On Wednesday, a jury in New York ruled in favor of Hermès in its trademark lawsuit against Mason Rothschild, the creator of MetaBirkin NFT. Rothschild has been ordered to pay a total of $133,000 in damages, which includes $110,000 in estimated profits from NFT sales and $23,000 for cybersquatting on the MetaBirkins.com website.
The verdict in the highly anticipated trial, which took place in a federal court in the US, confirms that trademark rights for physical items also apply to digital goods and NFTs. This decision is likely to influence how fashion brands and individual creators approach NFTs in the future.
Hermès accused Rothschild of infringing upon its trademarks for its iconic Birkin bags and diminishing the Birkin brand. Rothschild’s lawyers tried to argue that the MetaBirkins were a form of artistic expression protected by freedom of speech in the US.
However, the jury ultimately sided with Hermès, ruling that the MetaBirkins were not considered protected art, but rather similar to regular consumer products that violated Hermès’ trademarks.
