The band No Doubt just joined the small but ever-growing number of musical artists to sue publisher Activision. No Doubt has filed a lawsuit against Activision claiming fraudulent inducement and breach of contract. The ban is featured in the new Activision game Band Hero. But the band, led by Gwen Stefani says that Activision has turned No Doubt into "a virtual karaoke circus act." No Doubt admits that the group signed into a contract that would "place avatars containing their name and likeness performing three No Doubt songs in the upcoming Band Hero game of the Guitar Hero series from Activision". The band goes on to state in their statement that "Without the band's knowledge or approval Activision turned the group into virtual karaoke players by having them perform over 60 additional songs by other musical groups."
With this and the previous Courtney Love lawsuit it would seem that missuses of likenesses and breach of contract is a growing trend with Activision. Only time will tell if fault lies on Activision for hiding terms and clauses within the fine print or even outright breaching of the contract, or if the real blame lies on bands too concerned about the monetary sum of the endorsement to even read the contract.
With this and the previous Courtney Love lawsuit it would seem that missuses of likenesses and breach of contract is a growing trend with Activision. Only time will tell if fault lies on Activision for hiding terms and clauses within the fine print or even outright breaching of the contract, or if the real blame lies on bands too concerned about the monetary sum of the endorsement to even read the contract.
