Do copyrights on NFT exist?
Is an NFT a completely unprotected technology?
Is very difficult for the average user to understand how unprotected NFT is — not fundable tokens.
The main idea of ??this technology is to record a cryptocurrency transaction and attach random data to it. This transaction is considered to give the right to own the attached data, but there is no law or law created to legitimize the right to this property.
Let’s say you “own” an image that is printed as NFT. In fact, it is quite possible that this image is a copyrighted art of an author unknown to you. It is quite possible that you cannot own it without paying compensation to the author. But you have already paid for this image, for the one who printed it. What next?
Let’s say you “own” a jpeg, png, or some music file. But this file does not belong to you. A link to the image or music is simply attached to the NFT. This part of the server where the file itself is saved is not subject to you. It is quite possible that there is no way to have any effect on this image.
But if you can’t delete this file, move it to another location, hide its location from the public, forbid other people to download, copy, modify and distribute this file, then in what sense can you say that you own it? In none. You have one entry in a complex e-book, and that one link points to an image, photo, music file, etc. However, this may not be true — in a blockchain ledger, the entry cannot be changed. However, this rule does not apply to the data to which the link in question refers and they can be easily changed.
This file will “belong” to you, and you will be able to do whatever you want with it. As long as the person who created the file allows you to, because that data is managed by him, not you. “Your ownership of the file” relies mostly on the social agreement — the social convention because there is no way to secure ownership of it.
The only way to guarantee our actual ownership of these irreplaceable tokens is to qualify them as digital art, whose copyrights can be protected, just like classical art. What does this mean? It means an indisputable identification of the author, etc. of the creator of this digital art, means its propagations by contract, be it on paper or digital. It means keeping the data of all buyers in order to trace the identity of digital art or its originality.
For us, art and the way copyrights are protected do not change, whether we are talking about classical or digital art.
All of the creators need to understand copyright because it so closely affects them, their work, and their careers. Why? If it’s worth creating, it’s worth protecting.
To start, you need to know that copyright is an “automatic right.” Copyright automatically protects your work from the moment it is fixed in a tangible form. In other words, once you create a piece of art, write a story, or write down or record a musical composition, it is protected by copyright. You don’t need to do anything else at all for your work to be protected. Your work just belongs to you after you make it.* As the owner of your work, copyright gives you the right to make and sell copies of it, distribute those copies, make new works from it, and for some types of works, publicly display and publicly perform it (among other things).
Then why don’t digital art creators have the same automatic rights? The answer is simple. For the most part, they are anonymous, a trend as a result of decentralization, but the ability to prove or defend copyright in digital art is becoming virtually impossible. The only way to make this happen (probably the ultimate proponents of decentralization will be angry with us) is to sell digital art to official centralized auction platforms that guarantee both the origins of art and verify parties, guarantee speeches, and even insure part or all of the risks.
It is true that once your work is fixed in a tangible form — such as recording, composition, photography, etc. — it receives copyright protection. But some creators have decided to take their defense one step further by registering their work. Registering your work requires an application, a filing fee, and a copy of the work. however, this can be done to help the digital art sales platform, as long as it is centralized.
Consider copyright registration as requesting a formal birth certificate for your work, which marks its creator or “parent” (you) and the date it was created. Registering your work gives you an official document called a registration certificate and makes a public record of your property. You must register if you want to file a violation case and you must do so within a certain period of time to claim legal damages or attorney’s fees in that case. This is a sophisticated way of saying that you need to be registered if, for example, you are suing someone for using your work without your permission and you want to try to cover your lawyer’s fees or ask for other types of compensation.
To Register or Not to Register
You can register your work anytime during the life of copyright, but of course, as we mentioned above, there are benefits of a timely registration. Our general advice is to consider registering your work if you want to show that you own your work or if you plan on earning an income from it. In most cases, you can complete an application online, upload your work, and register for a fee. A member of our team can even help you determine which filing option is right for you. Ready to learn more about how copyright affects your work and maybe even take the next step?
And remember, the most challenging part is engaging with your creativity. We’re here to help with the rest.
