Sony Music files trademark application for NFT authenticated music

by · September 7, 2022

US music giant Sony Music Entertainment has signaled intentions to use non-fungible tokens (NFTs) after filing a trademark application covering music and artists under the Columbia Records logo.

According to an Aug. 30 trademark filing with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) shared by trademark attorney Mike Kondoudis on Sept. 6, the application covers “sound and video recordings of live musical performances authenticated by NFTs.”

The application also covers marketing services, promotion, distribution, marketing, advertising and online entertainment, including podcasts and audiovisual recordings.

The new trademark application comes in the wake of several other Sony Music-backed NFT projects.

In August, MakersPlace, an NFT marketplace dedicated to digital art, secured $30 million in Series A funding from several notable companies, including Pantera Capital, Bessemer Venture Partners, Coinbase Ventures, and Sony Music Entertainment.

In March, the music company partnered with Solana-based NFT marketplace Snowcrash and fellow music behemoth Universal Music Group to release Bob Dylan and Miles Davis NFT compilations sometime in 2022, with plans for more in the future.

NFTs and the Metaverse are slowly becoming more prominent in the music and entertainment industry.

MTV’s Video Music Awards on August 29 featured plenty of online and virtual performances, including Eminem and Snoop Dogg performing their new single in a Metaverse created by Yuga Labs, the same company behind Bored Ape Yacht Club.

Related: There’s more to NFTs than just PFPs – 5 ways non-fungible tokens will transform society

The song “From the D to the LBC” was released in June, and features two Bored Ape Yacht Club avatars owned by Eminem and Snoop Dogg.

MTV’s Video Music Awards also debuted a new award category, Best Metaverse Performance, which featured nominations for six different acts in its first year, Ariana Grande, Justin Bieber, Charli XCX, Twenty One Pilots, BTS and Blackpink, who ultimately won.