With the latest news about StockX entering and exploring NFTs, word is out that they are in hot water with the Swoosh. Yes, you heard it right – Nike isn’t really excited about it.
The reason being is that Nike isn’t really down with seeing their trademark shoes as non-fungible tokens or NFTs. This has set off the Beaverton giant to tell it off as a trademark infringement. Other concerns include according to Reuters are “inflated prices and murky terms of purchase and ownership” as well as creating confusion via StockX‘s business model.
A Bold But Punishable Move
January saw StockX moving forth into the NFT universe that encourage collectors to buy off some NFTs which they can redeem for real wearable sneakers in the future. The shoe giant claims that Stockx has already sold over 500 Nike-related NFTs which has triggered a cause for alarm—understandable really.
With Nike’s move to the Metaverse, it will definitely bring conflict for both parties as the public would be confused—what the hell are they buying? A Nike NFT or a StockX NFT?
It’s Not Just Nike Going Ballistic Over It
And it just doesn’t crossover into sneaker culture. Film distributor Miramax has just sued Quentin Tarantino in November 2021 regarding his plans to auction off a set of 1994 film Pulp Fiction NFTs. Just this January, French luxury house Hermes sued the artist Mason Rothschild over a ‘MetaBirkin’ series of NFTs that drew inspiration from their Birkin bags.
Where Do We Go From Here?
The plot thickens really. We are expecting more and more feuds as this new platform can bring out the entrepreneurial spirit of some individuals, especially “extra creative” ones who have quite a disregard for copyright laws.
What’s your take? Are you willing to spend sneaker money on non fungible sneakers? Are you risking that? If and when Nike wins, where does that StockX NFT money go? We can’t wait what happens…as we can’t decide now just yet.
In other news, this Filipino Artist’s “Last Shot” Artwork was signed by Michael Jordan himself!
