Microsoft wins US patent for ‘ledger-independent token service’
Microsoft, the American tech giant, has won a patent for a blockchain-related technique consisting of implementing a cross-chain token management system.
The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has granted the patent to Microsoft Technology Licensing, operating as Microsoft’s subsidiary. The patent seeks a software service that would enable individuals and organizations to manage multiple ledger networks and platforms, described initially as a “ledger-independent token service.”
Similar platforms within the patent filing include major blockchain platforms such as R3 Corda, Ethereum, IBM-backed Hyperledger Fabric, Chain Core, and JPMorgan’s enterprise blockchain platform Quorum.
The patent is a computer system aimed at providing users with more than one “token template”, each corresponding to a digital asset. The “ledger-independent token service” would act as one single interface to help the creation and management of the lifecycle of tokens being traded across multiple blockchains, making it easier for developers to write codes that manage tokens in a way that is “agnostic of the underlying distributed ledger networks.”
The system would also make development “more efficient for emerging business use-cases” involving cross ledger boundaries.
In recent years, Microsoft has been involved in blockchain technology developments, filing several patents related to the cryptocurrency industry. In 2020, Microsoft had filed a patent for a cryptocurrency system that would allow individuals to mine crypto tokens using their physical activity data. Such crypto mining using body data would help reduce efforts for making specialized mining devices.
