Kodak will offer photographers a money-transfer platform, one that will search for their work, verify if publication rights have been acquired, and then ensure that payments are transferred back to them using the company’s new cryptocurrency.
The KodakCoin cryptocurrency, the result of a partnership with Wenn Digital, is to be launched by the company on January 31, 2018. The company created the coin on the blockchain, so that photographers keep track of where their images are used, and to make sure they get paid when that happens.
Photographers who use the platform, to be called KODAKOne, will be able to register and license their work in the secure ledger provided by the Ethereum blockchain. They can receive payment directly from clients immediately at the point of sale, and transfers using the network will be exceptionally rapid.
Both amateur and professional photographers are invited to use the technology. “The photography industry is somewhat opaque where the revenues are declining for photographers and they have no control over their IP and images anymore. They see their images going out being used over the Web and they don't end up earning from it. There is so much infringement and stealing photos and photographers have very little recourse. Kodak has always sought to make licencing fair to artists,” comments Matthew Walker, president of the KODAKOne platform.
The platform will also continually crawl the web, seeking to find works from registered members, and to protect it from theft. The platform also manages the post-licensing process if unlicensed usage is detected.
Kodak is planning to launch the new money transfer service in the US, UK, Germany and Canada once the KodakCoin launches, with plans to open up in India in two- years’ time.
