Digital Inheritance of Monetized Social Media Profiles: Balancing the Right to Inheritance and the Protection of Personality Rights

Abstract

Abstract: The rapid expansion of digital technologies and the monetization of social networks have created a new category of assets known as digital goods. Monetized social media profiles currently hold significant economic value, especially for influencers and digital content creators. In this context, questions arise regarding the succession of such assets after the owner’s death, particularly due to the lack of specific regulation in Brazilian law. This article aims to analyze the legal conflicts between the constitutional right to inheritance and the protection of the deceased’s personality rights in the succession of monetized social media profiles. The research adopts a bibliographic and documentary methodology, with a qualitative approach and deductive method, based on the analysis of doctrine, legislation, and case law. The results indicate that the most appropriate solution lies in distinguishing patrimonial content from existential content within digital assets. Patrimonial content, linked to economic exploitation and monetization, may be transferred to heirs, while existential content related to intimacy, privacy, and personal memory should remain protected according to the deceased’s expressed will or judicial balancing of rights. It is concluded that Brazilian Succession Law still lacks specific regulation, although jurisprudence has been developing interpretative solutions to reconcile the conflicting rights involved.