Trademark applications for crypto, NFTs and Metaverse surge in 2022: Report

The number of U.S. trademarks filed related to cryptocurrencies, nonfungible tokens (NFTs), Web3 and the Metaverse since January have reportedly passed those filed in 2021.

According to data compiled by intellectual property lawyer Mike Kondoudis on Tuesday, individuals and businesses filed more than 3,600 trademark applications for cryptocurrencies and crypto-related services with the United States Patent and Trademark Office as of Aug. 31, compared to 3,516 in all of 2021. In addition, Kondoudis reported that the number of NFT applications had surged even higher — more than 5,800 in 2022 compared to 2,087 in 2021 — while the number of trademark filings related to the Metaverse or Web3 had more than doubled: 1,866 in 2021 and 4,150 as of August 2022.

Data from March reportedly showed the largest number of filings in 2022 across all three application types, with 1,078 for NFTs, 604 for crypto and 759 for the Metaverse, while July and August generally had the lowest number of applications. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced in March that the company was preparing to make NFTs available on Instagram.

Cointelegraph reported on Sept. 1 that luxury brand Hermès had filed a trademark application in the U.S. for use of its name in the Metaverse, NFTs and virtual currency following the company filing a lawsuit against MetaBirkins founder Mason Rothschild for allegedly profiting from the sale of NFTs bearing the company's Birkin brand name. In addition, major firms in and out of the crypto space including Meta, Formula One, Mastercard, McDonald’s, Gatorade and the U.S. Space Force have all, in 2022, made filings with the USPTO suggesting virtual products or involvement with crypto and blockchain.