Amazon was recently awarded a US patent for a "distributed ledger certification system," with distributed ledger being synonymous with blockchain technology.

As is usually the case, the patent filing itself is almost unreadable for normal people, filled with lots of technical jargon in the unique style of patent submissions.

SCDigest has been through it, and will offer a couple of takeaways.

First, one key to the digital network, and what perhaps is what makes the Amazon filing different from existing blockchain supply chain applications, is a focus on "certification."

This appears to be a process that uses validation tools at each transfer of goods over potentially a complex global supply chain in terms of what was received and what was processed and/or handled in some way before moved on to the next node.

This should allow various supply chain entities - including ultimately consumers - to trust what they are receiving is as advertised.

Entities violating certification processes would presumably eventually be drummed out of the supply chain.

The closest analog we can find is a company called StockX, which has created an on-line market for high end athletic shoes and other product categories. Sellers ship their sold goods to StockX, which uses various processes to certify the goods meet promised criteria, after which the item is shipped to the buyer.

With Amazon’s vision, consider that type of validation process at each step on a global supply chain scale.

Second, while the system is designed to provide visibility and benefit to all supply chain participants, in the end it's all about the consumber.

As shown in the graphic below from the patent filing, goods connected to such a supply chain digital ledger would allow consumers to not only see the complete "geology" of items they are considering for purchase, but to also have high levels of confidence all that information is accurate:

The technology might also help Amazon with its massive problem associated with counterfeit goods sold on its site.

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