The US Department of Commerce is hosting a public meeting to discuss the potential for interoperability across digital registries and also focus on emerging technologies such as blockchain technology and open source platforms.

To be held on December 09, the meeting is being organized by the department’s Internal Task Force, and aims to facilitate constructive, cross-industry dialogue among stakeholders about ways to promote a more robust and collaborative online marketplace for copyrighted works.

The Commerce Department Office of the Secretary, leveraging the expertise of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), the Patent and Trademark Office (PTO), the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), and the International Trade Administration (ITA), created Internet Policy Task Force to conduct a comprehensive review of the nexus between privacy policy, copyright, global free flow of information, cybersecurity, and innovation in the Internet economy.​

“We will discuss the potential for interoperability across digital registries and standards work in this field, and consider the relevant emerging technologies (e.g., blockchain technology, open source platforms). We will also explore potential approaches to guide their adoption and integration into the online marketplace”, the official release said.

Notably, one of the sessions will address the issue of organizing information about rights owners into usable registries (public vs. private, centralized vs. distributed [blockchain], privileged vs. open, etc.) after the works have been identified and described consistently. It will also explore how to express the rights information in a standardized way.

Opening remarks will be given by Shira Perlmutter, Chief Policy Officer and Director for International Affairs, USPTO, and John Morris, Associate Administrator and Director of Internet Policy, NTIA.

The live streaming of the event would be available here. The event is being held at the United States Patent and Trademark Office – Madison Auditorium.