Vitalik Buterin, the co-founder of Ethereum, recently shared his thoughts on Sony’s new blockchain platform, Soneium, which was launched on January 14.
He offered a detailed analysis of how it showcases the benefits of Ethereum Layer 2 (L2) solutions for both businesses and users.
Buterin Highlights Transparency and Control in Soneium
According to Buterin, launching an Ethereum L2 is a powerful tool for businesses. The L2 allows them to make highly specific decisions about how much control they wish to retain over their systems.
“Businesses can make very fine-grained choices around how much control they keep vs give to users. But whatever rules they choose, that’s what the rules are. Everything is onchain, transparent, and auditable by third parties,” Buterin said on X.
Buterin’s comments come as asset-freezing concerns and rug-pull allegations raise questions about Soneium’s centralization. Built using Optimism’s OP Stack, Soneium reportedly blocked traders from transacting certain meme coins.
Soneium responded by saying it placed some temporary restrictions on certain contracts to protect intellectual property rights.
“We’ve taken steps to safeguard intellectual property, ensuring a fair and inclusive ecosystem. Temporary restrictions on certain contracts at the RPC level were applied to protect creators’ rights while encouraging innovation responsibly,” Soneium clarified.
Nevertheless, Buterin pointed out that the transparency inherent in blockchain technology means that businesses cannot hide behind opaque systems. Whatever rules they choose to enforce are visible to everyone.
Ethereum L2s can be used to create closed systems where the operator has full control over the environment. In these cases, the system could allow the operator to edit the “state root” – the core structure of the blockchain.
However, because everything is on-chain, users are fully aware of what they are getting into. The presence of independent auditors and various “internet sleuths” further ensures that even in a closed system, users can monitor and verify the platform’s operations.
He highlighted the L2 technology and its ability to create a range of blockchains that cater to different business models.
Buterin added that businesses can also opt to design more open systems. He emphasized that businesses have the freedom to choose between different models, from fully closed to fully open.
Sony’s Soneium, for example, falls into a hybrid category. In this, users have the option to transact on Ethereum L2 if needed, but the process has a “large speed bump.”
“And you can also make a system where users know they can send a transaction on the L2 if they need to, but there’s a large speed bump – the sequencer can throttle but not censor. This is effectively what Sony has done,” Buterin explained.
However, not everyone was satisfied with Buterin’s clarification.
“It just doesn’t make sense why this needs to be a blockchain if they’re treating it like a private database,” wrote crypto influencer Pop Punk on X.
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