Intellectual property rights for digital creators: Who owns digital content?

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  Quantumrun Foresight
• October 12, 2022

Insight summary

Content creators and social media influencers produce a lot of intellectual property (IP) daily. These works include posts, videos, and stories collaborating with commercial businesses to build their brand. Law experts highly recommend that digital creators learn about their IP rights to ensure they get adequately compensated for their content.

IP rights for digital creators context

Influencer marketing has emerged as one of the most efficient methods to generate money in all areas. A social media influencer produces creative content that engages, entertains, and inspires people on different platforms. One of the primary revenue generators for these creators is paid or sponsored content, where brands and companies compensate the influencer for mentioning or featuring their products and services on their posts. Regarding IP rights (IPR), one of the most common concerns among digital influencers is whether their work is protected. Like other intellectual creations, original content from social media influencers is a product of the mind and falls under the protection of IPR.

Copyright is one of the most effective methods to protect material on social media. Copyright can protect all forms of original literary, artistic, musical, dramatic, and other works. So, copyright can protect everything, whether it’s an original Instagram Reel, a musical score, a YouTube video, or a painting posted on Pinterest. Even tweets are covered by copyright law as literary works. 

Influencers who substantially profit from online marketing must also guard their brand recognition. The simplest method to do this is to register a trademark. Several agencies oversee influencer marketing. In the US, Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Act gives the federal government authority to regulate social media influencer marketing as part of the prohibitions against “unfair or deceptive acts or practices in commerce.” The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is also involved in the marketing oversight for prescription drugs and some medical devices.

Disruptive impact

In 2019, rapper Terrence “2 Milly” Ferguson sued video game developer Epic Games, claiming the company copied his dance moves for a player emote (avatar animations) in the online video game Fortnite. Epic responded with several legal defenses, including asserting that the dance emote, “Swipe It,” doesn’t use the same moves. Epic’s lawyers argued that Ferguson’s dance was too basic to be protected by copyright.

According to the motion, “no one can own a dance step because individual dance steps and simple dance routines are not protected by copyright, but are building blocks of free expression.” Epic also argued that the context is entirely different. While Ferguson used “Milly Rock” moves to express himself and have fun with friends, Fortnite’s use of the moves is a victory celebration after defeating enemies in the game. These nuances show how complex digital IP can be and why content creators need to understand their rights.

With the increasing popularity of non-fungible tokens (NFTs), questions on how IPR governs these digital assets have cropped up. NFTs are blockchain-based authentication certificates that may be used to identify original online works, like photos, music, films, and graphics. Copyright law covers artists creating NFTs, whether solo projects or collaborations with other artists. Stealing online content outside the blockchain has become too easy, so establishing clear ownership can help deter future infringers. Influencers are also highly recommended to understand the different IPRs not just to protect their content but to avoid unintentionally infringing on other creators’ work.

Implications of IP rights for digital creators

Wider implications of IP rights for digital creators may include: 

• Digital creators converting their original work (e.g., memes, digital paintings, and videos) to NFTs, preventing theft. This trend may contribute to the continued popularity of these tokens.


• Increased copyright and trademark applications as influencer marketing continue to grow.


• Backlash from some online users about the increasing restrictions on how online content can be shared and consumed.


• An increase in legal action among digital creators for stolen or re-posted content. 


• Enhanced value for digital art, music, and literature through blockchain-based verification, potentially boosting the earnings of creators.


• Shift in social media platforms' policies to provide more control and profit-sharing to creators, leading to a more equitable digital content landscape.


• Governments adapting regulatory frameworks to address the unique nature of digital creations and transactions, ensuring legal compliance.

Questions to consider

• If you’re a content creator, how do you protect your IPRs?


• What else can digital creators do to protect their content?