A raft of top music companies, namely Warner Music Group, Warner/Chappell, BMG and Global Music Rights, have joined a pilot for a decentralised music rights database launched by tech startup JAAK.
The pilot exists on top of blockchain network KORD which provides a shared data network that aims to create a public record of rights and a fixed audit trail.
KORD connects identifying information from across the recording business, including labels, publishers, performing rights organisations, songwriters and their representatives, in order to build a global view of IP rights for the music industry.
Partners have the sole authority to insert, update and remove their own information, resolve conflicts and converge on a global view of intellectual property rights.
Founded in 2015 by Vaughn McKenzie-Landell (pictured), Freddie Tibbles and Viktor Tron, JAAK is working alongside the music industry to explore how blockchain technology can help address problems regarding the allocation of royalties in today’s digital streaming age.
Following completion of the pilot, JAAK will be launching an industry-wide Music Sandbox to develop products and the KORD network in collaboration with the music industry.
“The internet solved many of the problems relating to rights issues but compounded others.
“The goal of KORD is to harness blockchain technology to make the world of IP rights better for everyone, starting with the music industry.”
Vaughn McKenzie-Landell, jaak
Vaughn McKenzie-Landell, CEO of JAAK, said: “The internet solved many of the problems relating to rights issues but compounded others.
“We have developed the pilot in collaboration with the music industry to directly address their needs.
“The goal of KORD is to harness blockchain technology to make the world of IP rights better for everyone, starting with the music industry.
“We’d like to thank our pilot participants for their continued support and valuable insight.”
Sebastian Hentzschel, CTO & EVP Recorded Royalty Processing, IT & Systems, BMG, added: “Metadata is the lifeblood of today’s music business.
“From studios to streaming sites, a clearer picture of recordings and copyrights could yield untapped benefits for artists and writers — and JAAK is pushing an exciting frontier.”
Sean O’Malley, COO, Global Music Rights, said: “Regardless of format, Global Music Rights is committed to clear and concise intellectual property metadata, especially the information surrounding licensing and rights ownership.
“KORD is technology that enables stewards like us to collaborate on the dynamic picture of every song and ensure the correct writers and publishers are accurately and efficiently compensated.”
sean o’malley, global music rights
“KORD is technology that enables stewards like us to collaborate on the dynamic picture of every song and ensure the correct writers and publishers are accurately and efficiently compensated.”
Steve Clark, EVP Global Operations, Warner/Chappell Music, concluded: “Warner/Chappell is committed to ensuring our songwriters are paid as quickly, accurately and transparently as possible.
“We’ve invested heavily in our own systems, but we’ve also worked with pioneering partners, such as JAAK, to help us keep at the cutting edge of technology in this area.
“The pilot is going well and we look forward to continued collaboration to harness blockchain technology to the service of our songwriters.”
Music Business Worldwide
