A little while back, we posted a Pizza Hut commercial that was soundtracked by what seemed to be a knockoff of Black Keys’ “Gold On The Ceiling.” To the Black Keys — and their lawyers — it sounded similar enough that they decided to pursue legal action; the group, as well as co-writers like Brian Burton, are suing Pizza Hut for damages. They’re also suing Home Depot, who allegedly used unlicensed pieces of “Lonely Boy” in an ad for Ryobi power tools. More:
The use of the songs was “a brazen and improper effort to capitalize on plaintiffs’ hard-earned success,” lawyers for the Black Keys said in the complaints.
“We haven’t seen the complaint but we take intellectual property very seriously,” Stephen Holmes, a spokesman for Atlanta-based Home Depot, said in a telephone interview.
(via Bloomberg)
The court cases are titled “Auerbach v. Pizza Hut, 12-05385, and Auerbach v. Home Depot, 2:12-cv-05386, U.S. District Court, Central District of California (Los Angeles),” and since this issue has been percolating for some time, the result could have vast implications on the subject of intellectual property. LCD Soundsystem, lawyer up! In less litigious beefs, Patrick Carney v. Van Halen rages on.
