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Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the suitability of Blockchain technology for applications in the Industrial Internet of Things (IIOT). It provides a taxonomy of system requirements for such applications and maps these requirements against the Blockchain’s technological idiosyncrasies. Design/methodology/approach A requirement taxonomy is built in an iterative process based on a descriptive literature review. In total, 223 studies have been screened leading to a relevant sample of 48 publications that were analyzed in detail regarding posed system requirements. Subsequently, Blockchain’s capabilities are discussed for each requirement dimension. Findings The paper presents a taxonomy of six requirement dimensions. In the mapping process, areas of greater fit (e.g., reliability, nonrepudiation and adaptability) were identified. However, there are also several constraints (e.g., scalability, confidentiality and performance) that limit the use of Blockchain. Research limitations/implications Due to the limited amount of studies and the vibrant development of Blockchain technology, the results may benefit from practical evidence. Researchers are encouraged to validate the results in qualitative practitioner interviews. Focusing on literature-backed public Blockchain, idiosyncrasies of private implementations and specific distributed ledger technologies may be discussed in future studies. Practical implications The paper includes use cases for Blockchain in manufacturing and IIOT applications. Potential caveats for practitioners are presented. Originality/value This paper addresses the need to understand to which degree Blockchain is a suitable technology in manufacturing, especially in context of the IIOT. It contributes a requirement taxonomy which serves as the foundation for a systematic fit assessment.

Virtual reality (VR) technology generates an interactive virtual environment (VE) creating unique users' experiences. A central part of VR experience is being immersed into a VE. Immersion factors, such astechnological and perceptual features, are described in detail in non-immersive VR settings. However, advancements in VR technology, such as head-mounted displays with high resolution and precise motion tracking systems, that improve interactivity within the VE are not yet adequately considered. We conducted twelve semi-structured interviews immediately after respondents played highly immersive games using state-of-the-art VR equipment to identify novel immersion factors in this setting. The findings yield eleven immersion factors across three categories: (1) physical and physiological aspects, (2) cognitive and affective aspects, (3) social interaction and shared experience. Within these categories factors named "shared experience" and "translating actions from physical to virtual reality" were found as novel immersion factors in the VR context.

Despite being widely used in practice and often asserted to be an effective trust-building mechanism, little empirical evidence exists regarding the effect of identity verification on sharing economy platforms. We theoretically develop a model based on signaling theory to explain how identity verification strengthens users' intention to engage in sharing economy transactions by increasing the level of trust towards a verified transaction partner. To test our hypotheses, we design a between-subject online experiment comparing subjects' perceptions of identity-verified and non-verified user profiles on an accommodation sharing platform. Data was collected from 232 participants and analyzed using covariance-based structural equation modeling. We found identity verification to significantly increase transaction intention, while its effect was mediated by trust in the transaction partner. Moreover, trust disposition was found to be a significant antecedent of users' transaction intentions. We discuss our findings and provide implications for theory and practice.

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