IPPro The Internet Issue 143

Blockchain Analysis
Proof of ownership
Ownership of unregistered IP rights
IP infringement generally occurs when an invention, design, trademark
or original artistic work protected by IP rights is commercially used or
exploited without the consent of the owner.
Unauthorised use of this type is often devastating for businesses and
entrepreneurs that may have ploughed significant time, resources
and funds into launching an original product, service or brand, only
to see their commercial monopoly destroyed by the introduction of a
similar, potentially inferior, copy.
In cases such as this, the right owner (or exclusive licensee) may
wish to assert their IP rights and highlight their proof of ownership,
in a bid to prevent continued infringement, and further damage to
their brand.
Unregistered IP rights, such as copyright and unregistered design
right, have long been problematic in terms of proving conception,
use and status, because, as their name suggests, there is currently
no searchable register or other central record of them.
Not only can this lead to, often innocent, infringement of these rights,
it can also hamper any attempts by the owner to prove ownership in
the event of a dispute.
However, blockchain technology could play an important role in
helping to resolve this IP grey area. By uploading their original design
or work to a blockchain, a time-stamped record is created that would
give the owner a greater degree of tangible proof needed to prove
ownership.
However, in many cases, the infringing party may claim that
they were unaware that the product or service was protected by
intellectual property.
At the moment, details of different registered IP rights are stored in
various databases, and unregistered rights are not generally available
to view at all.
But the potential to use blockchain technology for the management
of all IP rights, by recording them via a distributed ledger rather than
the various traditional databases, could not only reduce accidental
infringement, but also combat false claims of mistaken use.
Many companies which infringe an IP owner’s rights claim that they
were unaware of their existence.
With the internet making it easier for original ideas to be used and
manipulated on a global scale without the owner’s knowledge, the
lines can often become blurred when it comes to the existence of IP
rights and their ownership.
For that reason, unauthorised use of a registered, or unregistered IP
right, could very well be accidental, as its existence and ownership
gets lost through the many channels online and across industries
available to track those rights.
Another potential use lies in the provision of a central record of events,
detailing the life of a registered IP right, and enabling it to be tracked
using this technology. The potential benefits might include easier IP
auditing procedures and simplified due diligence processes for IP
transactions. Blockchain-like repositories for unregistered rights are
already being developed, and it will be interesting to see the extent to
which they could provide a solution to the claiming and evidencing of
ownership of unregistered IP rights.
Digital rights management
In cases where an IP right owner’s market potential is largely intangible,
they can lose out financially without a system for monitoring the use of
their creation and obtaining payment for such use. Music and images
are the perfect example of original work, which is readily available to
be copied and used, but with no formal means of monitoring such
use or securing appropriate license fees.
Blockchain technology could, for example, be used to create a
distributed ledger in which the author’s records are available on a
secure worldwide platform. This would then act as a point of contact
for those looking to use the copyrighted creation.
Owners can then, in theory, be paid any associated licensing fees
that they are entitled to for agreed usage.
That said, it is also not unheard of for people who knowingly infringe
an IP right to claim ignorance if they are caught.
By creating a global, and conclusive IP registry using blockchain
technology, which is an instantly and easily accessible, immutable
record of both unregistered and registered IP rights, there is
the potential, in the future, to prevent infringing parties from
legitimately claiming so-called ‘innocent infringement’. This type
of system could put IP right owners in a much better position to
quickly tackle any unauthorised use before it has the potential to
do any damage.”
This could pave the way for owners and users to communicate more
openly to allow licensing fees and associated costs to be made
more naturally, consequently eradicating the need for infringement.
Indeed, KodakONE image rights management platform, launched
by Kodak and WENN Digital earlier this year, together with its own
cryptocurrency, aims to do just that and enable photographers and
agencies to take greater control in image rights management.
Owners of original work often lose out financially, as those seeking
to use it may be unaware that IP rights exist, let alone how to obtain
permission to use the work and pay any associated royalties.
16 IPPro The Internet www.ipprotheinternet.com