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January 29th, 2023
First NFT Trademark Trial Pits Hermès Against Metabirkin Artist
Blockchain Technology Co-Chair Jeremy S. Goldman is quoted in the article, “First NFT Trademark Trial Pits Hermès Against Metabirkin Artist” published by Bloomberg Law. The article discusses the French luxury brand Hermès International SA’s trademark trial against digital artist Mason Rothschild. Hermès is arguing that Rothschild violated trademark law by creating and selling “MetaBirkin” NFTs that depict digital images of the famous Birkin handbag. The trial is expected to test the boundaries of artistic expression and how nonfungible tokens are viewed in the eyes of decades-old intellectual property law. Jeremy is quoted saying, “Deciding whether an NFT project is protected art or if it is a digital knockoff subject to trademark law is no easy job. You could have a one-of-one, oil-on-canvas painting that gets sold in a gallery and no one would treat that as merchandise or as a consumer product. But if you take that same painting, and you put it on posters, and you sell 100 of them, then it starts to look more like a commercial product.”
Read the full article and Jeremy’s quotes here.
Other Quoted
Reports of ‘Click-to-Cancel’s Death May Be Premature
A Competition Policy International article quoted Holly A. Melton on the continuing impact of the Federal Trade Commission’s “click-to-cancel” rule , despite a recent Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals decision. Melton was quoted for her analysis of the FTC’s $2.5 billion settlement with Amazon over Prime subscription practices. In a blog post, Melton pointed to a clause in the agreement that anticipates future rulemaking around negative option features. “That’s not boilerplate,” she wrote. “It reads like a deliberate placeholder—future-proofing the settlement for the reappearance of Click to Cancel.” Melton interprets this as a strategic move by the FTC to potentially revive the rule through a new proceeding.
Melton’s outlook reflects a broader shift in the FTC’s enforcement priorities toward consumer-facing issues like subscription transparency and cancellation ease. She referenced Commissioner Mark Meador’s remarks about focusing on “everyday economic concerns affecting ordinary households” and noted that, even without immediate rulemaking, the agency’s litigation stance signals that subscription practices will remain a top-tier priority for the Bureau of Consumer Protection. Her guidance to advertisers and subscription services: “prioritize transparency, obtain affirmative consent, and make cancellation as effortless as sign-up. The ‘Click to Cancel’ may be down, but it’s not out,” Melton concluded, underscoring the FTC’s intent to keep its options open. Read the Competition Policy International post here.
November 11 2025
States Turn to Outside Firms to Generate Big Privacy Settlements
Holly A. Melton is quoted in the Bloomberg Law article on the growing practice of state attorneys general hiring outside counsel for litigation in data privacy and online safety cases. The article noted this shift boosts companies’ risk profiles, with smaller states taking on more complex cases. “‘One, don’t ignore the states that don’t necessarily have privacy laws because you’re not safe’ said Holly Melton, partner at Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz. ‘And two, the sort of posture has already kind of ratcheted up when they come in with outside counsel who’s sort of running the show.’”
Bloomberg Law stated this strategy is getting mixed results. Some states point out that they could not bring certain cases without the staffing, resources and expertise of the private firms. But critics question outside counsels’ driving state priorities—selecting enforcement for big payouts or settlements, more akin to civil plaintiff litigation instead of traditional AG litigation that prioritizes companies changing their behavior. View Article.
October 9 2025
Televerse Day 2 Highlights: Shrinking, Henry Winkler and More
The Television Academy in its Televerse News quoted Daniel M. Goldberg, who spoke about AI at the academy’s three-day festival. Televerse featured television industry professionals both in front of and behind the camera, expert panelists, FYC (For Your Consideration) discussions, and screenings of shows nominated for this year’s Emmy Awards. Mr. Goldberg spoke on a panel covering “how federal and state lawmakers, courts, content creators and other stakeholders are responding to the evolving technology's impact on copyright, licensing and rights protection.” When asked for future predictions for six months from now, Mr. Goldberg responded, "'It's so hard to predict even two weeks from now. But I think you're going to see the states continue to pick up [on regulating AI] where the federal government is not.’” View Article
August 18 2025
