Trademark law also applies in the metaverse

The topic of metaverse is currently on everyone’s lips. Many companies are developing metaverse scenarios or corresponding products, and the press is abuzz with the buzzword metaverse.

Key Facts

The metaverse is a key topic in the technology sector, with growing importance for companies and the media.
The Düsseldorf Regional Court has decisively clarified that trademark law also applies in the metaverse.
This decision is one of the first to use the wording "virtual spaces", thus creating new legal precedents.
The metaverse creates challenges in the legal field, particularly with regard to NFTs and trademark rights in virtual worlds.
Companies often underestimate the many legal issues involved in the metaverse, which can lead to risks.
Branded clothing and other products in the metaverse are important business issues with legal implications.
The topic of supervisory law and BaFin is becoming increasingly relevant in the context of the metaverse.

I also look after clients in this regard and deal with the topic. Even if one can actually be of the opinion that every computer game is or was in fact a metaverse. What else?

However, the issue is slowly gaining traction with courts and in the legal literature. However, the fact that trademark law also applies in the metaverse, or as courts sometimes call it, in “virtual spaces” has now been decided by the Düssel Regional Court in a preliminary injunction in a trademark case.

This should be one, if not the first court decision that decides on the topic of “virtual spaces”, at least in the Metaverse environment, and uses such “wording”.

It will be interesting to see what happens next, because the topic of NFT (for example, of branded clothing, etc.) in virtual worlds/metaverse scenarios is a big business topic right now, but at the same time also a topic where many companies underestimate the many legal issues, including the topics of supervisory law and BaFin.

Author: Marian Härtel

Marian Härtel ist Rechtsanwalt und Fachanwalt für IT-Recht mit einer über 25-jährigen Erfahrung als Unternehmer und Berater in den Bereichen Games, E-Sport, Blockchain, SaaS und Künstliche Intelligenz. Seine Beratungsschwerpunkte umfassen neben dem IT-Recht insbesondere das Urheberrecht, Medienrecht sowie Wettbewerbsrecht. Er betreut schwerpunktmäßig Start-ups, Agenturen und Influencer, die er in strategischen Fragen, komplexen Vertragsangelegenheiten sowie bei Investitionsprojekten begleitet. Dabei zeichnet sich seine Beratung durch einen interdisziplinären Ansatz aus, der juristische Expertise und langjährige unternehmerische Erfahrung miteinander verbindet. Ziel seiner Tätigkeit ist stets, Mandanten praxisorientierte Lösungen anzubieten und rechtlich fundierte Unterstützung bei der Umsetzung innovativer Geschäftsmodelle zu gewährleisten.