The Kodak blockchain experiment
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Shares of Kodak surged after the company's CEO announced a "major blockchain initiative." Photographers "struggle to assert control over their work," so the company said it's experimenting with digital ledgers (the tracking tech behind Bitcoin) to help camera pros more easily get paid when licensing their like-worthy work.
- Kodak, which was founded in 1888, failed to recognize the the digital photography revolution and went bankrupt in 2013. Even though the stock's down 73% in the last year, Tuesday's win pumped its value up to $178 million.
The takeaway: Bitcoin is the Viagra of flaccid stocks. Random companies like drink-maker Long Island Iced Tea and biotech firm Riot surged 200% each lately simply on word they may add blockchain technology into their business models. Kodak though is going all in — it's also using an ICO ("Initial Coin Offering") to offer cryptocurrencies for cash to fund its "KodakCoin" project.
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