Nike sues sneaker platform – The race for the NFT rights is on

After the hype surrounding NFTs has grown in recent months, and many big brands and names have also participated in the gold rush mood of the market, the leading sporting goods manufacturer Nike is now starting the fight for the use of digital crypto collectibles.

As Reuters reports, Nike has filed a lawsuit in New York federal court against an online retailer that handled the sports brand's own NFTs. Accordingly, the manufacturer is demanding damages and the immediate cessation of all further sales from sneaker retailer StockX, which has been selling NFTs of certain Nike sneakers since January, which in turn are intended to certify ownership of a copy of the respective shoe.

In the 50-page lawsuit, Nike first states that StockX has already sold almost 500 such NFTs, but this has damaged the brand's reputation and standing. In addition, the sporting goods manufacturer complains that the NFT sneakers in question were sold at significantly inflated prices and under “very vague conditions in terms of purchase and ownership”.

StockX is a popular sneaker platform that is estimated to be worth $3.8 billion. At the time of writing, the controversial sneaker NFTs are still available on the marketplace. Dubbed The Vault, the collection includes nine valuable Nike shoes that are sold in the form of NFTs, effectively granting ownership of a real pair.

Nike argues in the lawsuit that NFTs are a way for brands to interact with customers. However, some companies would misuse the technology to “use without permission the good reputation of world-renowned brands to sell virtual products and generate illicit profits”.

The current hype surrounding NFTs makes them the perfect marketing tool for companies. As with all hype, NFTs have now reached a point where the technology is being shamelessly exploited and disputes over rights and ownership are raging. There are already several lawsuits in which NFTs are the central point of contention. These include, for example, the large film distributor Miramax, which is suing the popular director Quentin Tarantino because he is selling NFTs for “his” film Pulp Fiction. However, the film studio sees this as a violation of its own property rights.