Den digitala erans konsttjuvar? En upphovsrättslig undersökning av vad som utgör intrång i upphovsmannens ensamrätt, i ljuset av NFT:ernas framfart

Sammanfattning: Non fungible tokens (NFTs) are a growing technological phenomenon that possibly could be the future market for art, music, photographs and other works of art in all shapes and forms – selling for values equivalent to the price tags of physical art. The market is geographically flexible, with a world spread clientele and infinite possibilities. Although many positives, some negatives arise whilst trying to understand the legal complexity of NFTs. What happens to the copyright belonging to the creator when a digital copy of artwork is sold online, either legally or illegally? What rights accrue to the buyer now in possession of the NFT? By initially researching what NFTs are and their function, the thesis intends to give a further understanding as to which rights the owner of an NFT acquires with the purchase. In addition, the thesis focuses on presenting what possible infringements may arise when a piece of art is made into an NFT and later on sold without the consent of the originator. In the absence of legislative history and precedents in the field, the dissertation is based on classical Swedish copyright law as well as doctrine or other sources that have discussed the phenomenon. This thesis argues that all copyright to an NFT initially belongs to the originator, as with all art covered by the Swedish copyright law. The arguments for this are based on traditional copyright laws, since they are not only applicable to physical, more traditional, works of art – but also digital art. Due to the fact that the dissertation has shown that NFTs should fall within the framework of Swedish copyright law, it also means an illegal use of the protected work constitutes an infringement of the originator's exclusive right. In summary, the study concludes that the phenomenon can no longer be considered foreign, but this does not mean that it is easily handled. Although the NFT market has not yet encountered any known copyright barriers in the form of lawsuits or disputes, this does not in itself imply that the phenomenon is unproblematic. The simplicity in creating and selling NFTs results in originators risking losing both their financial and moral exclusive rights that the protection in the Swedish copyright law entails. It should be in the interest of all participants on the NFT market to shed light on which rights come with the ownership of digital art in conjunction with transactions – and which do not.