Naming who holds it next
How custody of an archive transfers, and why naming a successor early matters.
An archive built to last longer than the person who commissioned it needs someone named to hold it next.
This is an uncomfortable thing to be asked about and the studio asks anyway, at handover, of everyone. An archive with no named successor becomes an orphan account the moment the account holder is no longer reachable — and that is precisely the point at which a family most needs it to keep working.
What a successor is
One named person who takes over the account if you can no longer hold it. They hold the access decisions, the stewardship arrangement, and the right to add.
They do not need to be next of kin, and they do not need to be the honoree. Most often it is an adult child, sometimes a sibling, occasionally a shipmate.
What they are told, and when
Nothing, unless you want them told.
Naming a successor does not notify them. Many families prefer to name someone quietly and tell them in their own time. Others ask the studio to send a short written briefing so the person knows what exists and where.
If you want them briefed, the studio will prepare a short guide addressed to them: what the archive is, how to reach it, what it costs to keep, and what to add when the time comes.
When custody actually transfers
A successor taking custody is treated as a new engagement, not a change of billing address. They receive a full walkthrough, training on the guest wall and the controls, and the same relationship the original account holder had.
An account survives a generational transfer only if the relationship transfers with it. A login handed over in an email does not do that.
Changing a successor
Any time, no charge, no explanation required. Families change. The named successor from the year of handover is frequently not the right one a decade later, and updating it is a routine request.
Family disagreement
The account holder decides. The studio does not arbitrate between family members and will not be drawn into doing so, in either direction.
This is stated at onboarding rather than discovered during a dispute. It is not a comfortable rule but it is a clear one, and neutrality decided in advance is the only kind that survives contact.