4 reasons why Blockchain will revolutionize the music industry

4 reasons why Blockchain will revolutionize the music industry

Blockchain technology has been a topic of interest for over a year for me, I briefly touch on the subject in this post.  When I first read of its possible application in the music industry I was sold that this was the future. Forerunners like Imogen Heap have laid the groundwork for the tech, now companies like Spotify are beginning to embrace the change. Blockchain technology will not only fix major issues inside the music industry but revolutionize it in the coming years. This is the most prolific innovation the industry has had in recent memory, and below I will list four ways this tech will change the game.

It will transform Digital Publishing

The expression of digital rights has been a leading issue in the industry since music the creation of the MP3. Due to an outdated tracking system, it is extremely difficult to identify the appropriate parties who own the rights to songs. This makes it difficult for PRO’s to cut the proper artist a royalty check.  With blockchain, music will be published on a public ledger with the right owner’s information stored on metadata making everything transparent. This will guarantee the right parties are compensated and credited each time a song is played. The best part of the ledger is that it is public. Indie artists will be able to take advantage of the tech without any involvement from major labels.

New ways for artists and consumer to connect

With these new transparent ledgers comes a world of possibilities, like allowing the artist to manage their own licenses. Blockchain-based start-ups like Ujo Music are taking full advantage of this application. They allow artists to manage their identities and licensing as well as allowing consumers to license music. PeerTracks, a blockchain-based streaming platform, has a system in place where creators can identify their biggest fans and reward them. These rewards could be anything from concert tickets to actual money. Imagine getting gifted by Rihanna for sharing her album on a social site. This will change the relationship between consumer and artist by making it even more personal than social media previously could.

Blockchain will change how artists are paid

According to Techcrunch.com, “The infrastructure of blockchain tech is based on smart contracts, programs that can run a blockchain along with a payment transaction.” Imogen Heap herself experimented with this new tech when she released her song Tiny Human. The song became the first track to automatically distribute payments via smart contracts to all parties involved. PeerTracks boast that it can give artists 90% of their sales income instantly with their service. Blockchain tech promises to cut out the wait and confusion that has always been involved with paying an artist.

It would help with the piracy problem

There was a time when music was bought and paid for by fans. Because of piracy music has transformed into a marketing tool for artists. Blockchain’s ability to store metadata with a unique ID and timestamp makes it almost impossible for the information to be tampered with or copied. This would restore a lot of value to music as piracy would shrink initially. Blockchain will not kill piracy completely, as I’ve been quoted.

(touche Bittunes)

However, it would be a step in the right direction.

What do you think? Is blockchain the tech to save the industry or is it just more noise? Leave a comment below and share your thoughts.