COPYRIGHT COMMERCIALIZATION IN THE DIGITAL ECONOMY: FROM TRADITIONAL LICENSING TO AUTOMATED RIGHTS MANAGEMENT

Digital technologies are changing the economics of copyright commercialization. The traditional licensing model, built around individually negotiated permissions, territorial markets and periodic reporting, is increasingly difficult to operate where works can be distributed, transformed and consumed across multiple digital services in real time. This article examines the transition from conventional copyright licensing to automated rights management and considers the legal conditions required for that transition in Uzbekistan. The study analyses the relationship between copyright law, digital identifiers, rights-management information, smart contractual mechanisms, collective management, usage data and automated remuneration. It argues that automation should not be understood as the replacement of legal licensing by technology. Rather, automation should be understood as the technical execution of legally defined rights, permissions, obligations and payment rules. Particular attention is paid to the WIPO Copyright Treaty, Uzbekistan’s Law “On Copyright and Related Rights”, collective management, digital rights-management information and emerging licensing practices. The article proposes a model in which a national digital rights infrastructure—provisionally referred to as “E-Muallif”—connects authoritative rights information with licensing, usage reporting and remuneration. The proposed model is designed to reduce transaction costs, improve transparency and facilitate lawful commercialisation while preserving authors’ control and effective remedies against infringement.