The potential for how Blockchain tech could alter the music industry has often been discussed of late. In this piece we look at twenty-two ways that Blockchain, or more specifically the dotBlockchain Media project, could fundamentally alter the traditional approach to media rights.
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Guest post by Benji Rogers of Medium
An update from the dotBlockchain Media Project.
dot Blockchain Media or “dotBC” has built and is in the process of releasing a new way for music and media creators to securely encode their rights and their identities into their digital assets using blockchain.
For more information and to get involved please go to www.dotblockchainmedia.com to join our email list or slack. Thanks!
Traditional Approach:
Large centrally controlled database(s)
dotBC Approach:
Authoritative decentralized database
Traditional Approach:
Build new database(s)
dotBC Approach:
Build new digital assets
Traditional Approach:
Use 26 year old .WAV files with zero metadata or song data control
dotBC Approach:
Use .bc bundled files that write song and metadata amendments to blockchain
Traditional Approach:
Send music files & metadata separately via third parties
dotBC Approach:
Send music files & song data in permissioned trackable bundles via third parties or directly
Traditional Approach:
Multiple data entry points
dotBC Approach:
Single data entry point
Traditional Approach:
Message multiple parties to songs in separate places (email, phone, website logins)
dotBC Approach:
Message multiple parties through the song (each song like a slack channel or a permissioned WhatsApp group to linked parties)
Traditional Approach:
Physical documents and multiple separate third-party accounts needed to fully verify ownership information, contracts, payments, etc.
dotBC Approach:
Single interface to songs, albums, catalogs etc. with multiple admin capabilities
Traditional Approach:
No interoperable version tracking between the metadata and the media itself
dotBC Approach:
Accurate version tracking of all media and metadata from initial creation to studio, release and beyond
Traditional Approach:
Music files, contracts, artwork & metadata all in separate places
dotBC Approach:
Music files, contracts, artwork & metadata all in single workflow and user interface
Traditional Approach:
Amendments to metadata in multiple locations that do not synchronize
dotBC Approach:
Amendments to metadata timestamped & tracked in blockchain through single interface
Traditional Approach:
Existing identifiers (ISRC, ISWC etc.) need to match across non-interoperable systems
dotBC Approach:
Existing identifiers (ISRC, ISWC etc.) anchored to persistent blockchain address/identity
Traditional Approach:
Bad metadata revealed post distribution
dotBC Approach:
Less bad data reaches supply chain
Traditional Approach:
Conflicts solved but hard to share resolution
dotBC Approach:
Conflicts solved and then broadcast to all relevant parties to the song instantaneously
Traditional Approach:
Amendments and deletions to data possible by multiple parties in multiple places
dotBC Approach:
Amendments forward but never backward, permanent changelog for all data shared with all relevant parties
Traditional Approach:
Easier to hack centralized systems (i.e., Equifax)
dotBC Approach:
Decentralized systems harder to hack
Traditional Approach:
Private systems vulnerable to hacking (i.e., Equifax)
dotBC Approach:
Public & Private layers cryptographically harder to hack + blockchains minimize damage to the whole system
Traditional Approach:
No single agreed-upon identity or authority system
dotBC Approach:
Single scored and corroborated identity and authority system anchors owners to content & data
Traditional Approach:
Streaming service search by album, artist & song
dotBC Approach:
Streaming service search by any participant recorded and associated with a song, e.g., label, publisher, songwriter, musician, producer, etc
Currency Blockchain vs. Data Blockchain Approach
dotBC is solely focused on getting ownership information to be permanent and persistent in a blockchain environment. This allows us to take a very different approach than other blockchain proposals that are solely dependent on a currency to make their applications and systems work
Currency Blockchain Approach:
Rely on currency backed blockchains like Ethereum & Bitcoin
dotBC Approach:
dotBlockchain initially using Intel’s Hyperledger Sawtooth Lake blockchain to eradicate concerns about currency fluctuation & scaling
Currency Blockchain Approach:
Rely on currency backed blockchains that run all transactions on that network
dotBC Approach:
Blockchain only for amendments to music data. No data management risk due to currency fluctuation
Currency Blockchain Approach:
Currency blockchains scaling issues — currently 5–7 transaction per second with existing traffic bottlenecks
dotBC Approach:
Data only blockchain can scale as it will be the only traffic on the network. No other transactions
Currency Blockchain Approach:
Currency blockchains governed by rules of community & code they write
dotBC Approach:
Open source but industry owned, maintained and governed