{"id":17491,"date":"2023-02-10T10:50:05","date_gmt":"2023-02-10T10:50:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/french-luxury-brand-hermes-wins-nft-trademark-infringement-lawsuit-featured-bitcoin-news\/"},"modified":"2023-02-10T10:50:05","modified_gmt":"2023-02-10T10:50:05","slug":"french-luxury-brand-hermes-wins-nft-trademark-infringement-lawsuit-featured-bitcoin-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/french-luxury-brand-hermes-wins-nft-trademark-infringement-lawsuit-featured-bitcoin-news\/","title":{"rendered":"French Luxury Brand Hermes Wins NFT Trademark Infringement Lawsuit \u2013 Featured Bitcoin News"},"content":{"rendered":"

(Originally posted on : Bitcoin News )<\/b>
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French luxury brand Hermes has won a lawsuit against an artist who depicted its famous Birkin bags in a non-fungible token (NFT) collection. The artist argued that NFTs should be covered under the U.S. Constitution\u2019s First Amendment but the jury disagreed.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Hermes Wins Lawsuit Against \u2018Metabirkins\u2019 NFT Creator<\/h2>\n

French luxury design house Hermes has won a lawsuit against Mason Rothschild, the artist behind the \u201cMetabirkins\u201d non-fungible token (NFT) collection which features digital depictions of Hermes\u2019 popular Birkin bags.<\/p>\n

Rothschild created the Metabirkins NFT collection in 2021, which he described as \u201ca collection of 100 unique NFTs created with faux fur in a range of contemporary color and graphic executions.\u201d The collection has fetched more than 200 ETH<\/a> in sales, equivalent to $331,684 at the time of writing. Hermes complained and sued the artist early last year for trademark infringement.<\/p>\n

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Images from the Metabirkins NFT collection. Source: Metabirkins.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Rothschild argued that NFTs should be covered under the U.S. Constitution\u2019s First Amendment. The artist\u2019s defense team compared his work to that of Andy Warhol who depicted Campbell\u2019s soup cans and Coca-Cola bottles in his artwork. Rothschild argued in court:<\/p>\n

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These images, and the NFTs that authenticate them, are not handbags. They carry nothing but meaning.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Hermes\u2019 lawyers have accused Rothschild of \u201cstealing the goodwill in Hermes\u2019 famous intellectual property to create and sell his own line of products.\u201d They argued that customers are likely to confuse Metabirkins NFTs with genuine Hermes products. They further said the Metabirkins URL is too similar to the one used by the luxury brand. Oren Warshavsky, a lawyer representing Hermes said in court: \u201cThe reason for these sales was the Birkin name.\u201d<\/p>\n

After deliberating for two days, a New York jury delivered a verdict on Wednesday stating that they \u201cfound the defendant liable for trademark infringement\u201d and \u201ctrademark dilution.\u201d In addition, they found that \u201cthe First Amendment protection does not bar liability.\u201d The jury then awarded Hermes $133,000 in damages \u2014 $110,000 for trademark infringement and $23,000 for cybersquatting.<\/p>\n

Do you think the NFT creator should have won this lawsuit? Let us know in the comments section below.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

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\nKevin Helms <\/h6>\n

\nA student of Austrian Economics, Kevin found Bitcoin in 2011 and has been an evangelist ever since. His interests lie in Bitcoin security, open-source systems, network effects and the intersection between economics and cryptography.

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Image Credits<\/b>: Shutterstock, Pixabay, Wiki Commons<\/em><\/p>\n

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Disclaimer<\/strong>: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not a direct offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation or endorsement of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com<\/a> does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in this article.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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