Blockchain betters revenue for artists in the Music Industry

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  • Only 1% of artists earn 77% of the total income received by artists. 
  • Blockchain music has led to the rampant increase of Web 3 artists all over, and now digital music platforms have incorporated blockchain to keep up with the technological world.
  • Blockchain music contains the necessary security measures that prevent hackers from tampering with the blockchain network due to its consensus algorithm.

Blockchain technology has redefined many aspects of the technological world. It began its journey from creating immutable ledgers within the financial industry to creating almost incorruptible security systems. Blockchain technology has proven its applicability in even other sectors beyond what Web 2 could do. Most individuals need to understand that the main functionalities of blockchain can extend beyond the financial sectors and databases. Today the Music Industry has also turned to blockchain technology for a better solution. Blockchain Music has created Web 3 artists who benefit from this new invention. Essentially, this blockchain application has diversified the concept of Web 3.

Although how does the application of distributed ledger apply to the Music Industry? How can its immutable nature be applied and benefit established and upcoming music artists today? Many would be surprised by the numerous applications blockchain truly has.

The music industry suffers greatly.

The music industry is one of the oldest industries to exist. The very concept of music has shifted throughout the years, and when the digital age of Web 1 and Web 2 arrived, it revolutionized the Music Industry. Nowadays, digital music platforms have increased not only the reachability of the industry but also its access. Unfortunately, it still has its downsides, as only a tiny percentage of music artists can benefit from the industry.

Also, Read LGND partners with Polygon and Warner Music Group for the Web3 music platforms.

According to Statista, the global music industry will grow to $ 65 billion this year.

Major music platforms such as the Univeral Music Group, Warner Music Group and Sony BMG have dominated the industry for some time, but only with several issues. Today online digital music platforms such as Spotify and Apple Music have taken the limelight, and more artists have revolutionized what we term music. As much as Web 2 technology revolutionized many concepts, it still had several problems.

Low Pay

The music industry’s value chain is often more complex than people think. Other entities apart from Artists and Record work with digital music platforms. Entities such as publishers, retailers, and performance Rights Organizations are crucial focal points of these industries.

Due to this complex chain, only 1% of artists earn 77% of the total income received by artists. This relatively means it’s not lucrative if you aren’t in the top 1%. Due to the numerous intermediaries involved in the Music industry, everyone desires a large cake cut. Most top artists even earn 18% f the total revenue generated by their music. Furthermore, artists on digital music platforms often need help understanding how royalties work, losing a lot of revenue.

Price and Piracy

Price is also another rampant dilemma within the music industry. Most digital music platforms offer subscriptions to enable user access, and not everyone can afford it. As a result, many individuals have turned to piracy and the legal acquisition of music. The rampant nature of piracy is extensively vast that numerous dedicated websites pirate music and offer it to users free of charge.

Piracy-in-the-Music-Industry
Piracy has plagued the music industry and numerous digital music platforms leading to billions of losses in revenue.[Photo/Business-Insider]
This has two adverse effects, the first being the amount of money lost due to piracy, and the second is the cyber security issues that come with it. The US economy loses about $ 12.5 billion annually due to music theft. The effects of this significant loss ripple throughout the music industry band, especially among artists. Piracy is the illegal copying and selling of any digital content. Most of the time, pirated music is offered for a low price or even free. Most individuals who cannot purchase from digital online platforms opt for pirated music.

Also, Read The NFT marketplace: 2022 recap.

The rampant use of pirated music has allowed hackers to embed malicious codes and programs in music files. This has led to numerous cyber crimes that have plagued the digital world.

Fortunately, with blockchain music, these issues have become a thing of the past.

Benefits of blockchain music

Blockchain technology has proven its worth through its decentralized, traceable and immutable nature. A blockchain application has to utilize these key elements to develop a sophisticated system that provides efficiency. Blockchain music has led to the rampant increase of Web 3 artists all over, and now digital music platforms have incorporated blockchain to keep up with the technological world.

Copyrights and Intellectual property management.

Blockchain holds massive potential for the music industry due to its immutable and decentralized nature. 

It offers a form of integrity throughout all of its processes. This key feature gives a sense of ownership even in digital property. Web 3 artists can now directly manage their copyrights and intellectual property by establishing a peer-to-peer database to store their intellectual property and copyright information.

Also, Read Nigerian artists conquer the NFT marketplace in Africa.

One of the critical demerits within the music industry is identifying originality in eclectic music. Finding two or more music albums that sound similar to some extent is a sore spot for most artists, leading to brutal legal battles. With blockchain music ascertaining the valid owner of a specific beat or rhythm is more plausible. In addition, smart contracts can automatically update their copyright information and can make it publicly viewed by any authorized parties.

Data Security.

Blockchain incorporates cryptography to ensure data protection within cryptocurrency. This attribute can be isolated and utilized by Web 3 artists to protect their music albums from hacking. This overall protect the Music Industry from any indirect association with data breaches. 

Blockchain music contains the necessary security measures that prevent hackers from tampering with the blockchain network due to its consensus algorithm. It may not aid this blockchain application directly, but it prevents widespread malicious software.

Blockchain music
Blockchain music is among the most innovative blockchain application.[Photo/Crypto-Adventure]

Directly benefits Web 3 artists.

Blockchain advocates for the empowerment of the user directly. Blockchain music simplifies the complex supply chain of the Music Industry, allowing Web 3 artists to earn from their music.

Also, Read How the African NFT market is surviving the crypto crash.

This builds a level of trust among the users and the artists directly, which also can be capitalized by offering exclusive privileges at a particular cost. It offers the right holders to have their fair share of compensation also. Through smart contacts, blockchain music can see the terms under which it can be downloaded and used and the percentage of royalties destined for each copyright holder. This enables instant micro-payments that eventually accumulate to millions. No longer will the 1% benefit from the Music Industry.

Closer Artst-fan relationship

Due to the decentralized nature of blockchain music and its easy pay mechanism, Web 3 artists can interact directly with users. Through engaging with fans, they can build a closer seller-consumer relationship that can e profitable in numerous areas. In addition, it can lead to the widespread use of NFTs exclusively owned by loyal fans. Blockchain music’s redefining effect on the music industry will lead intermediaries obsolete. A closer artists-fan relationship will also broaden an artist’s scope by directly providing a pool of inspiration and creativity from fans.

Existing Blockchain music platforms

Digital music platforms revolutionized the Music industry to its current glory. With blockchain music slowly rising, it was only a matter of time before it took centre stage. The number of Web 3 artists has significantly increased, and various organizations have developed music platforms to host blockchain music.

Below is a list of top blockchain music companies:

  • Sound – is a web3-based company in the Music industry that offers more interactive relationships between artists and fans. Artists release a song as an NFT and allow users to purchase a copy of it or generally buy the entire song for a hefty price.
    • Digimarc – is a company that develops solutions for licensing intellectual; property for audio, visual and image content integrating blockchain technology. It has music fingerprinting technology that links to metadata to track music sources, measure usage and estimate payments. Digimore’s core function is a crucial factor that led to the uprising of this blockchain application.
    • MediaChain– is a peer-to-peer blockchain database for sharing information across different applications and organizations.\ Spotify recognized its potential and later purchased it. MediaChain organizes open-source information by issuing unique identifiers for each piece of information. It also allows artists to receive payments directly from their fans.
    • Open Music Initiative – is a nonprofit initiative that leverages the power of blockchain music to identify its music rights holders and creators uniformly. OMI creates a new metadata layer alongside the Music industry and other digital music platforms. This fosters transparency and should be an authoritative source of information.
    • Musicoin – is a Hong Kong-based music streaming platform. This digital music platform has numerous Web3 artists capitalizing on blockchain music’s benefits. It contains a closer artist-fan interaction feature, allowing users to benefit directly from their content.

Conclusion

Blockchain music has definitive effects on the Music Industry. Its transformative nature may take some time o fully adopt, but the existing Web 3 artist have positive remarks about it. This blockchain application shows us that we have barely scratched the surface of the full capabilities of blockchain technology.

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Ken Mutuku
Ken Mutuku
I am an enthusiastic writer who believes that facts, knowledge and opinions can be expressed vividly with just a few words. I think that all forms of writing achieve this; hence I have a wide area of expertise and interest, such as cryptocurrency, psychology and the human mind.
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