Marci Ballard, Kristen Ruisi, and Maria Sinatra's article, "Trademarks and Source Identifiers in the Metaverse: Practical Considerations for Brand Owners in a Newly Emerging Virtual Marketplace," appeared in the February 2023 issue of The Licensing Journal. The following is an excerpt:
As technology and the physical lives of consumers continue to converge, businesses active in metaverse and blockchain technologies will need to think about how their brands and source identifiers might evolve or change in these new digital spaces. Will the digital storefront of a well-known brand mirror its brick-and-mortar storefront? Will businesses' two-dimensional (2D) trademarks be transformed into more metaverse-friendly three dimensional (3D) brands and interactive source identifiers? Will companies create unique standalone source identifiers for their brands and metaverse activities
Stakeholders will need to be cognizant of the fact that the use of source identifiers in the metaverse can affect currently registered trademark rights in the real world. This article discusses some factors that companies and stakeholders should consider as they create a new metaverse presence. We also present some practical considerations to consider before modifying existing source identifiers or creating entirely new 3D marks for use in the metaverse.