Activision Sued by The Romantics Over Guitar Hero Cover Song

The 80’s pop band, The Romantics, have filed suit against Activision over the cover of their song, “What I Like About You,” that appears in the game Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80’s. The band claims that the musicians performing the cover version in the game sound too much like them. Publicity laws usually prevent a person’s image or identity form being used for commercial purposes without their consent, but it can also extend to well-known voices as well. The suit, filed in federal District Court in Detroit, asks the court to prevent further distribution of the game and order the publisher to provide compensatory and punitive damages for an unspecified amount.

I’m not sure, but I would’ve thought Activision would have to get permission from an artist’s label before even using the song. And I have to ask, do The Romantics really have a signature sound? I’m just saying, even if the lead singer called me up randomly and sang “What I Like About You” straight to me, I’d still only think it was some weird person just singing that song.

Via Billboard

http://news.filefront.com/category/gamer-life/game-related-laws/page/2/