Written by Katie Forster, Otter Media
Everyone in the creator economy knows about the importance of diversification and discoverability. Something that often gets less attention, until it’s too late, is the importance of thinking about and protecting your IP. If you’re in it for the long term, then you need to think like a rights owner from the outset, not just like a content creator whose sole focus is reach.
I’ve worked as a lawyer and business affairs adviser in the media industry for many years. When I started out “creator economy” wasn’t even a mainstream term. Now we have a fast- paced, constantly evolving, content ecosystem which presents so many opportunities but also a lot more room for pitfalls. Every bit of content should be viewed as a potential asset, don’t let that get lost or forgotten in the quest for visibility and new deals.
Obviously every situation, brand and deal is different, but if you’re producing and exploiting content of any kind, here are a few key things you should be thinking about:
Format
In a 360 ecosystem your IP can be adapted and exploited across all forms of media including podcasts, books, merch, live events and games. Make sure you retain and control the underlying format rights, not just the content itself.
Ancillary and Derivative Rights
Distribution and hosting agreements routinely contain broad IP licences buried in the small print and broadcasters, platforms and distributors often ask for very wide, all-encompassing, future facing rights. If you are licensing any ancillary or derivative rights make sure you fully understand and are comfortable with the terms. Be clear on your control and approval rights and ongoing involvement. Scrutinise and push back if you’re not comfortable and be specific.
Clear Your Own Content
If you engage freelancers or contractors make sure you have proper agreements in place so anything they create is properly assigned to you. Clear any third-party material you’re using like clips, artwork, music and graphics. I recently worked on a deal where the headline sponsor for the first series of a new podcast offered to design the podcast logo. If that logo was going to be the main graphic associated with the podcast and, potentially, the entire brand then obviously it couldn’t in any way refer to a sponsor who might not be involved beyond Series 1. In addition all the IP in that logo needed to be fully assigned, in writing, to my client for future use.
Also be mindful of how and where your content will be exploited, as clearance requirements and any residuals will vary depending on the applicable media.
Co-Creators
Content, shows, podcasts and brands are often built collaboratively. If you don’t clearly work out the structure and terms of any collaboration and have a proper agreement in place from day one covering, among other things, who owns what and what happens if someone wants out, you’re leaving yourself exposed later down the line and all that valuable IP could be at risk, disputed or left floating in no-man’s land.
So always put in place appropriate partnership and co-creator agreements to cover ownership, decision-making and what happens if there’s a falling out or someone wants to exit.
Brand and Sponsorship Overreach
Advertisers increasingly want content integrations, co-branded series and exclusivity clauses that can limit a creator’s ability to work with others or exploit their own IP. Make sure you understand what you’re signing up to and the difference between a straightforward sponsorship arrangement and a rights deal.
Platform Dependency Risk
Everyone knows about the importance of diversification but, just to hammer it home, putting all your eggs in one basket and relying on or tying yourself entirely to one platform is a risk. It leaves you vulnerable to algorithm changes, evolving consumer habits and monetisation shifts. IP ownership should be able to stand alone and sit outside platforms.
Trademarks
Trademarking your name, logo or title early on is a good way of protecting your brand from the outset. Don’t wait until you’re “big enough”; by that point someone may have got there before you.
Authenticity
Obviously it’s impossible to talk about the creator economy without talking about authenticity. There’s no getting around the fact that the value of your IP is going to be dependent on this. Avoid oversaturation and stay true and connected with your base.
On that note, brands have increasingly started partnering with smaller creators who have more niche, loyal and trusting audiences and higher engagement rates and ROI compared with macro influencers with enormous followings.
AI Scraping
Another thing to be aware of is original IP being ingested by AI systems without any consent or compensation for the rights owner. The legalities around this are in a state of constant development at the moment so keep yourself up to date regarding your rights position and,
wherever possible, use opt-out mechanisms and include explicit AI usage restrictions in your agreements and licences.
Put It In Writing And Have A System
As a lawyer I would say this but… always get it in writing!
It’s also a good idea to ensure you keep yourself fully up to date and understand what IP you own and how and where you’re exploiting it, you’d be surprised how many creators lose track. Get a system in place that allows you to audit and stay across this at all times.
In summary the creator economy provides many more ways to monetise and exploit IP but it also creates many more ways to accidentally lose it or curtail it. Your IP, not followers or audience numbers, is your most valuable asset and protecting it and maintaining oversight and control is the foundation of long term success.
