Kodak launching own cryptocurrency for photographers
Tech company is also getting into bitcoin mining
Portable camera pioneer Kodak has announced plans to create its own cryptocurrency.
The company - which broke the news yesterday at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), in Las Vegas - is partnering with London-based firm Wenn Media Group to develop its virtual coin, reports BBC News.
The token, dubbed KodakCoin, will help photographers control and monitor their images rights, the news site says. It will do so using blockchain technology, an encrypted database of transactions that is accessible to everyone involved in the deal and not controlled by a central authority.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
According to The Verge, Kodak’s cryptocurrency will “create a new economy for photographers to receive payment and sell work on a secure platform”.
Kodak is to launch an initial coin offering (ICO) on 31 January, the website says, although a price for each token has yet to be announced.
Along with the reveal of KodakCoin, the company also showcased a new piece of hardware that can mine for the cryptocurrency bitcoin.
The KashMiner is a “bitcoin rig” that can be rented out by the public to create new bitcoin, a process that requires expensive hardware to carry out intensive mathematical solutions and that uses significant amounts of energy, says Business Insider.
The service costs $3,400 (£2,514) for a 24-month contract, the site says. Kodak estimates customers can yield around $375 (£277) per month - a total of $9,000 (£6,655).
But experts say that the bitcoin mining process becomes more difficult over time and that users of the service will see smaller yields every month.
There is no word on when KashMiner will be released, but according to BBC News, the service is already prebooked to capacity.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Geoff Capes obituary: shot-putter who became the World’s Strongest Man
In the Spotlight The 'mighty figure' was a two-time Commonwealth Champion and world-record holder
By The Week UK Published
-
Israel attacks Iran: a 'limited' retaliation
Talking Point Iran's humiliated leaders must decide how to respond to Netanyahu's measured strike
By The Week UK Published
-
Crossword: November 2, 2024
The Week's daily crossword puzzle
By The Week Staff Published
-
Paraguay's dangerous dalliance with cryptocurrency
Under The Radar Overheating Paraguayans are pushing back over power outages caused by illegal miners
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
Sam Bankman-Fried found guilty: where does crypto go from here?
Today's Big Question Conviction of the 'tousle-haired mogul' confirms sector's 'Wild West' and 'rogue' image, say experts
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
Does looming FTX collapse spell the end of crypto?
Today's Big Question Fall of the embattled cryptocurrency-exchange platform has sent shockwaves through the industry
By Fred Kelly Published
-
How DAOs work – and why they matter
feature Everything you need to know about the major new cryptocurrency trend
By Kate Samuelson Published
-
Millionaire ‘mugged’ of bitcoin fortune by masked raiders
feature Co-founder of ‘Spanish Facebook’ says he was tortured into revealing cryptocurrency passwords
By The Week Staff Published
-
How cybercriminals are hacking into the heart of the US economy
Speed Read Ransomware attacks have become a global epidemic, with more than $18.6bn paid in ransoms in 2020
By The Week Staff Last updated
-
Language-learning apps speak the right lingo for UK subscribers
Speed Read Locked-down Brits turn to online lessons as a new hobby and way to upskill
By Mike Starling Published
-
Brexit-hobbled Britain ‘still tech powerhouse of Europe’
Speed Read New research shows that UK start-ups have won more funding than France and Germany combined over past year
By Mike Starling Published