RHCP have sued Showtime over “Californication”

LOS ANGELES, Nov. 19, 2007 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) — Grammy-winning band the Red Hot Chili Peppers today filed suit against Showtime Networks Inc. and the creator and executive producer of the Showtime series “Californication” for unfair competition involving misuse of the band’s intellectual property.

The lawsuit says the band’s “Californication” title “is inherently distinctive, famous and has been the subject of substantial advertising and promotion, has been used and advertised throughout the United States and the world, is widely recognized… and immediately associated in the mind of the consumer and those in the trade” with the Red Hot Chili Peppers.

Use of the “Californication” name by Showtime and other defendants “constitutes a false designation of origin and has caused and continues to cause a likelihood of confusion, mistake and deception as to source, sponsorship, affiliation, and/or connection in the minds of the public,” the suit says.

The suit says that actions by the defendants in creating, marketing, promoting and distributing the TV series “have been fraudulent, knowing, willful, and wanton.”

The band’s 1999 album “Californication” was one of its most commercially successful, selling more than 14 million copies worldwide. It received a Grammy nomination for Best Rock Album in 1999 and the Best Album nomination at the 1999 MTV Europe Music Awards, and it was named the Must-Have Album at the My VH-1 Awards in 2000. In addition, “Californication” was on Rolling Stone magazine’s list of the Top 500 Albums of All Time and was selected among the 200 most influential and popular albums of all time by the National Association of Recording Merchandisers and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

“The Red Hot Chili Peppers would never have allowed their iconic album and song title to be used as the title of a television program — much less this one,” said the band’s litigation counsel, Justin Ehrlich of The Law Offices of Ian Herzog in Santa Monica, CA. “They are particularly offended that Showtime used its material without permission.”

The lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, alleges unfair competition, dilution of the value of the “Californication” mark and unjust enrichment. It seeks a permanent injunction barring Showtime and other defendants from using the title “Californication” “or any confusingly similar title” for the TV program, music or memorabilia. It also seeks actual damages; treble damages; restitution and disgorgement of all profits; and punitive damages.

Band frontman Anthony Kiedis said, “Californication is the signature CD, video and song of the band’s career, and for some TV show to come along and steal our identity is not right.”

Plaintiffs in the suit are band members Anthony Kiedis, Chad Smith, John Frusciante and Michael “Flea” Balzary. In addition to Showtime, a wholly owned subsidiary of CBS, defendants are Twilight Time Films, Inc., Aggressive Mediocrity, Inc., and Tom Kapinos. The suit identifies Kapinos as the creator, writer and executive producer of the “Californication” TV show.