In a tie-up with WENN Digital, a blockchain development firm, Kodak photo-centric cryptocurrency, KODAKCoin, causing a 60 percent stock rise after the surprise announcement.

This is a part of a larger initiative called KODAKOne which will reportedly give photographers a new revenue stream and a secure work platform. The blockchain-powered image management system will supposedly create a digital ledger of rights ownership that photographers can use to register and license new and old work.

Kodak CEO Jeff Clarke said in a statement, “For photographers who’ve long struggled to assert control over their work and how it’s used, these buzzwords [“blockchain” and “cryptocurrency”] are the keys to solving what felt like an unsolvable problem.”

Kodak’s choice to move towards blockchain rather than introduce a new social media platform to serve the same purpose has sparked some discussions that the company is trying to capitalise on the current cryptocurrency fad.

KODAKCoin’s initial coin offering opens on January 31st, under SEC guidelines as a security token, and it’s open to US, UK, Canadian, and other investors.

Further information can be obtained on their website.