TL;DR 1) Aria Protocol transforms music copyrights into tradable tokens, enabling retail investors to invest in IP assets that were previously limited to institutions. 2) Aria Protocol has raisedTL;DR 1) Aria Protocol transforms music copyrights into tradable tokens, enabling retail investors to invest in IP assets that were previously limited to institutions. 2) Aria Protocol has raised
What is Aria Protocol(ARIAIP)? A Complete Guide to the First Web3 Protocol Tokenizing Music IP Rights
TL;DR
1) Aria Protocol transforms music copyrights into tradable tokens, enabling retail investors to invest in IP assets that were previously limited to institutions.
2) Aria Protocol has raised $10.95 million, attracted over 4,300 investors, and completed a security audit conducted by Halborn and other institutions.
3) In the future, Aria Protocol will support programmable IP, enabling automated remixing, licensing, and royalty distribution through smart contracts.
1. What Is Aria Protocol?
Aria Protocol is the world’s first blockchain protocol dedicated to intellectual property (IP). It transforms real-world IP assets, particularly music copyrights, into on-chain digital tokens that can be traded and circulated. This innovation breaks down the traditional barriers to IP investment, allowing individual investors to participate in opportunities that were once exclusive to major institutions and industry insiders.
Aria Protocol is built on the Story blockchain, a Layer-1 network designed specifically for intellectual property. The Aria ecosystem consists of three core components: Aria Protocol (infrastructure), the Aria Foundation (governing body), and Aria Protocol Labs Inc. (core development company). These three entities work together to bring iconic IP assets into the blockchain world.
1.1 What can Aria Protocol do?
Aria Protocol allows investors to access and profit from intellectual property by tokenizing it into IP RWAs (Intellectual Property Real-World Assets), making these assets interchangeable and liquid.
It also enables copyright owners to remix their IP works. For example, South Korean singer and actress NANA released three of her songs through the Aria Protocol platform, which then hosted a global remix competition. Producers could remix these songs, with all submissions eligible for prizes and potential releases through international record labels.
The revenues from released remix tracks are tokenized on the Aria Protocol platform, and the net royalties are distributed between the remix creators and APL token holders.
1.2 What is IP RWA?
IP RWA (Intellectual Property Real-World Asset) is the core of Aria Protocol's operation and represents a new category of digital assets. In the past, valuable intellectual property was accessible only to large institutions and industry insiders. Aria Protocol changes this by bringing IP on-chain through IP RWA tokens.
Each IP RWA token is an ERC-20 token built on the Story blockchain. These fungible tokens are backed by a portfolio of real-world intellectual property rights acquired by Aria Management Company, a subsidiary of Aria Protocol Labs Inc. By tokenizing IP assets in this way, Aria Protocol enables anyone to access and profit from intellectual property that was previously illiquid and difficult to invest in.
1.3 What is APL?
APL is the first IP RWA token launched on the Aria Protocol. Holders are entitled to a share of the revenue generated from the underlying IP assets. Users can hold and stake the token to earn ongoing rewards, or trade it freely on decentralised exchanges.
2. How Aria Protocol Works
Aria Protocol operates in three core phases: fundraising, staking, and royalty distribution. Using the first token APL as an example, here is the full process.
2.1 Fundraising Phase
Before tokenizing IP assets, funds are raised to acquire the copyrights. Aria Protocol completed its first round on the Stakestone LiquidityPad, raising $10.95 million. These funds are deployed by Aria Management Company (a subsidiary of Aria Protocol Labs Inc.) to purchase music rights.
Investors who participate receive APL in proportion to their contribution. These tokens represent a share of the entire IP portfolio. The current total supply of APL is 10,947,535, and each token reflects partial ownership in the copyrights of 48 songs.
2.2 Staking Phase
After receiving APL, users must stake the tokens to start earning royalty income. When APL is staked, the user receives an equal amount of stAPL. The stAPL serves as the staking receipt and represents participation in royalty distribution. The initial exchange rate is 1:1, but over time the value of stAPL increases relative to APL.
2.3 Royalty Collection and Distribution
This is the core value of Aria Protocol. Aria Management Company collects royalties generated by the acquired IP assets from off-chain sources. Revenue streams include streaming income, licensing fees, sales revenue, and performance royalties.
Collected royalties are not distributed to token holders directly. Instead, they are used to buy back APL on the open market. The repurchased APL is deposited into the staking pool, increasing the amount of APL backing each stAPL, which lifts the value of stAPL. Investors can realise income by selling stAPL directly on a decentralised exchange, or by unstaking to convert stAPL back to APL and then selling the APL.
3. ARIAIP Tokenomics
ARIAIP is the native token of the Aria Protocol, distinct from APL, which is an IP RWA token. ARIAIP brings together investors, copyright holders, and creators by providing liquidity, governance, and community incentives across the expanding IP RWA ecosystem, from institutional music catalogs to licensed remixes.
The goal of ARIAIP is to advance the mission of the Aria Foundation, which focuses on improving access to and monetization of traditionally illiquid intellectual property through the Aria Protocol, thereby growing the IP RWA market. As the Aria ecosystem continues to scale, ARIAIP will serve as a unifying and coordinating economic engine, connecting an increasing number of participants and intellectual property RWAs.
3.1 ARIAIP Token Overview
- Total Supply: 1,000,000,000 ARIAIP
- Circulating Supply at Launch: 330,000,000 ARIAIP (33% of total supply)
- Blockchain: Story
- Contract Address: 0xC9cbbD8f211300Dd0e7a3933b7AeEdAC6F61Dd52
3.2 ARIAIP Token Allocation
Category | Allocation | Description | Vesting / Unlock Schedule |
Core Team | 21% | — | 20% unlocks after a 1-year cliff; remaining tokens vest linearly over the next 2 years. |
Early Investors | 18% | — | 20% unlocks after a 1-year lock-up; remaining tokens vest linearly over the next 2 years. |
Ecosystem & Partnerships | 21% | Strategic grants and initiatives | 33% unlocks at TGE; remaining tokens vest linearly over 3 years. |
Community Development | 21% | Rewards for protocol participation and contributions | 33% unlocks at TGE; remaining tokens vest linearly over 3 years. |
Foundation | 10% | Reserved for protocol development | 100% unlocked at TGE. |
Initial Liquidity | 9% | Community airdrops and CEX/DEX liquidity | 100% unlocked at TGE. |
3.3 ARIAIP Airdrop
Aria Protocol has completed a snapshot of eligible addresses. Users who meet the eligibility criteria can claim their ARIAIP token airdrop through the official website. The airdrop funds come from 9% of the initial liquidity, with 5% allocated specifically for this airdrop.
ARIAIP Airdrop Claim Period: 2025.11.07 07:00 (UTC) – 2025.12.07 07:00 (UTC)
*BTN-Claim ARIAIP Airdrop&BTNURL=https://app.ariaprotocol.xyz/airdrop*
3.4 How to Buy ARIAIP on MEXC?
You can purchase ARIAIP tokens directly on MEXC. Known for its ultra-low fees, fast transactions, diverse asset coverage, and deep liquidity, MEXC has earned the trust of global investors. Its strong support for emerging projects also makes it an ideal platform for high-quality crypto assets.
ARIAIP is now available for Pre-market trading on MEXC, where users can trade with zero fees.
1) Open and log in to the MEXC App, then tap More on the homepage.
2) Under the Spot section, select Pre-market Trading to enter the Pre-Market page.
3) Find ARIAIP in the list of available tokens and tap Trade.
4) On the trading page, click Create Order to start trading ARIAIP in pre-market mode.
*BTN-Trade ARIAIP&BTNURL=https://www.mexc.com/pre-market/ARIAIP*
If you'd like to learn more about Pre-Market Trading, we recommend reading "What is Pre-Market Trading?" and "MEXC Pre-Market Trading Guide: Complete FAQ & How to Trade Before Listing." These guides will help you quickly understand how the feature works.
3.5 ARIAIP Token Utility
Governance Participation: ARIAIP holders can participate in community governance, which may include decisions on protocol upgrades, the addition of new asset classes, fund allocation, incentive mechanisms, and frameworks for composable or programmable IP licensing. Governance will serve as the mechanism guiding the development and evolution of Aria Protocol and will go live after the protocol's main release.
Liquidity for the IP RWA Ecosystem: ARIAIP will be paired with IP RWA tokens to create liquidity pools, enabling permissionless trading and price discovery for IP-backed assets.
Community Benefits: ARIAIP stakers will have early access to potential creator collaborations, new protocol features, ecosystem opportunities, and other exclusive rewards as incentives for contributing to the Aria economy.
Initial Benefits: ARIAIP stakers will receive a 15% discount code for use on the digital art platform Muse Frame.
4. Innovation and Future of Aria Protocol
4.1 The Vision for Programmable IP
Aria Protocol's long-term vision goes beyond tokenizing existing IP, it aims to create a programmable IP ecosystem. Programmable IP refers to a copyright management system built on smart contracts, where licensing and monetization rules are defined by the original rights holders and executed automatically. This model lowers transaction costs, improves transparency in revenue distribution, and enhances the overall value of IP assets.
4.2 The Decentralized Remix Economy
In the future, Aria Protocol will support a Permissioned Remix Economy, an ecosystem where:
- Copyright holders can define licensing rules, including permitted uses, revenue-sharing ratios, and eligibility conditions.
- Creators can produce derivative works freely within those parameters without needing individual license approvals.
- Smart contracts automatically enforce license terms, collect revenues, and distribute income according to preset ratios.
- Investors (holders of IP RWA tokens) can earn returns from the broader ecosystem of derivative works.
4.3 Expanding to Other IP Categories
While Aria Protocol currently focuses on the music industry, its underlying architecture is adaptable to all types of intellectual property, including film and television rights, literary works, artwork, gaming IP, and sports IP. These sectors all have large markets and high liquidity demand, making Aria Protocol’s model widely scalable and replicable.
5. Conclusion
Aria Protocol represents a major innovation in the financialization of intellectual property. By transforming music copyrights into tradable blockchain tokens, it lowers the traditional barriers to IP investment, allowing everyday investors to participate in multimillion-dollar copyright portfolios and earn real royalty income.
So far, Aria Protocol has achieved remarkable milestones: raising $10.95 million, attracting over 4,300 investors, and acquiring partial rights to 48 hit songs. More importantly, it is building a much larger vision, creating a new cultural economy powered by programmable IP and smart contracts, where the processes of creation, licensing, and monetization are fully automated and transparent.
As blockchain technology matures and regulatory frameworks develop, IP tokenization protocols like Aria could become a key part of the future cultural infrastructure, reshaping value distribution among creators, investors, and consumers, and ushering in a new era for the intellectual property economy.
Disclaimer: The information provided in this material does not constitute advice on investment, taxation, legal, financial, accounting, or any other related services, nor does it serve as a recommendation to purchase, sell, or hold any assets. MEXC Learn offers this information for reference purposes only and does not provide investment advice. Please ensure you fully understand the risks involved and exercise caution when investing. MEXC is not responsible for users' investment decisions.
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