Monster, who was sued for $2M after illegally featuring the group's songs in their ad, says that damages shouldn't exceed $125,000.
- May 28, 2014
AceShowbiz -
Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz, one of two surviving members of Beastie Boys, testified in federal court in Manhattan on Tuesday, May 27. The rapper was called as the first witness in a lawsuit the group filed against Monster Energy Co.
Beastie Boys sued Monster in 2012, claiming that their songs were illegally used in the company's ad. The group sought $1 million in damages for the song licenses and another $1 million for the "implied endorsement" of being featured in the Monster video.
According to Billboard, the company was sure that their forthcoming witnesses would be able to prove that damages wouldn't exceed $125,000.
The company also commented on the lawsuit in a new statement obtained by Pitchfork. In it, they said, "Monster in good faith believed it had obtained the rights to use a compilation of certain Beastie Boys music for an Internet video."
"The music that Monster used was provided by [DJ Z-Trip], who told Monster he had permission. When Monster was notified by the Beastie Boys that the company was mistaken in its belief that it had the proper authorization, Monster immediately removed the video from the Internet," they continued.
Monster is not the only company that Beastie Boys has sued for copyright infringement. Last year, they sued GoldieBlox after finding out that their song "Girls" was used in the toy company's viral video ad.
