On Monday CVS, the largest pharmacy in the United States, filed a trademark application for virtual goods, non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and collectibles in sectors it typically sells. These include health, wellness, beauty, personal care and prescription drugs, amongst others. It’s everything it would need for a metaverse health clinic.
The application explicitly mentions blockchain and smart contracts and covers virtual goods, entertainment, digital artwork, news and information.
Shortly before the new year one of CVS’s biggest competitors, Walmart, registered twenty trademarks around blockchain, non-fungible tokens, cryptocurrency and the metaverse.
While this might be interpreted as CVS making specific plans, it can also be a defensive move.
Luxury company Hermes is known for its Birkin bags. But that didn’t stop Mason Rothschild from launching MetaBirkin NFTs, virtual handbags. Hermes filed a lawsuit. Rothschild may stumble because the shape of the bag is somewhat similar to Birkin’s. However, Hermes only owns trademarks for physical handbags. It previously had a trademark covering electronic images, but that was canceled owing to lack of evidence of continuing use. The case is ongoing.
Meanwhile, CVS is already involved with blockchain outside of the metaverse and NFTs. It is a participant in trials with the Decentralized Identity (DID) Alliance. And its Aetna health insurance division joined two enterprise blockchain health consortiums. The Synaptic Health Alliance aims to synchronize care provider directories. And IBM created another consortium focused on blockchain for claims, payment processing, and health data exchanges.
