IP Strategy Issues Statement on Aria's Frontline K-Pop Release with RESCENE, Highlighting AI-Native Music Ownership on Story

GIG HARBOR, Wash., Feb. 17, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- IP Strategy (Nasdaq: IPST) (the “Company”) today issued a statement recognizing Aria Protocol’s partnership with K-pop group RESCENE and The MUZE Entertainment for the release of the new single “Busy Boy,” scheduled for later this month.

The release will represent the first newly issued master rights entering Aria’s portfolio at launch stage, signaling growing demand for programmable, rights-aligned ownership models built on Story’s Layer 1 blockchain.

Unlike traditional music IP acquisitions that focus on mature catalogues with established revenue histories, this model brings ownership to the very start of a song’s commercial lifecycle when cultural momentum and long-term value are actively forming. By embedding transparent rights management and revenue participation from day one, the structure reflects a broader shift toward IP-native financing models designed for the AI era.

From IP Strategy’s perspective, this represents continued validation that Story is enabling real-world IP assets across music, media, and AI, to move on-chain in economically aligned ways. This follows Aria’s successful token launch in November 2025, marking the next phase of expansion from initial asset tokenization into frontline music releases.

A New Model Music IP

Through the partnership, master royalties generated from “Busy Boy” will flow back to holders, giving fans, investors, and creators the potential to share in the song’s upside.

By acquiring rights at launch rather than years after peak commercial activity, Aria introduces a repeatable framework for frontline music ownership, one that supports releases holistically while maintaining clarity around rights, royalty flows, and long-term participation.

This structure stands in contrast to legacy catalogue models that rely on passive ownership of historic assets. Instead, it reflects an emerging IP-native strategy built around active collaboration, transparency, and lifecycle-aligned financing.

“Aria’s expansion into frontline K-pop releases reflects the growing sophistication of IP-native ownership models on Story,” said Justin Stiefel, Chief Executive Officer of IP Strategy. “Bringing new music into a transparent, rights-aligned framework from day one demonstrates how programmable IP can reshape how cultural assets are financed and owned.”

The collaboration builds on Aria’s broader engagement with Korean creative IP and follows earlier initiatives bringing music rights on-chain through the Story infrastructure.

Together with other AI and IP-focused applications in the Story ecosystem, this release signals continued expansion of real-world IP use cases, including training data infrastructure, to frontline entertainment assets within a programmable rights framework.

As one of the largest holders and validators of tokens, IP Strategy views this as continued validation that Story is enabling real-world IP assets across music, media, and AI to move on-chain in economically aligned ways.

About Aria Protocol

Aria enables investors to access and earn from iconic IP RWA (Real-World Assets). Built on Story, the purpose-built L1 blockchain for IP, Aria brings IP rights, starting with music, on-chain as fungible, liquid tokens that are tradable and yield-bearing. Aria Protocol Labs Inc., founded by music industry veterans including David Kostiner (co-founder of Counsel LLP and IODA, acquired by Sony Music), leads Aria Protocol’s development and strategy under mandate from the Aria Foundation. In 2025, the first tokenized IP asset, , was launched on Aria Protocol representing royalties from partial rights tied to songs performed by Justin Bieber, Miley Cyrus, and BLACKPINK.

About RESCENE

RESCENE is a five-member K-pop girl group that debuted in 2024 and is recognized for polished pop releases and a rapidly expanding global fanbase. RESCENE derives its name from the idea of “re-experiencing a scene through scent (RE + SCENE),” reflecting the group’s vision to deliver music with a lasting emotional imprint–songs that linger in listeners’ memories over time.

About IP Strategy

IP Strategy (Nasdaq: IPST) is the first Nasdaq-listed company to hold tokens as a primary reserve asset and operate a validator for the Story Protocol. The Company provides public market investors broad exposure to the $80 trillion programmable intellectual property economy in a regulated equity format. IP Strategy’s treasury reserve of tokens provides direct participation in the Story ecosystem, which enables on-chain registration, licensing, and monetization of intellectual property.

Heritage Distilling Holding Company, Inc. is the registered corporate name of IP Strategy.

About Story

Story is the AI-native blockchain network powering the token and making intellectual property programmable, traceable, and monetizable in real time. Backed by $136 million from a16z crypto, Polychain Capital, and Samsung Ventures, Story launched its mainnet in February 2025 and has rapidly become a leading infrastructure for tokenized intellectual property. Story allows creators and enterprises to turn media, data, and AI-generated content into legally enforceable digital assets with embedded rights, enabling automated licensing and new markets for intellectual property across AI and entertainment.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements, including statements made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements may be identified by words such as “aims,” “anticipates,” “believes,” “could,” “estimates,” “expects,” “forecasts,” “goal,” “intends,” “may,” “plans,” “possible,” “potential,” “seeks,” “will,” and variations of these words or similar expressions that are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Any such statements in this press release that are not statements of historical fact may be deemed to be forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, the release of the new single “Busy Boy” at launch stage in partnership with Aria Protocol; the demand for programmable, rights-aligned ownership models built on Story’s Layer 1 blockchain; the potential for fans, investors, and creators to share in the song’s upside through royalties generated on the Aria Protocol; the growing shift toward IP-native financing models; the development of an IP-native strategy built around active collaboration, transparency, and lifecycle-aligned financing; the Company’s ability to enable real-world IP assets across music, media, and AI, to move on-chain in economically aligned ways; the growing sophistication of IP-native ownership models on Story; the potential for programmable IP to reshape how cultural assets are financed and owned; and the continued expansion of real-world IP use cases, including training data infrastructure, to frontline entertainment assets within Story.

Any forward-looking statements in this press release are based on IP Strategy’s current expectations, estimates and projections only as of the date of this release and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially and adversely from those set forth in or implied by such forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, risks related to the volatility of the Company’s common stock and any correlation between the Company’s stock price and the price of tokens or activity or projects within the Story ecosystem, the legal, commercial, regulatory and technical uncertainty regarding digital assets generally, and expectations with respect to future performance and growth. These and other risks concerning IP Strategy’s programs and operations are described in additional detail in its registration statement on Form S-1 initially filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) on August 26, 2025, as amended by Amendment No. 1 filed on October 16, 2025, Amendment No. 2 filed on December 12, 2025, and Amendment No. 3 filed on December 19, 2025, its latest annual report on Form 10-K, subsequent quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, and any other subsequent filings with the SEC. IP Strategy explicitly disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements except to the extent required by law.

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