All of a sudden, it seems like everywhere you look, someone is announcing the sale of an NFT. Crazy sums of money for a digital file that has art, music, or video is happening because NFT creation and copyright intersect at one point.

Confused onlookers:  Where are people buying NFTs that are like doubling and tripling in value? Where can I even get a solid NFT investment? Like, I’m willing to pay if it is probably going to go up in value, but so many NFTs, I don’t see value in them. Although, others must know the value.

Why do people buy NFTs?  One of the big selling points of NFTs is that they allow digital art artists (the original owners) to claim ownership of their work.

Several image files which were previously downloaded for free, obviously had a creator.  And, the sad thing was that the creator did not get paid.  Also, those who shared those pictures were not also able to earn anything. So, now, the point is, those who download a picture can buy a part of the ownership, and they can share that image and earn from it. Sounds complex? Indeed, yes.

A fair explanation would sound like this:  NFTs are designed to give you something that can’t be copied, because the Ownership of the work can still be retained by the artist, who will continue to hold the copyright and reproduction rights, just like with physical artwork.

Copyright right:  “Copyright ownership gives the holder of the copyright in an original work of authorship six exclusive rights: The right to reproduce and make copies of an original work;  The right to prepare derivative works based on the original work; The right to distribute copies to the public by sale or another form of transfer, such as rental or lending; The right to publicly perform the work; The right to publicly display the work, and The right to perform sound recordings publicly through digital audio transmission.”

The categories of things which will be counted as an original work of authorship will include literature, computer programs, dramatic scripts, choreographed or pantomimed work, motion pictures, video art, graphics, sculptures, and architectural plans.

Each of these categories is broadly construed. When any of these rights are infringed with regard to an original work of authorship, the holder of the rights may bring a copyright lawsuit to enforce those rights.

One or more of these rights can be exclusively transferred for consideration, whether by licensing and agreement. So, someone who creates an NFT using someone else’s work should ensure they have permission from the copyright owner. Copyright law provides a “bundle of rights” exclusive to the copyright owner in a work.