This article comes fromdecrypt, original author: Sander Lutz

Odaily Translator |

This article comes from

, original author: Sander Lutz

Odaily Translator |

A well-known artist who claims that the largest NFT brand on the planet is secretly run by Nazi supporters has since gone on to sell a collection of knockoff NFTs of the brand, netting $1.8 million. Some people think the artist is right and wrong, but some people think he is taking advantage of the "NFT craze" to make naked money. Now, the NFT brand is suing the artist, and the ultimate impact of the case is likely to be more far-reaching than either party expected-

This is the ongoing story of the concept artist Ryder Ripps and the $4 billion Yuga Labs behind the "boring ape" BAYC. At the end of June, Yuga Labs officially filed a federal lawsuit against Ryder Ripps. There was an uproar, and people's main concerns included:

1. Did the creators of BAYC really hide racism and Nazi symbols in this NFT project? After all, BAYC has been touted by celebrities such as Stephen Curry, Jimmy Fallon and Madonna;

2. Was the whole thing orchestrated by Ryder Ripps? After all, he lied about redesigning the CIA logo;

3. Is this case an obvious defamation case?4. What will the final judgment of this case reveal?However, most people seem to miss another important point in this lawsuit:

Yuga Labs is not suing Ryder Ripps for defamation or copyright infringement

Instead, the multibillion-dollar company narrowly accused Ryder Ripps of infringing on the "boring ape" trademark.

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"The Million Dollar Question"Brian Fyre, a law professor at the University of Kentucky, found it strange that Yuga Labs did not mention copyright infringement at all in the lawsuit: "It's really important, and it's really a little unusual, interesting and unexpected."

Copyright and trademark infringement, while often closely related, are two very different things. Copyright protects the content of a work: the plot of a book, the visual elements of a painting, the chorus of a song. Trademarks, on the other hand, protect the business names, logos and slogans that make up a brand. By not pursuing copyright infringement, Yuga Labs does not seem to care about the fact that Ryder Ripps copied thousands of "boring ape" NFT images and made millions of dollars. Why?

Zahr Said, associate dean for research at the University of Washington School of Law, answers people's doubts: "It's a million-dollar question,"

For companies like Yuga Labs, the NFTs they sell may not be protected by copyright law.

Brian Fyre further added:"Many Boring Ape buyers view so-called 'IP ownership' as an important part of the NFT's value proposition, and in fact we've seen many Boring Ape owners attempt to turn NFTs into unique clothing lines, music groups, burger restaurants, and TV shows, Yuga Labs encourages this behavior, which makes sense because: NFT community ethos like BAYC rests on the assumption that NFT holders are not passive consumers, but Active community members who purchase NFTs with varying degrees of control.”In this case, however, the Boring Ape NFT's copyright structure may be legally ineffective, with artist and lawyer Dave Steiner pointing out that the fact that Yuga Labs may not have any rights to the Boring Ape BAYC at all may make the difference. substantially remove the value of the company. Also, since the 10,000 "boring apes" in circulation are nearly identical and often have only one characteristic, such as an earring, the law may only grant copyright to the first-ever owners of a "boring ape" because the images , was unique at the time.

If interpreted from this legal perspective, the vast majority of boring apes (more than 99%) NFT are actually worthless in terms of copyright.

Therefore, if Yuga Labs sues Ryder Ripps for infringement, it will undoubtedly open a Pandora's box for itself, and this is a complicated issue that Yuga Labs does not want to deal with at this stage.

The same goes for defamation. Although Yuga Labs had enough evidence to pursue Ryder Ripps for defamation, they did not do so, which is obviously a very wise decision. Why? Because once Ryder Ripps is sued for "defamation", it means that the NFT series launched by Ryder Ripps will be granted legal rights, and a large number of confidential new creations will be provided to prove that "boring ape" is not racial discrimination and Nazism. If a defamation lawsuit were initiated, it would likely trigger months of research and evidence collection, which would be a never-ending public relations nightmare for Yuga Labs.

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Two monkeys walk into the NFT market

The Fenwick & West law firm hired by Yuga Labs has helped technology giants such as Facebook, Amazon, Apple, eBay and Oracle resolve a large number of intellectual property dispute cases. In June this year, they formally filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. The only mention of Ryder Ripps infringing on Yuga Labs' trademarks is that the claim also focuses on Ripps' use of the "boring ape" logo and branding.

"You buy a knockoff Louis Vuitton bag for $10, and you know it's not the real bag, right, but the thing is, you're buying it because of the trademark."

Ryder Ripps named his NFT series RR/BAYC, but it's important to note that as of now, Yuga Labs doesn't actually hold the trademark for the BAYC name and logo, as its trademark application is pending, so it can be claimed in court protect these trademarks. However, Yuga Labs attorneys must show that Ryder Ripps created a "likelihood of confusion" for consumers by invoking the "boring ape" trademark. However, Yuga Labs may not need to prove that every purchaser of RR/BAYC NFT was deceived into buying a "fake monkey", they only need to show that the collectible value of RR/BAYC is linked to the value of BAYC.

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Convincing the courts while pleasing the community: BAYC caught in a dilemmaWhat's the motivation behind Ryder Ripps' attack on "The Bored Ape"? Does Ryder Ripps want to single-handedly overthrow this multi-billion dollar NFT project? Ryder Ripps eager to grab attention and get more attention by bashing "The Boring Ape"?Some people say that from a conspiracy theory point of view, maybe Ryder Ripps wants Yuga Labs to sue him.Yitzy Hammer, partner of DLT Law, a blockchain legal consulting firm, pointedly pointed out that,

Suing is not a very suitable thing for Web3

, because litigation against NFT projects is very rare in the world of NFT art and Web3 culture with a sense of decentralized community. Christian Tenkhoff, a partner at Taylor Wessing law firm specializing in trademarks and Web3, also said that although NFT owners see IP as a major value proposition, in the decentralized community,

Most people would think that IP is an "old school thing, it's old world, it's centralized, it shouldn't even exist."

So far, Yuga Labs has been careful to guard its feathers and avoid conflicts with the Web3 community. So Ryder Ripps' provocation could put Yuga Labs in another difficult position: associating the "boring ape" brand with Nazism. And this is actually what Yuga Labs is most concerned about.

In addition, the timing of Yuga Labs' lawsuit is also confusing. Yuga Labs didn't file the lawsuit until June 24, when Ryder Ripps' RR/BAYC outsold BAYC on OpenSea. Brian Fyre, a law professor at the University of Kentucky, added:

"My hunch is that Yuga Labs is probably suing to try to get Ryder Ripps to stop denigrating their brand (Nazism accusations are not trivial, after all) rather than really worrying about trademark infringement. In many ways, They just feel like they need to fight back."