A shopper carries a bag outside a Walmart store in San Leandro, California, on Thursday, May 13, 2021.
David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | beautiful pictures
Walmart seems to be venturing into the metaverse with a plan to create its own cryptocurrency and collect non-fungible tokens or NFTs.
The big-box retailer filed several new trademarks late last month indicating its intention to manufacture and sell virtual goods, including electronics, home decor, toys, sporting goods and other products. personal care. In a separate filing, the company said it will offer users a virtual currency, as well as NFT.
According to the US Patent and Trademark Office, Walmart filed the application on December 30.
In total, seven separate applications were submitted.
A spokesperson for Walmart did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment.
Source: Gerben . Intellectual Property
Source: Gerben . Intellectual Property
“They’re super intense,” says Josh Gerben, a trademark attorney. “There’s a lot of language in this stuff, which shows that there’s a lot of planning going on behind the scenes for how they’re going to tackle crypto, how they’re going to tackle the metaverse, and the virtual world that seems to be coming soon.” come or it’s already here.”
Gerben said that since then Facebook announced they changed the company name to Meta, signaling its ambitions beyond social media, businesses are rushing to find out how they will fit into the virtual world.
Nike filed a series of trademark applications in early November previewed a plan to sell virtual-branded sneakers and clothing. Later that month, they said they were working with Roblox arrive create an online world called Nikeland. In December, it bought virtual sneakers company RTFKT (pronounced “in kind”) for an undisclosed amount.
“Suddenly everyone was like, ‘This is getting surreal, and we need to make sure our IP is protected in space,'” says Gerben.
Lot of holes also started selling NFT sweatshirts with the company’s iconic logo. The clothing maker says its NFTs will cost between $8.30 and $415 and come with a hoodie.
Meanwhile, both Under armourAdidas’ NFT and NFT sold out last month.
Gerben says that apparel retailers Urban dressers, Ralph Lauren and Abercrombie & Fitch also filed a trademark in recent weeks detailing their intention to open some kind of virtual store.
A report from CB Insights outline some of the reasons why retailers and brands might want to take on such business ventures. The launch of NFT allows businesses to tokenize physical products and services to help reduce the cost of online transactions. And for luxury brands like Gucci and Louis Vuitton, the NFT can act as a form of authentication for more expensive and tangible goods.
—CNBC of Melissa Repko contributed to this report.
