The Eagles have filed a lawsuit against a hotel that’s calling itself the Hotel California. The band is suggesting the Baja establishment is trying to capitalize on their famous song.
"Through advertising targeted to U.S. consumers, and in-person communications, Defendants lead U.S. consumers to believe that the Todos Santos Hotel is associated with the Eagles and, among other things, served as the inspiration for the lyrics in “Hotel California,” which is false," the band’s attorney Laura Wytsma writes, adding that the song is the “essence of the band itself.”
The hotel actually opened in 1950 and was called Hotel California, but its name has changed over the years. The latest owners, Debbie and John Stewart, bought the place in 2001 and the suit claims purposefully changed the name hoping it would take off because of its “false, connection to the Eagles." They even play the band’s music at the hotel, and sell T-shirts touting its “legendary” history.
The Eagles are suing for trademark infringement and seeking an injunction to stop the hotel from using the name and from suggesting they are associated with the band.
Source: Billboard
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