Well that didn't take long.
Just days after revealing that late Beastie Boys rapper Adam Yauch's will forbid use of his music in any advertisements, the Beastie Boys are suing Monster Energy Drink for just that
Monster used the Beastie Boys' music and images without permission in a web ad for their "Ruckus in the Rockies" event which occurred on May 5. Yauch died of Cancer on May 4.
The suit, which was filed in U.S. District Court in New York on Tuesday, says:
Monster caused a link to a downloadable audio recording (the "MP3") embodying a 23-minute medley of excerpts from the Beastie Boys Sound Recordings, the Beastie Boys Musical Compositions and the sound recordings and musical compositions comprising the additional Beastie Boys MP3 Copyrights … in conjunction with the Video, together with an offer that the MP3 was available for free download.
The songs in the "medley" included "Pass the Mic" and "So Whatcha Want."
The suit says that Yauch's estate, as well as remaining Boys Mike Diamond and Adam Horovitz, are suing for copyright infringement and violation of the Latham act—which protects trademark and endorsement, seeking a preliminary and permanent injunction.
They are also seeking damages of $150,000 for each individual infringement, which could end up being very costly since Monster allegedly sampled a mix tape.
SEE ALSO: Yauch's will forbids use of his music and image in ads >
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