Yuga Labs, the blockchain startup behind the Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) Non-Fungible Token (NFT) collection has filed a lawsuit against digital artist Ryder Ripps and several associates for producing a copycat version of Bored Apes.
In the 43-page lawsuit filed in California on Friday, Yuga Labs argued that the move from Ryder and his cohorts is an attempt to devalue the economic value of the Bored Ape NFTs. The team confirmed that there are only 10,000 Bored Apes out there with many prominent celebrities proud to have them as their digital identities.
The suit noted that Ryder and his team are creating a new collection using the original copies of their flagship NFTs and calling this new collection “RR/BAYC” NFTs.” The suit is praying the court to restrain Ryder and his team from “engaging in further interference with its prospective economic relations,” as well to compel them to pay damages and attorneys’ fees.
Ryder has been on the frontlines in recent times, accusing Bored Ape of creating the NFTs with Nazi ties, a claim that Yuga Labs has denied with facts.
Yuga Labs is arguably the biggest name in the Web3.0 ecosystem, and besides its BAYC collection, it currently controls the IP to the CryptoPunks and Meebits collection following the purchase of these collections earlier this year. The startup has been introducing impressive products for its NFT holders, launching the Otherside metaverse project in an attempt to build a media empire that will feature and provide utility to all of these NFTs.
Fighting infringement on its Intellectual Properties is one of the lawsuits being fueled by the Yuga Labs team. The startup has had to be named as the defense to a number of lawsuits filed by aggrieved holders, particularly with respect to the constant breaches of its social media account that led to the loss of valuable NFTs.
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