Old-School Hip Hop Trio Run-DMC Sues Walmart, Amazon For Trademark Infringement
Old-school hip hop trio Run-DMC is suing retail giants Walmart and Amazon.com for trademark infringement and $50M in damages.
According to the suit filed Thursday, both retailers are allegedly “trading on the goodwill” of the group, and advertising, manufacturing, selling and distributing multiple products without Run-DMC’s endorsement. The suit was filed with the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, USA Today reports.
The supposed offending products include old-school 1980s-style glasses often worn by group member Darryl McDaniels (known by fans as DMC), who owns roughly 200 pairs of similar glasses, according to the suit. Other merchandise includes shirts, hats and other apparel worn by various group members during their years of stardom. Run-DMC said it has made about $100M in trademark deals throughout its career, including a $1.6M sneaker deal with Adidas, and the suit claims the group's brand remains “extremely valuable.” [USAToday]
