Kanye West has successfully defended his image, likeness, and brand by obtaining declaratory judgment over alleged copyright infringers.
In January, Kanye West filed a lawsuit in the Southern District of New York, claiming that the founders of a new cryptocurrency, Coinye West, had “usurped [his] name and likeness for the sole purpose of propping up the perceived ‘value’ of the defendants’ ‘digital coin mine’ and its ‘crypto currency.’” The designers initially attempted to evade the suit by dropping West’s the last name from the currency in addition to changing the logo to a Kanyesque fishy donning his signature shutter shades. But Kanye still wasn’t satisfied.
A few of the named defendants have settled out of court with West, and the remainder have failed to respond to his Complaint. With a declaratory judgment in hand, Coinye is likely a dead currency, though its website appears to still be in operation.