A Prescient Start-Up In Toronto

On the World Wide Web as we have known it so far, books, photographs, art, and music have all suffered an identity crisis.

Blockchain technology can be defined as an open, distributed ledger that can record transactions between two parties in a verifiable and permanent way. In Toronto, an innovation laboratory called Prescient expects to use blockchain so that writers, artists, and other creators can identify, control, and monetize their works.

Roanie Levy serves as CEO and president of Access Copyright, a collective that distributes millions of dollars annually in licensing royalties to creator and publisher affiliates across Canada. She also leads Prescient, Access Copyright’s creator-focused innovation lab dedicated to exploring the future of rights management and content monetization through blockchain and other technologies.

At Prescient, digital tools are in development to establish a reliable and authoritative connection for works of art and expression with their content creators and audiences.

“Our deep understanding and experience in rights management really bring a unique perspective to the developing blockchain economy and what creators and rightsholders need from it. We see the opportunity to change the digital landscape for creators,” Roanie Levy says.

“With the internet, creators and publishers were the recipients of the technology. We want to create a world where rightsholders are the architects of the emerging technologies and ensure that they can optimize the monetization of their content when it’s used in a digital space,” she tells CCC’s Chris Kenneally.