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Kodak to use blockchain to protect photographers’ image rights
Kodak to use blockchain to protect photographers’ image rights
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Eastman Kodak Co. shares skyrocketed early Tuesday afternoon following an announcement that the company plans to launch a major blockchain initiative and cryptocurrency to protect photographers from licensing infringement.
Shares of company stock (Nasdaq: KODK) spiked nearly 50 percent to $4.50 immediately following the announcement at the Consumer Technology Association’s CES show in Las Vegas Tuesday. Kodak shares last traded at $4.50 in November.
Kodak has teamed with WENN Digital in a licensing partnership to launch the KODAKOne image rights management platform, and KODAKCoin, a photo-centric cryptocurrency to empower photographers and agencies to take greater control in image rights management.
Using blockchain technology, the KODAKOne platform will create an encrypted, digital ledger of rights ownership for photographers to register new and archival work that they can then license within the platform. The platform will provide continual web crawling in order to monitor and protect the IP of the images registered in its system, officials said.
KODAKCoin will allow photographers to receive payment for licensing their work immediately upon sale. A cryptocurrency is a virtual currency that uses cryptography for security, making it harder to counterfeit.
“For many in the tech industry, ‘blockchain’ and ‘cryptocurrency’ are hot buzzwords, but for photographers who’ve long struggled to assert control over their work and how it’s used, these buzzwords are the keys to solving what felt like an unsolvable problem,” said Kodak CEO Jeff Clarke. “Kodak has always sought to democratize photography and make licensing fair to artists. These technologies give the photography community an innovative and easy way to do just that.”
The initial coin offering will open on Jan. 31, and is open to accredited investors from the U.S., U.K., Canada and other select countries.
“Engaging with a new platform, it is critical photographers know their work and their income is handled securely and with trust, which is exactly what we did with KODAKCoin,” said WENN Digital CEO Jan Denecke. “Subject to the highest standards of compliance, KODAKCoin is all about paying photographers fairly and giving them an opportunity to get in on the ground floor of a new economy tailored for them, with secure asset rights management built right in.”
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