Blockchain technology for creative industries: Current state and research opportunities

Blockchain based NFTs (non-fungible tokens) and smart contracts provide creative indus-tries with exciting opportunities. While they have created a great deal of frenzy in markets, in the frenzy there emerges real value for the industries. Traditionally, creators in the cre-ative industries often need to rely on powerful intermediaries to distribute and profit from their creations. NFT and smart contracts provide creators much closer access to content consumers/buyers. Along this line of thought, this article provides marketing researchers with an overview of the unfolding adoption of NFTs and smart contracts in creative indus-tries. We start by pointing out the market frictions and consequent "transaction costs" that creators face traditionally when distributing their creative content to consumers/buyers. Then, we present the basic ideas of smart contracts and NFTs, discussing how they can transform the market by reducing these transaction costs. Meanwhile, we point out limi-tations and challenges that creators, buyers, and marketplaces might face in the adoption of NFTs and smart contracts. Finally, we raise an abundance of unexplored research ques-tions interesting to both marketing researchers and practitioners.(c) 2022 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.