Web3 Watch: Study finds musical artists hold mixed views on blockchain use

Researchers at Korea University in Seoul conducted interviews with 16 Korean musical artists to gauge sentiments toward the use cases for blockchain in the music industry. 

The study, published in a subsidiary of Nature, reported mixed results: The artists thought of blockchain as a possible new route for revenue generation but doubted blockchain-enabled applications would become reality.

Interviewees believed that blockchain applications for the music industry could better their financial prospects and help protect copyright. Skepticism stemmed from a general belief that blockchain music startups would lack the heft to unseat the current behemoths in the music industry. 

Read more: The music industry could learn a few lessons from blockchain

The music industry has become a popular target for those building in Web3, though startups have yet to make a substantial dent in the status quo.

Warner Music Group-backed MITH is building a Web3 social engagement platform for musical artists. Rapper Jack Harlow leveraged MITH partly for ticketing on his recent tour after partnering with the platform. 

In a similar vein, Modhaus raised $8 million in a Series A round for its K-pop fan engagement platform. 

LimeWire, the early 2000s file-sharing site, recently launched a blockchain-enabled AI Music Studio.

Former Cointelegraph CEO launches Web3 marketing agency

Jay Cassano, former chief executive of crypto media company Cointelegraph, launched his own Web3 marketing agency. 

The firm, 4Labs Digital, will serve as a Web3-focused spinoff from Wachsman, a popular crypto press relations firm where Cassano was most recently chief growth officer. 4Labs has 24 staff, according to a press release, and will offer digital marketing services.

Cassano was editor-in-chief of Cointelegraph from October 2019 to September 2020. He then served as the company’s CEO until 2022.

“I’ve had the chance to work with a ton of wonderful people and inspiring companies in Web3 over the past six years of my career. At 4Labs, I’ll be able to synthesize all that I’ve learned about the industry and how to serve it through storytelling and marketing,” Cassano wrote in a LinkedIn announcement about the new firm.

One interesting stat:

• An Ordinal inscription fetched 2.36 bitcoin, worth $95,250 at the time, on blue-chip art marketplace Sotheby’s.

Also of note:

• Amazon MGM studios is reportedly developing a movie titled “Razzlekhan,” to tell the story of the couple who stole billions of dollars from crypto exchange Bitfinex before being arrested in 2022.
• Web3 mobile gaming studio Endless Clouds revealed a partnership with gaming layer-2 Immutable. Two of the studio’s games will debut exclusively on Immutable zkEVM this year, Immutable said. 
• NFT platform Droppp released Harry Potter Funko NFTs.

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