Rap group Run-DMC have filed a $50 million lawsuit accusing Wal-Mart, Amazon, Jet and other retailers of selling products that traded on their name without permission.
The group say the defendants are utilising their name in the “production, advertising, promotion, marketing, sale and distribution of various products, including glasses, T-shirts and patches”.
Darryl McDaniels of Run-DMC performs at Christmas in Brooklyn, New York (Scott Roth/AP)
They say the retailers have improperly profited, diluted and harmed the Run-DMC brand, which they claim has generated more than $100 million in revenue since inception in the 1980s.
The legal action was filed in the Southern District of New York on Thursday.
Amazon and Wal-Mart, which also owns Jet, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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