Advantages to TravelCoin® Plus

Today we see more and more real-world incidents of hacked and stolen identity. With cryptocurrency, the traveller does not provide their personal details to a string of untrusted third parties, rather all identification is handled via a third-party blockchain proof of identity system. This allows the traveller to reveal only the level of personal detail that is required for each situation, for example actual check-in. When a traveller uses TLCP, their security is firmly protected, anywhere in the world.

TLCP offers a strong solution to the issues faced with other blockchains, where transaction times can take from several minutes to many hours. On our TLCP platform, we are able to allow over 80 transactions per second, allowing us to be nimble and reactive to its users. To understand the power in this level of performance, Bitcoin processes around 7 transactions per second.

The cost of many cryptocurrencies continues to rise, and large fluctuations are not unheard of. Between July 2017 and July 2018, BTC transactions fees rose from $2.82 per transaction to a high of $55.16. And, while these costs have dropped back down in the last months, this unpredictability can be unsettling. Built on a philosophy to ensure transaction fees remain low cost, or no cost, TLCP has the predictability the crypto community craves. In addition, most cryptocurrencies require units of purchased gas to send transactions, with the pricing of these units fluctuating greatly. For instance, at the beginning of 2017, a user could purchase 1 million units of gas for just $0.18. One year later, at the beginning of 2018, that cost had risen to $18.00 for the same number of units. This equates to a rise for one transaction from $0.0037 to $0.37. And, even better, with our PoA model, gas prices are not an issue. TLCP is inexpensive, in the sense that individuals and organizations running TLCP nodes do not need to purchase expensive custom mining rigs. Instead, they are part of a consortium that mints for them over a two-year agreement period. This value proposition creates a low-barrier to entry for those who wish to be on the system.

TLCP provides a simple process for utilizing the coins for payment, whether person-to-person or person-to-merchant. Any merchant can join the Foundation and gain access to their electronic wallet. They then simply generate a QR code for a given amount and the customer simply scans the QR code for the transaction to complete. This deducts the requisite number of TLCP from their customer account and credits it to the merchants account.  The broadcast of each transaction to the private network will be processed nearly instantly. In an era when confirmation time varies across the hundreds of available cryptocurrencies, with Bitcoin taking an average of 55 minutes in 2018, this immediacy is a powerful aspect of TravelCoin Plus.

As the size of any given block on Ethereum is dictated by the cost, or gas, they have a block size limit. However, as our TLCP platform is also private, and charges low fees/gas, we are unhindered by these parameters and have an unlimited block size capability.

PoA is a consensus mechanism for blockchain in which consensus is achieved by referring to a list of validators (referred to as authorities when they are linked to physical entities). Validators are a group of accounts/nodes that are allowed to participate in the consensus and they validate the transactions and blocks.

Some of the strongest advantages to PoA that TLCP embraces are:

• PoA is an algorithm which delivers instant transactions and seamless consensus over a truly distributed network.
• The PoA model replaces older and weaker consensus models replacing them with cryptographic signature proofs and business contracts enforced and backed by the network.
• The authority in this algorithm is legally mutual assent to a settlement between the various parties based on the pledge of one set of assets against a whole other set. Thus, if one party falls out of consensus, the other parties automatically assume the non-consenting party’s assets and liabilities so that end users remain unaffected.
• Each participant plays a distinct role and the network is able to respond to price changes by increasing or decreasing the energy in the system whether in a specific location or globally.
• Security to prevent things such as a 51% attack are removed as transactions and blocks are validated by approved accounts known as Authorities.
• PoA offers a “greener” solution over Proof of Work by eliminating the need for power in the form of high volumes of electricity needed by miners in the PoW consensus model.

Why Proof of Authority?

 

Proof of Work	Proof of Authority
Very inefficient use of energy and taxing on the electrical grid	Traditional mining is not necessary, leading to minimal energy usage
Costly, slower, and unscalable validation processes	Speed, cost effective, scalable and customized validation processes
Limits overall control and the possibility for improvements	Allows changes and amendments to be made without the use of “forks”
Can allow certain actors to acquire too much power and monopolize the market	Balance of power is maintained & institutions keep pace with innovation