A world-first blockchain prototype system for digital rights management and royalty distribution in the publishing sector has been developed by QUT researchers.
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Blockchain technology – described as a decentralised and distributed database and the technology that underpins cryptocurrency – is now being used to create commercial opportunities for small publishers.
New research has allowed the team at Queensland University of Technology’s (QUT) Creative Industries Faculty to develop a world-first blockchain prototype system for digital rights management and royalty distribution.
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Existing systems, new languages, led by Associate Professor Mark Ryan, was a two-year collaboration involving researchers from QUT’s Creative Industries, Law, Science and Engineering Faculties, along with Brisbane-based micro publisher, Tiny Owl Workshop.
Ryan said: ‘There is a small, but growing volume of research and innovative technological experiments that focus on blockchain for book publishing. But, most of it is focused on enabling authors to self-publish and earn royalties.’
Blockchain technology is currently being used for rights and royalties management for other industries, like music distribution, and the tracking of products including beef, diamonds and the sale of art.
However, Ryan pointed out that ‘there’s a lack of practical research into how publishers may benefit from blockchain, as well as authors and other creatives, along with other cultural institutions such as libraries and archives.’
Working with the publishing industry
One of the outcomes of the Existing systems, new languages project was the creation of a blockchain prototype system for rights management and royalty distribution.
This system enacts micro-payments via smart contracts to all creative professionals involved in the writing and publishing process.
‘Using open source blockchain technology, the project managed intellectual property agreements and royalty payments, and tracked purchases with a custom digital ledger,’ Ryan said.
‘Working with blockchain is still a very technical and complex process. Our project required in-depth knowledge of information technology, information systems and coding, as well as legal expertise and an understanding of the creative aspects of book publishing.’
Dr Michael Adams from the Science and Engineering Faculty’s School of Information Systems developed the prototype open source blockchain-enabled system for the project.
‘The prototype coordinates complex communications between a browser-based user interface, the YAWL business process management system and the blockchain platform Hyperledger Fabric,’ Adams said.
Another outcome of the project was a new digital edition of the novella No Point in Stopping.
Ryan said, ‘We worked with Tiny Owl Workshop to create additional value from the IP publishing houses generate when creating books.’
Sue Wright, Director of Tiny Owl Workshop said the project team enabled Tiny Owl to create new revenue and royalty streams from the kind of IP all publishers create as they work to bring books to market.
‘We took the behind-the-scenes intellectual property the publishing team created when developing the novella No Point in Stopping, written by Brisbane author Samuel Maguire,’ said Wright.
This project allowed research into the potential of blockchain technology that are mutually beneficial for both publishers and authors.
Read and view the project Existing systems, new languages.
And if you want to get your head around blockchain, and other ways it might impact the arts, take a read of these earlier ArtsHub stories on the topic.