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A forward thinking artist set out to create a passport to the world—the digital world. At the intersection of art and tech, there is Jayaram.
In 2020, a prominent contemporary art dealer and digital artist decided
to launch a non-fungible token (NFT)-based avatar project with
characters serving as both art and access to events, digital art and
merchandise. These were still early days for creating and distributing
digital artwork using blockchain technology. The client needed guidance
on critical IP issues in both the art and tech worlds (our bread and
butter), as well as counseling around Delaware corporate law. More than
avoiding missteps in planning and executing an NFT drop (launch in the
market), the artist and dealer wanted to build the project in the mold of
a scaling technology startup.
As the client’s sole outside legal counsel, and as a firm leading in
emerging legal areas in technology and the arts, Jayaram leveraged our
knowledge of IP and corporate law, as well as our unique perspective
and background in art and tech, to successfully enable our client to
launch the then highest value NFT project in history. We’re talking a
whopping $16.5M for our client’s trailblazing Spaceman Avatars! We
designed the terms of use and privacy policies that were among the first
used to launch a major NFT project, in addition to executing the
financing transaction. We counseled the client on their IP rights, and
later incorporated a unique sub-licensing structure (a unique Web3
tech-based utility) that allowed holders to commercialize the IP in their
respective NFTs.
Following the success of the Boonji Project, Jayaram has supported
the founders on a number of licensing deals and Web3 projects that
emerged from the initial NFT drop. We continue to advise them on a
number of matters as they continue to grow. Further, we have
garnered a trustworthy reputation within the arts and tech sectors
for advising NFT projects of all shapes and sizes, artists from
myriad mediums, and major global brands on a variety of IP license
structures that maximize the value of NFT technology including
terms that permit holders to create new products through
innovative NFT utilities.