NFTs were developed in order to protect artists and address the issue of unauthorized use of intellectual property, which is precisely what Yuga Labs has been accused of.
Yuga Labs’ main nonfungible token (NFT) collection, Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC), is known for its striking wolf skull logo, which some claim was improperly branded without the necessary authorizations. An organization that specializes in providing young people and beginners with drawing tutorials originally published the image.
NFTs were developed in order to protect artists and address the issue of unauthorized use of intellectual property, of which Yuga Laboratories has been accused. In a post from April 5, 2021, Simple Drawing Guides promoted “an easy step-by-step drawing tutorial” for a wolf skull, according to crypto Twitter user and NFT artist @Jdotcolombo.
Website showing time stamp of the art’s release. Source: EasyDrawingGuides.com
Given that BAYC’s Kennel Club memorabilia debuted on June 17, 2021, the company’s artwork at first sparked suspicion because it closely resembled the organization’s official insignia.
Yuga Laboratories was informed that they lacked permission to use the wolf skull artwork by Easy Drawing Guides in response to the uproar. Yuga Labs went a step farther and trademarked the unauthorized logo as its own. Easy Drawing Guides responded as follows:
“The intellectual property rights for the drawing belong to Easy Drawing Guides as it’s our original drawing and protected by our Terms and Conditions.”
In accordance with the terms and conditions of Easy Drawing Guides, a non-transferable, non-exclusive, revocable, limited license is granted to use and access the website only for personal, non-commercial purposes.
The majority of people agree that Easy Drawing Guides is entitled to significant compensation, despite the fact that BAYC supporters contend that utilizing the logo did not violate anyone’s intellectual property.