Estate Planning in the Digital Age
Who inherits your blog, your ebook royalties, and your crypto?
Few of us relish confronting our mortality, but the truth is, everyone should plan for what happens to their possessions when they die. And you may actually have a lot more possessions than you think, because in the 21st century, some of what you own will be digital rather than physical.
For many centuries the assets distributed as part of someone’s estate tended to tangible in nature. Now it’s possible for any individual to own a whole library of digital products, from virtual currencies and NFTs to a vast array of digital photos, books, music and films. Many people now own a website, blog, or digital products they’ve created as well.
As part of modern estate planning, it’s vital to decide what happens to your digital assets after your death, but don’t assume you can necessarily pass them on. Some digital assets don’t really ‘belong’ to you at all.
Which digital assets can’t be inherited?
Digital assets that you own outright can be passed to your heirs in a will, but there are some things you might think you own that you don’t really. You just own a licence to access them, but that licence is tied to an online account, and that account is tied to you as…
