Hermès vs Rothschild: The Luxury House Wins Trial Against NFT Artist
The luxury house won its lawsuit against Mason Rothschild, the artist behind the MetaBirkin…
A nine-person jury has declared the French luxury house Hermès as the winner against Mason Rothschild, after carefully examining the evidence. The crucial trial examining NFTs in terms of intellectual property law has been the first of its kind in the US and a defining moment in the history of digital art.
In November 2021, NFT artist Mason Rothschild launched a collection of so-called MetaBirkins, which he sold on the online marketplace OpenSea and promoted on his Instagram account. While the designs took inspiration from the classic Birkin shape and hardware details, the bags themselves are covered in coloured, almost cartoon-like furs and not leather. The digital accessory quickly went viral, and many claim it was because it resembled the well-known Hermès Birkin bag, which was introduced in 1984 and inspired by the French-English singer Jane Birkin.
Because of the resemblance, the French fashion Maison filed a lawsuit in January of 2022 against Mason Rothschild. Their reasons were the MetaBirkin would cause confusion, leading consumers and customers into believing the NFT was, in fact a product by Hermès and not by an independent party, which has been only confirmed by some media outlets falsely attributing the bag to the luxury house, according to Bloomberg. Although the brand is not yet selling NFTs, the company’s counsel argued: “If we want to bring our bag into this virtual world, there will always be a reference to the MetaBirkins.”
On the other hand, Rothschild’s attorneys counterargued that the NFTs in question are works of art protected by the First Amendment. They continued to compare the MetaBirkins to Andy Warhol’s famous prints of the Campbell’s soup cans, which did not have to face such accusations.
In the end luxury house, Hermès seemed to have enough evidence for the jury of nine to win the trial and was awarded $133,000, which translates into approximately 488,522AED. This trial has set a potential new standard for how future fashion NFTs can exist.
Lead Image Courtesy Of Instagram/ @metabirkins