and IBM Blockchain Platform and create a web app to show the implementation of this technology and several transactions.

Pros

Use of Hyperledger Fabric.
Integration with Web App Development.
Integrated Dashboard.

Cons

Clarifying concepts about contracts, Certificate Associations and other components.
Providing detailed information when an error occurs.

Likelihood to Recommend

IBM Blockchain Platform is well suited for scenarios where you need secure transactions, like in logistics, finance, legal agreements. Especially I think is well-suited for smart contracts between devices under the IBM IoT platform, and using Watson AI for predicting future scenarios. In this case, an end-to-end powerful platform can be created from sensor data to business insight.

Verified User

Engineer (1001-5000 employees)

Vetted Review

1 year of experience

good value

Rating: 4 out of 10

Incentivized

October 19, 2020

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

IBM Blockchain Platform is helpful for maintaining and securing important and classified information to ensure everything is not only tracked but also managed safely. This platform is important for securing personnel files, medical files, and other sources of information that are often updated, transferred, or need to be tracked. The system is the best out there for what it does.

Pros

Managing edits.
Tracking changes.
Tracing originals.

Cons

Difficult to use.
Strong learning curve.
Slow to update.

Likelihood to Recommend

Best used in commercial or logistics applications where you need to create a historical record of point of origin and identify points of transfer along the way. There are also benefits to scenarios where you want to setup automatic milestone activities such as invoicing or reporting when new information is provided.

Verified User

Professional in Human Resources (10,001+ employees)

Vetted Review

1 year of experience

IBM Blockchain Platform Review

Rating: 8 out of 10

Incentivized

September 23, 2020

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

Currently, it's being used as the backbone infrastructure for a dApp healthcare solution startup. Our application will store a patient's EHR (electronic health records) while giving the patient full control over who can access it at any given time (doctors, hospitals, labs, etc). This way, the patient can easily access their EHRs through an app and can even transfer EHRs between hospitals if needed.

Pros

Automated deployment and easy startup
Drastically reduces barrier to entry and dev time for those starting in Blockchain
Very clean UI, easy to manage the network

Cons

Free tiers are a blessing, but beyond that it can get very expensive very quickly (needs a starter package for startups with little money).
More live call/chat IBM support

Likelihood to Recommend

The IBM Blockchain Platform overall is a very robust solution and serves as a good entry-point for medium-sized companies if they are interested in Blockchain. A starter/cheaper pricing model is desperately needed though for startups who are testing their MVP or conducting a pilot.

Verified User

Director in Engineering (1-10 employees)

Vetted Review

1 year of experience

IBM has done well with blockchain platform

Rating: 8 out of 10

Incentivized

September 17, 2020

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We are in the insurance industry, so we are doing a lot of contracts. With digitalization, we were finding ways to not use paper but, in the past, there was an issue of trust with regard to sourcing. With the introduction of blockchain, we found the answer to that concern because blockchain can trace changes. Hence we implemented this to solve issues for our partners who we have to sign contracts with.

Pros

Ready-made, as needed features are available to use, so we can focus on the functionality and leave the rest up to IBM.
Stable, as it is cloud-based and IBM takes care of the infrastructure
Future, we were using open source at first, but after less than a year, it was no longer an option. But we can trust IBM will continue to support blockchain as a technology partner.

Cons

Price, as it may a bit expensive to use
Local support, as IBM always uses global support where it is hard to get.

Likelihood to Recommend

IBM Blockchain Platform is easy to start with in order to do a POC, and along with other IBM products, it provides one-stop services. However, to live with it, pricing and ROI would need to be big considerations as the cost is a bit high compared to building your own from open source with the same framework. In return, you get the IBM guarantee.

Verified User

Consultant in Information Technology (51-200 employees)

Vetted Review

1 year of experience

IBM Blockchain Platform for the enterprise world

Rating: 8 out of 10

Incentivized

September 17, 2020

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

IBM Blockchain Platform was used in a proof-of-concept project to demonstrate cases to prevent insurance fraud. A common ledger created and accessed by multiple organizations where they can share selective data with each other. This bridge was used for communicating encrypted client details to prevent fraud.

Pros

Good compatibly with vscode
Remove blockchain maintenance overheard
Great documentation provided
Easy web console

Cons

Dev env plan
Basic plan to include free tier
More chat support for this platform

Likelihood to Recommend

IBM Blockchain Platform is more suitable for enterprise users who don't want to maintain their own custom blockchain infrastructure.

Verified User

Engineer in Engineering (10,001+ employees)

Vetted Review

1 year of experience

Loading Reviews List....

Blockchain PoC and deployment made quick and easy

Rating: 9 out of 10

Incentivized

November 30, 2020

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

Pros

IBM Blockchain Platform simplifies the whole process of deploying Hyperledger Fabric to business applications. Once you have understood the concepts of Hyperledger Fabric, IBM Blockchain Platform makes it straightforward in terms of deployment. The UIs are very intuitive and setting up the desired network is a matter of minutes.
Also, IBM Blockchain Platform maintains a very rich repository of documentation, which makes it easier for first-timers to get going. All of our developers were getting into blockchain for the first time, however, we found it very easy to follow the documentation to get started and then build our application taking cues from the documentation or the blogs.
IBM Blockchain Platform makes it easy to scale up the solution as network grows, a very important aspect to take the PoCs to production environment.

Cons

We did observe some idiosyncratic errors at times, those are difficult to reproduce. However, we have logged them as issues and have been resolved from IBM's side.
IBM Blockchain Platform Extension in VS Code provides very general error messages, which doesn't provide much insight. So, at times, it becomes difficult to identify the actual issue and resolve it.
Some of the the more nuanced but important topics such as Private Data Collection has fewer examples. We understand that most beginners may not be interested in them but when we take the solution to actual businesses, privacy concerns are paramount and these advances concepts come up in implementation.

Likelihood to Recommend

Verified User

Director in Corporate (1-10 employees)

Vetted Review

1 year of experience