Kodak has been popular for the thing that they loved to do. You might have heard about Kodak creating the best of technology. They created the amazing film business and also hired the best engineers to develop patents that can change the world.
However, they fall off slowly when they filed for bankruptcy in 2012.
From there, we have come a long way.
So, What is Kodak blockchain?
The new news is that Kodak is pivoting to the blockchain. The 130-year old slowly pivoted to blockchain and took the biggest gamble. This is where “Kodak blockchain” came into life.
The reaction from the community was always mixed. However, many experts were perplexed and started raising questions about this decision. The stockholders and investors, on the other hand, were pretty excited to see the change. As soon as the announcement came, the stock prices doubled.
Meet the Kodak’s digital coin – KODAKCoin
Just after the major announcement, Kodak came forward and named their digital coin was “KODAKcoin.” The coin is a digital currency and is sold as a currency that will help agencies and photographers to have better control over image rights. It is also termed as a “photo-centric” cryptocurrency.
The KODAKCoin will be used by photographers as currency to use on the Koda’s upcoming blockchain. It will act as a “medium of exchange.”
Kodak’s CEO Jeff Clarke is extremely positive about their move. He added,
“For many in the tech industry, ‘blockchain’ and ‘cryptocurrency’ are hot buzzwords, but for photographers who’ve long struggled to assert control over their work and how it’s used, these buzzwords are the keys to solving what felt like an unsolvable problem. Kodak has always sought to democratize photography and make licensing fair to artists.”
The KODAKCoin supposedly will work rights management platform KodakOne. The platform will help photographers manage their digital assets with the power of blockchain.
Is KODAKCoin too good to be true?
Kodak aims to solve one of the biggest problems that the creative industry goes through, i.e., copyright. Material theft and infringement of copyright is a common occurrence in the current media world. For both small and big players, it is next to impossible to keep track of every copyright violation that is happening around the world. By connecting digital rights to the blockchain, it will become easier for publishers to manage their intellectual property. It will work by linking the IP address of the creator with the licensed image. There will also be crawler bots used in the blockchain. If the crawler robot detects someone with a different IP address and without proper authorization to use the image, it will alarm the owner about the situation.
However, the market sentiment towards Kodak is skeptical. Many experts are guessing how Kodak is using the blockchain card to gain faster gains. It can be just one last ditch attempt to save the company.
KodakOne, the image management platform will also act as a licensing platform. It will help photographers to sell their work.
Meet their 2nd cryptocurrency product: The Kodak KashMiner
Kodak didn’t stop just there. They also released their Kodak KashMiner which is apparently can only be rented. The machine is even shown at CES 2018. It will cost you just $3,400.
The rental program is aimed towards cryptocurrency miners who don’t want to go through all the hassle to set up a proper miner rig. Once rented, you can use it for two years. Not only that, you will have to give 50% of the profit to the Spotlite Energy Systems of California. This company is licensing the Kodak brand using “Kodak Blockchain Project.”
Will it be enough to save the future of Kodak?
Blockchain has given companies a second chance to survive in the competitive market. Almost everyone wants to jump on the blockchain bandwagon. The whole idea of KodakOne and Kodak blockchain does look promising. Protecting the images of photographers have never been easy, and with blockchain, it does seem possible. The photographers will also be able to use KODAKcoin, digital currency to power their digital image management system, KodakOne.
So, what do you think about Kodak blockchain? Will it be successful? Comment below and let us know.
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