Holifield hired Eva to help get her account back. But Eva warns that the chances of success are unpredictable. Eva herself, for unclear reasons, lost access to Meta's Media Support Partner Portal in late January, a more dedicated support channel for public figures and organizations. Another person with access to Portal offered to loan it to Eva for $5,000 per barrel; she refused.
Instagram's email also said Holifield could complain directly to Veuve through Corsearch, a company that sends takedown requests on behalf of brands like Veuve and Offer “Great partnership with Meta.”
Although her case had nothing to do with the sale of counterfeit goods, Corsearch wanted Holifield's Veuve purchase receipts to authenticate them, but the printouts had long since been discarded. Her husband went to liquor stores to ask for copies and picked up two of the three books he bought from different stores. One person in particular wanted to help because his wife had followed Holifield and told him about the disabled account. It's a reminder that Holifield's livelihood was at risk in the dispute over a $70 bottle of midsize bubbles.
Kelley Gordon, one An intellectual property attorney at the law firm Marshall, Gerstein & Borun, who is not involved in Holifield's ordeal, said it is understandable that Veuve would want to control his social media presence. Any product mentioned on an influencer's account may be considered part of a brand partnership by some followers, even if, as in Holifield's case, she act alone and do not peddle anything. “The basic character and purpose of the account is the key point here,” says Gordon. “Trademark owners have the right to prevent confusion regardless of whether it results in a positive benefit.”
However, Veuve was finally satisfied. After dozens of emails to Meta and Corsearch, Eva received a response from Corsearch saying that on February 21, they requested a retraction of the infringement claims. Corsearch did not respond to a request for comment.
Late on February 27, a friend texted Holifield. “Praise God, your account is active again 🙌” She still hasn't seen any emails from Instagram, but it's true. “I felt relieved, but I felt sick to my stomach,” she said. Holifield took down every post with the bottle of Veuve in it and posted a video in which her husband explained what happened. “We came back like a phoenix from the ashes,” he said.
However, Holifield's return is not yet complete. A week later, she learned that the Meta ad management account she needed to share her post performance with sponsors had not been restored. That means no new transactions. “You have to be kidding me,” she remembers thinking. “I realized I was going to have to fight this again and you feel so defeated.”
When he saw his savings dwindling, Holifield thought about switching to TikTok but felt he was too old to learn it. Her friends recommended lawyers in case she decided to sue Meta, but she began to think she might have to quit her influencer job.
This week, two days after WIRED asked Meta about Holifield's situation, access to her ad manager was restored. She will be able to continue her work with advertisers. “I feel like I can breathe a little bit,” she said immediately after successfully logging in.
Holifield is now wary of mentioning companies or displaying logos on his Instagram except in the case of paid partnerships. She avoids saying words like bluff or similaror comparisons between products—actions that have taken down other influencers' accounts. She's also done with her crafts, and she'll probably never utter the name of what was once her hobby again. With little support from Meta, Holifield said, “I don't want to take any risks.”
