Ethereum Co-Founder Joseph Lubin: Blockchain Can Benefit Artists, Journalists

Ethereum co-founder and ConsenSys creator Joseph Lubin said that blockchain technology and decentralization can benefit content creators and journalists. Lubin spoke about different industries that are benefitting from blockchain technology in a video on March 12.

In the video, Lubin said that artists are “set to benefit quite dramatically” from blockchain, as it allows them to attach policies and stipulations for how the content is consumed and shared i.e. derivative works, streaming, public performances, etc. In Lubin’s view, it also allows them to eliminate middlemen:

“I think artists in the music industry on average capture about 11 or 12 percent of the value in the industry and those big record companies are sucking up 70 or so percent. We can replace those record companies with smart contracts on the Ethereum platform.”

Lubin continued that, while there will still be intermediaries such as promoters, they will not be able to “get to a commanding position where they’re extracting enormous rents just because of their intermediary role.”

In regard to journalism, Lubin said that blockchain-driven platforms like Civil could help the “gutted” journalism industry to deliver content directly to the consumer and “return ethics to journalism.” Lubin said that a platform like Civil allows newsrooms to form a code of ethics and stake that security bond on the platform:

“If they break that pledge in some way, their readership, their listenership can call them to task, can challenge their stake and potentially have them bumped off the platform.”  

Earlier this month, Civil announced its official launch, despite a lackluster initial coin offering last year. The platform — which aims to provide an alternative business model to the journalism industry — now allows participants to purchase Civil membership, including CVL tokens which will represent members’ voting power within the Civil ecosystem.