Article
Blockchain and smart contracts: the missing link in copyright licensing?
International Journal of Law and Information Technology
(2018)
Abstract
This article offers a normative analysis of key blockchain technology concepts from the
perspective of copyright law. Some features of blockchain technologies—scarcity, trust,
transparency, decentralized public records and smart contracts—seem to make this
technology compatible with the fundamentals of copyright. Authors can publish works
on blockchain creating a quasi-immutable record of initial ownership, and encode
‘smart’ contracts to license the use of works. Remuneration may happen on online distribution
platforms where the smart contracts reside. In theory, such an automated
setup allows for the private ordering of copyright. Blockchain technology, like Digital
Rights Management 20 years ago, is thus presented as an opportunity to reduce market
friction, and increase both licensing efficiency and the autonomy of creators. Yet, some
of the old problems remain. The article examines the differences between new, smartcontract-
based private ordering regime and the fundamental components of copyright
law, such as exceptions and limitations, the doctrine of exhaustion, restrictions on formalities,
the public domain and fair remuneration.
Keywords
- Blockchain,
- copyright,
- smart contracts,
- distributed ledger technology (DLT),
- copyright registries,
- automated licensing,
- digital rights management (DRM)
Disciplines
Publication Date
2018
DOI
10.1093/ijlit/eay014
Citation Information
Balazs Bodo, Daniel Gervais and Joao Pedro Quintais. "Blockchain and smart contracts: the missing link in copyright licensing?" International Journal of Law and Information Technology Vol. 26 (2018) p. 311 - 336 Available at: http://works.bepress.com/daniel_gervais/90/
Creative Commons license
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons CC_BY-NC-ND International License.