# Blockchain Interoperability for Future Telecoms
## 5 Research Challenges and Future Directions
### Deployment Challenges  
Weaver's high potential presents a couple of challenges. Weaver is currently under development, and some critical features still require discussion. Below are the essential topics that must be considered for its successful deployment:  
* Scalability: The history of blockchain technology is full of discussions regarding performance issues. As discussed in the previous sections, new blockchain projects have been designed to address scalability and performance limitations, particularly in public blockchain research. Sixth-generation communications, characterized by seamless transitions between interoperated telecom operators, require strong performance due to ongoing transaction processing for service access and usage tracking. According to [76], 6G can meet the increasing demand for higher capabilities and broader-spectrum communications in mobile technologies. According to [77], once the Distributed Metavverse [77] is deployed in mobile networks, such an architecture will require higher scalability and capability. [PERSON] et al. [78] also discussed performance as a challenge for blockchain for edge-of-things (BEoT) devices deployed in 5G networks when the number of edge devices increases significantly. Therefore, they suggested moving algorithms to edge devices in order to minimize data travel between data centers and edge devices. Such a scenario will become more challenging when the data from these BEoT devices travel between 6G networks.
* Storage Management: When transaction processing per planned time frame increases significantly, storing these transactions on the mainchain can become a challenge and a performance bottleneck for end-to-end transaction storing and traceability. In [79], [PERSON] et al. surveyed the scalability of blockchain systems. According to them, traditional blockchain nodes deployed for enterprise use require more storage space. If this issue is not addressed, transactional delays could occur as network density increases. In [80,81], off-site solutions were explored as alternatives to improve performance and make storage management more efficient. The authors of [80] also examined the TEE solution proposed by [PERSON] et al. [45] as an off-chain option. This challenge necessitates further research into off-chain solutions, including sidechain options, as suggested in this study.
* Regulatory Hurdles: Despite various alternative interoperability solutions, regulatory bodies may permit information exchange between telecom providers only if an intermediary is utilized. In many countries, regulatory bodies designate official intermediaries for information exchange, as regulations and processes are necessary. Therefore, regulatory bodies must develop and implement new regulations for a direct peer-to-peer information exchange framework managed by a potential interoperability solution. Blockchain's immutability, encryption, and traceability features, combined with its tamper-proof architecture, can significantly help in persuading regulatory bodies to accept interoperability architectures. In this context, blockchain deployments are expected to provide regulatory bodies with access to trace spectrum allocation, mobile number porting, and roaming usage. Using well-established and widely supported interoperability solutions supported by the Linux Foundation (e.g., Hyperledger Fabric, Weaver) can streamline the certification processes initiated by regulatory bodies.