- Yuga Labs and Ryder Ripps agreed to settle their trademark dispute lawsuit.
- Under the settlement, Ripps will no longer be allowed to use Yuga Labs’ images and trademarks.
- The case has been regarded as a leading example in the debate over whether NFTs can qualify for trademark protection.
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Yuga Labs, the developer of Bored Ape Yacht Club, has settled its legal dispute with the artist behind a copycat nonfungible token project.
The Block reported on Aug. 8 that Yuga Labs, conceptual artist Ryder Ripps and his business partner Jeremy Cahen agreed to end their trademark lawsuit.
Under the settlement, Ripps will no longer be allowed to use Yuga Labs’ images or trademarks. Specific terms were not disclosed.
The lawsuit began in 2022 after Ripps and Cahen created and released an NFT collection using the same images as BAYC, which they described as a satirical project. Yuga Labs sued them for trademark infringement.
Ripps argued that his project was protected speech as “expressive appropriation art.” But a US court ruled in 2023 that the NFTs could cause market confusion and infringed Yuga Labs’ trademarks.
The court at the time ordered the two defendants to pay about $9 million in damages and costs.
Part of that ruling was later overturned on appeal, and the case had been headed for trial. The long-running dispute has now ended with a final settlement.
The case has been regarded as a leading example in the debate over whether NFTs can qualify for trademark protection.
