The emperor’s new collectibles

Now that towards the end of 2023, the stardust of the NFT frenzy has settled and many of the virtual NFT millionaires have plunged back to Earth, it is a good moment to take stock of what NFTs and the blockchain can and cannot mean for the cultural and creative industries (CCIs) and for copyright. Over the past years, NFTs have by some been predicted to revolutionize the markets for arts and copyright protected works. In short, the vision was that on the basis of unique, blockchain based tokens, and through their automated exchange, an extension or even a replacement of the traditional art markets, and the copyright-based system of production, circulation and use of cultural works could emerge. Currently, however, the state of the NFT ecosystem can be summarized as an in some sense failed experiment. This chapter starts by unpacking what we consider the four broken promises of NFTs vis-à-vis the CCIs and copyright. We briefly describe the technological underpinning of these promises, and why they were broken. Subsequently, we discuss whether there may still be a future for NFTs as a new asset class related to creative output.