Imagine being at a sold-out concert, NBA game, or Super Bowl. You are observing the creation of history. However, do you bother to look? Most likely not. You are probably taking a snapshot using your phone.
Never before have sports, music, and entertainment been so dependent on photography and videography. Baron Davis, a two-time NBA All-Star, argues that they have never been less recognized as media.
According to Davis, photographers previously had the same degree of popularity and esteem as artists during the American Renaissance. “I feel they are now perceived more as a commodity,”
Davis wishes to modify that. He believes blockchain can help him accomplish this.
Friday at NBA All-Star Weekend in Salt Lake City, Davis will present SLiC Images, a rights management platform for photography and video underpinned by NFT technology. Sports Living in Culture (SLiC) is a platform built by Davis to simplify the distribution and commercialization of independent cultural content, and SLiC Movies is a division of that platform.
Despite their role in documenting society, Davis believes that businesses that profit from their work are now treating photographers unfairly. A tiny number of professional photographers sell photos of sporting events and live events through agreements with image libraries and media outlets, frequently relinquishing the right to any additional income those works may have generated in the future. Independent photographers usually have limited opportunities to profit from their work despite retaining ownership.
The legendary athlete and businessman has been experimenting with blockchain technology for over ten years, and he is confident that a blockchain-based media platform will alter the media landscape. Through a transparent bidding procedure, SLiC Pictures will enable creators to affix unique digital signatures to their works and license them for limited commercial use.
Through a transparent bidding procedure, SLiC Pictures will enable creators to affix unique digital signatures to their works and license them for limited commercial use. Pphotographers can now collectively own the connections, relationships, and channels resulting from their work. They get the benefits as a result.
The NFT platform Mintbase, which utilizes the NEAR blockchain, has donated $250,000 to the campaign, of which one-third has already been distributed. SLiC Images was selected as one of 16 projects to be supported by the Mintbase Grant program, which aims to promote technically demanding NFT efforts that would otherwise be overlooked by more traditional financing sources.
According to Nate Geier, co-founder of Mintbase, “we searched out folks who wanted to delve a little deeper than the current NFT market, which is dominated by candy machines and PFP hype.”
Despite the fact that NFTs are fundamental to the running of SLiC Pictures, Davis is hesitant to incorporate the controversial technology into his fast expanding platform.
Davis laughed before continuing “Initially, we do not want to refer to them as NFTs.
Perhaps he has a point there. The public’s opinion of cryptocurrencies and NFTs has deteriorated over the past year due to the recent bear market and many high-profile corporate failures. Even if blockchain is the solution to photographers’ concerns, Davis feels it may be more prudent to give customers a useful product as opposed to focusing on its technical composition.
“I mean, it’s a photo. It’s a collectible photo… That is definitely where we want to start, is just by explaining what it is, and the utility behind it, instead of trying to explain the technology,” he said. “People tried explaining things from a technology standpoint, and culture hasn’t adopted it.”
There is no definite launch date for SLiC Images at this time. However, Geier and Davis intend to present a platform prototype at ETH Denver before the end of this month.
Cover Image Source: decrypt.co