Trips is a first-of-its-kind platform providing content creators the tools to achieve financial stability by safeguarding their IP and transforming their copyrights into valuable assets. Pulse 2.0 interviewed Trips founder and CEO Michael Finkelstein to learn more about the company.
Michael Finkelstein’s Background
Finkelstein started his career in investment banking and then decided to go back to school to get his MBA, graduating from Stanford GSB in 1999. And Finkelstein said:
“I have been an entrepreneur and operator ever since. The two most germane experiences to Trips are in 2008 when I helped build a global independent music label and copyright business, which was then sold to BMG Rights in 2012. I then went on to start the first FinTech data-driven asset-based lender, which I built and ran for over five years. I took some time off until thinking about starting a new venture, which would become Trips.”
Formation Of Trips
How did the idea for the company come together? Finkelstein shared:
“The idea of Trips is really a manifestation of both my previous ventures and was borne out of a vision that every creator should have a path to financial freedom and independence, effectively empowering creators to achieve financial stability by safeguarding their content and transforming what they make, their IP, into valuable assets. We believe that Intellectual Property is just as important as real property, so we set out with a goal of innovating the intellectual property landscape, with an aim to reshape the industry, ensuring that creators are at the forefront of their own success.”
Core Products
What are the company’s core products and features? Finkelstein explained:
“By using Trips today, creators can create an immutable stamp of their works, bringing their digitally native IP assets on chain and thus establishing their copyright’s initial digital provenance. We then allow them access to capital opportunities with institutional capital providers. This is a chance for creators to turn their passion into prosperity using the platforms and content already in their arsenal. They can sign up with an easy-to-use/navigate Web 2 style interface that has 3 easy steps – connect, mint, and access capital. Just three clicks and the power of the platform is theirs.”
Favorite Memory
What has been Finkelstein’s favorite memory working for the company so far? Finkelstein reflected:
“There are so many to choose from, but if I had to pick one it was seeing the first creator come on board. All the team’s hard work, all the late nights, seemed all worth it at that very moment.”
Challenges Faced
After asking Finkelstein about specific bottlenecks in his sector of work, he acknowledged:
“Being part of a startup team entails many things, none greater than managing the constant ebb and flow of ambiguity and uncertainty. Testing, re-testing, building, and re-building are all part of the nature of creating something from scratch. When I look back on the past year, the one headwind that strikes me as unique to our sector is our use of blockchain technology and how it gets bundled into the overall crypto sector. We are not a crypto business; we use blockchain as infrastructure to help facilitate our mission. Allowing users to create digital provenance over their IP assets by harnessing the power of the blockchain – decentralized ledgers that use cryptographic elements to create immutable, irrefutable recordation of facts. We think there is no better use case and believe this should be the starting point of all IP today and moving forward.”
Significant Milestones
What have been some of the company’s most significant milestones? Finkelstein cited:
“I think with any company launching your first product is the most significant milestone. Seeing all the components come together and moving from building a product to building a business is, to me, the turning point in a company’s evolution.”
Funding
After asking Finkelstein about the company’s funding information, he revealed:
“We are thrilled to have assembled an incredible group of investors from across the creator economy, blockchain, and financial infrastructure segments. Individuals and funds alike, they are all supporters of our long-term vision of providing content creators the tools to achieve financial stability.”
Total Addressable Market
What total addressable market (TAM) size is the company pursuing? Finkelstein assessed:
“In 5 years, it is estimated that one billion people will self-identify as creators, with the overall creator economy and social commerce markets projected to be $500 billion and $2.9 trillion, respectively.”
Differentiation From The Competition
What differentiates the company from its competition? Finkelstein affirmed:
“Like any business, we have competition in certain areas of what we do, but no one company is addressing both protection of IP and access to capital. On the IP side, we think applying advanced technologies to develop protection and authentication mechanisms is critical as the world consumes more and more of copyrighted works. As for access to capital, while there are certainly some options available, we believe many of them are limited to the top 1% or based on antiquated frameworks and structures, and the time to bring institutional capital alternatives to the broader creator market is upon us. Finally, I would also say that I think it’s great we have more players in the overall space. As IP becomes the focal point of the changing Content/Distribution Paradigm, along with the fact that advancements in AI pose significant copyright concerns, more innovation and products are needed to allow creators to thrive in today’s digital economy.”
Future Company Goals
What are some of the company’s future company goals? Finkelstein pointed out:
“The Trips long term vision is to build an ecosystem that will allow the establishment, conveyance, and tracking of ownership and use rights throughout the global digital landscape, and will enable the matching of revenue streams to rights ownership in a fully transparent and scalable manner. To get there a lot needs to be done. Whatever course we take, our commitment lies in empowering creators to help them effectively navigate the digital world by building great products that promote their success, ensure the preservation of their creative ownership and allow them to achieve and maintain financial independence.”
Additional Thoughts
Any other topics to discuss? Finkelstein concluded:
“Thank you for providing the forum to share a bit more about what we are building at Trips. I would end with the following – this is an exciting time to be building. I recently published a Substack piece on the Coming Age of IP Power, positing that a thriving creator economy is dependent on an ecosystem with three interwoven pillars – authentication, protection of rights, and capital, all working in harmony. As the next generation of the Web comes upon us, we want to be part of that ecosystem and be part of the solution that allows creators to achieve the financial stability they deserve.”
