According to a recent trademark application, Crocs, the Colorado-based American footwear company may be delving into the world of non-fungible tokens (NFTs). Since 2004, Crocs has sold 300 million pairs of foam clogs, and the app outlines a protocol for managing and storing digital collectibles.
Crocs trademark filing describes “downloadable virtual goods created with Blockchain technology, smart contracts, in the nature of shoes”
A report from the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) filed on January 11, 2022 indicates that Crocs has its eye on the non-fungible token (NFT) industry. The Crocs company has been well known for its injection molded foam clogs ever since the company secured exclusive rights to the proprietary foam product called Croslite in 2004.
The USPTO report shows a totally different product than foam clogs. “The registration is intended to cover the categories of downloadable digital media, namely digital assets, digital collectibles, digital tokens, and non-fungible tokens (NFTs),” the Crocs trademark filing notes. He goes on to mention things like leveraging blockchain technology and smart contracts in order to showcase Crocs’ products. The file adds:
[The registration is intended to cover] downloadable virtual goods created with software technology based on blockchain and smart contracts, namely shoes, clothing, bags, accessories and charms for decorating shoes, clothing, bags and accessories; Downloadable computer software for creating, managing, storing, viewing, sending, receiving, exchanging, validating and selling digital assets, digital collectibles, digital tokens and non fungible (NFT).
In terms of sales, Crocs aren’t as popular as they were in the early years of their introduction and in 2010 TIME magazine added Crocs to the world’s “50 Worst Inventions”. Crocs, however, are still worn by celebrities like Nicki Minaj, Kim Kardashian, and Justin Bieber. Although the brand indicates an interest in securing Crocs’ intellectual property (IP) rights based on NFTs, the company hasn’t mentioned anything about exploiting NFTs lately.
Meanwhile, a large number of well-known brands around the world have entered the world of NFTs. Popular brands such as Adidas, Budweiser, Hennessy, Arizona Iced Tea, Samsung, Ubisoft, Konami, Bicycle, Pepsi-Cola, Atari and Delorean.
What do you think of the Crocs NFT trademark filing filed on January 11? Let us know what you think about this topic in the comments section below.
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