The Po.et Technology Stack

An overview of Po.et’s core components

When we launched Po.et, we knew that we wanted to build a secure, robust system for managing ownership of digital assets. We also wanted to make sure the platform would be both simple to use and developer friendly. We firmly believe the most value will be created from smart media dapps being built on top of the Po.et protocol.

Planning and implementing a software architecture that could match our vision was no small feat. Architecting our software stack has required a great deal of analysis, experimentation and detailed attention to the various use cases that we want Po.et to support.

This article outlines the three main layers that comprise the Po.et technology stack; describes how Po.et’s various parts fit together; and discusses some of the key uses cases that our protocol enables.

Po.et’s Three Layers

Application Layer

The application layer includes the tools that users need to register content via Po.et and manage content ownership information. This generally includes all consumer facing apps like CMS integrations, content wallets, and most interfaces built on top of Po.et.

One major tool is the Po.et WordPress plugin. The plugin will make it possible for anyone to timestamp content from within WordPress, the most popular Content Management System (CMS) that currently accounts for 30 percent of the world’s websites. In this way, the plugin makes it easy for anyone who uses WordPress to register content onto the Po.et network.

Po.et will also provide a block explorer, which will work similarly to blockchain.info. Using the block explorer, anyone can easily search for content that is registered on Po.et, explore each work’s metadata and determine how content may be reused.

Middleware Layer

Po.et will also provide several resources that developers can use to integrate tools and services with Po.et. These tools will serve as the developer bridge between consumer facing applications and the Po.et protocol.

The most extensive of these resources is Frost, an open, RESTful API that applications can use to interact with the Po.et network without requiring private key infrastructure. We developed Frost in order to provide content publishers with an easy way of accessing the Po.et network and retrieving timestamp data using simple username and password credentials. Frost is an important component of our commitment to making Po.et not just reliable and secure, but also easy to use.

In addition to the Frost API, we will provide libraries offering methods that developers may use to create and sign Po.et claims within applications. We currently plan to develop JavaScript and PHP libraries for Po.et.

Protocol Layer

The protocol layer is composed of the technology that Po.et uses to connect to the blockchain, which functions as the backbone for registering and serving data claims.

The protocol layer includes Po.et Nodes, the software responsible for timestamping data to the blockchain. Time-stamped data is stored via IPFS. For a more in-depth overview of the protocol’s functions, read up on the Node here.

Po.et currently timestamps content to the Bitcoin blockchain, but we have plans to support additional blockchains in the future if necessary. We chose the Bitcoin blockchain because it has the most accumulated proof of work, which makes the most economically expensive public chain to rewrite.

How Programmers Can Build on Po.et

The Po.et team is creating applications that will enable anyone to register and manage content on the network in a user friendly manner. However, Po.et is extensible by design, and we hope the community will create additional applications that leverage the protocol.

For example, developers could leverage the Po.et middleware libraries to create a digital wallet content wallet for content creators to view and manage their works. This would be a great example of application layer technology. Similarly, programmers could use the middleware layer to create an iOS SDK for Po.et, then create iOS applications using th SDK.

Po.et Use Cases

When used in conjunction, the layers and tools described above support several important use cases. They include:

• Digital publishing. In an age when copying digital content from one computer to another is far too easy, it is very difficult to protect the rights of content owners and ensure that writers receive attribution for their work. Po.et provides a solution for protecting ownership and attribution rights by recording this data to the blockchain so that it can be tracked by anyone, from anywhere. When you use the WordPress plugin to register content on the Po.et network, anyone who wants to redistribute the content can easily determine the licensing, attribution and (if applicable) payment requirements associated with it. In addition, developers can use Frost or the JavaScript and PHP plugins to integrate Po.et into custom content management systems. The Po.et model supports traditional digital publishing workflows, as well as decentralized content marketplaces.
• Journalism. The internet is overflowing with news stories. It is challenging for good journalism to rise above the noise and for journalists to earn fair payment for their work. Po.et addresses these issues. Using the WordPress plugin or a custom application that leverages Frost, journalists can easily register and distribute their work, create custom redistribution licenses, implement innovative payment structures and protect attribution rights.
• Font licensing. Fonts are a foundational part of much of the digital content that we consume every day. However, many fonts are distributed in ways that violate licensing terms. In addition, the current distribution models for fonts force designers to sign over the licensing rights for their work to the centralized hubs that store and distribute fonts. Designers can use Po.et Nodes to store fonts directly on the blockchain in a decentralized way. Po.et enables custom font licensing as well.

These are just a few of the major use cases that Po.et will support. Because of Po.et’s open source and extensible nature, there are virtually no limits on the platform’s ability to solve challenges associated with the ownership and management of digital content of any type.

We are hard at work developing the components described above. For more information on development status and future plans, we invite you to check out our roadmap, follow us on Twitter and connect with us anytime on Telegram.