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A U.S. district Court has ordered artist Ryder Ripps and NFT marketplace Not Larva Labs founder Jeremy Caen to pay Yuga Labs about $1.575 million in compensation for creating "fake" BAYC tokens.
In June 2022, the company behind it accused Ripps and Caen of issuing and selling copied NFTs called RR/BAYC that "devalue" the original works.
In October, the defendants filed petitions to dismiss Yuga Labs claims, but the court rejected these claims.
"This case is dramatically different from most trademark infringement cases, as it involves defendants who use satire and parody to justify using the trademark BAYC without the company's consent," the ruling said.
The judge noted that the defendants "obstructed and were evasive" during their testimony.
The refund includes $ 1,366 million in initial sales revenue and $117,309 in royalties.
Respondents will receive deductions because they need to hand over a smart contract that manages $106,055 worth of non-minted NFTs. They will also be forgiven $108,037 due to payments to other business partners.
Ripps and Kaen will transfer control of the affiliated web domains to Yuga Labs. In addition, both were banned from selling products under the Bored Ape brand.
Recall that in January 2022, Ripps published an article in which he called the BAYC collection "racist" and accused its creators of using Nazi symbols. For example, he noted that the line's logo looks like a "Death's Head".
In June 2022, the company behind it accused Ripps and Caen of issuing and selling copied NFTs called RR/BAYC that "devalue" the original works.
In October, the defendants filed petitions to dismiss Yuga Labs claims, but the court rejected these claims.
"This case is dramatically different from most trademark infringement cases, as it involves defendants who use satire and parody to justify using the trademark BAYC without the company's consent," the ruling said.
The judge noted that the defendants "obstructed and were evasive" during their testimony.
The refund includes $ 1,366 million in initial sales revenue and $117,309 in royalties.
Respondents will receive deductions because they need to hand over a smart contract that manages $106,055 worth of non-minted NFTs. They will also be forgiven $108,037 due to payments to other business partners.
Ripps and Kaen will transfer control of the affiliated web domains to Yuga Labs. In addition, both were banned from selling products under the Bored Ape brand.
Recall that in January 2022, Ripps published an article in which he called the BAYC collection "racist" and accused its creators of using Nazi symbols. For example, he noted that the line's logo looks like a "Death's Head".