Guns N' Roses front man Axl Rose is suing Activision for $20 million dollars for the alleged misuse of the band's songs in 2007's Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock.
The lawsuit filed to Los Angeles Superior Court yesterday, claims that Activision failed to live up to its promise of excluding any and all references to Rose's estranged band mate Slash from the game in exchange for permission to use Guns N' Roses' iconic song, 'Welcome to the Jungle.' Of course, as gamers well know, Slash was featured prominently in the game, even coming in as a 'boss' character, tall hat and all.
"[Activision] began spinning a web of lies and deception to conceal its true intentions to not only feature Slash and VR prominently in GH III but also promote the game by emphasizing and reinforcing an association between Slash and Guns N' Roses and the band's song 'Welcome to the Jungle,' " reads an excerpt from the complaint.
“This lawsuit is about protecting Guns N’ Roses and 'Welcome to the Jungle' and is about holding Activision accountable for its misuse of these incredibly valuable assets," says Rose’s lawyer Skip Miller. “The relief we are seeking is disgorgement of profits and compensatory and punitive damages.”
Over and above Rose's somewhat delayed response to Guitar Hero III's inclusion of Guns N' Roses' former lead guitarist, the suit also claims that Activision owes Rose for its unlicensed use of the song 'Sweet Child O' Mine' to promote Guitar Hero III, claiming that he had only signed off on its use in Guitar Hero II.
Nov 24, 2010
[Source:The Hollywood Reporter]
Soundtracks you didn't know were stolen
Beautiful music blatantly ripped off from existing tunes
