Zoe Rosen
The Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival, known as Coachella, just returned after two years. Coachella has become one of the most popular music festivals in the United States since it began in 1999. Headliners from its 2022 lineup include Harry Styles, Billie Eilish, Swedish Mafia House, and the Weekend. It has recently made news headlines regarding how it takes strong legal measures to maintain its brand and reputation. Most notably, Coachella protects its trademark. It has registered for “numerous variations of the Coachella mark” including “Chella, Coachella Valley, [and] Coachella.”[1]
Coachella and its promoter, Goldenvoice, which is owned by AEG, have become involved in various lawsuits to protect the trademark. One example is from August 2017 when Coachella sued Trevor Simms, who founded the independent film festival, “Filmchella.”[2] The District Court “denied Coachella’s motion for summary judgment on the issue of trademark infringement liability.”[3] The parties eventually settled after the court “found a reasonable jury could find there is no likelihood of confusion between the world famous Coachella and Simms’ startup fest ‘Filmchella.’”[4] Details of the settlement have not been made public, but Trevor Simms no longer uses the “Filmchella” name.[5]
Recently, Coachella has been continuing to protect its trademark in a lawsuit against Live Nation. The “Coachella Day One 22” show, which Live Nation promoted and Twenty-Nine Palms Band of Mission Indians produced, is the subject of the dispute.[6] The issues arose before the show on December 31, 2021.[7] Coachella filed the lawsuit is based on a likelihood of confusion claim. Twenty-Nine Palms Band of Mission Indians is not listed as a defendant, as it has “asserted through [its] counsel that they are entitled to sovereign immunity, and not subject to suit.”[8]
Twenty-Nine Palms Band of Mission Indians has spoken publicly about the lawsuit, arguing that “AEG and Goldenvoice have taken ‘ownership’ of a name via trademark rights to an area they fully believe they ‘founded,’ even though their event does not take place in Coachella, California, but rather in Indio, California."[9] The New Years Eve show took place at a venue called Coachella Crossroads.[10] In contrast, Coachella has consistently maintained that its trademark is valid due to “secondary meaning.”[11] Secondary meaning takes place when a trademark “transcends the literal meaning of its constituent wording and becomes associated by the public with a product or brand through constant use.”[12]
In December 2021, Coachella was first granted a temporary restraining order, preventing Live Nation from advertising “Coachella Day One 22,” using the Coachella name.[13] However, approximately a week later, a judge removed the restraining order.[14] The judge considered that “Live Nation . . . is not responsible for the tribe’s actions in promoting the show,” allowing it to continue using “Coachella.”[15] The judge did not find Live Nation’s “contributorily infringe[ment],” further considering that Live Nation “doesn’t control ‘the general sale of tickets to the event.”[16]
Furthermore, Coachella ensures its success through a “radius-clause” included in the contract for artists playing the festival.[17] This clause “prohibits acts from playing music festivals or themed events inside a five-state radius around California from December to May.”[18] While this common festival industry provision may pose a burden on performers, radius clauses are “not ironclad” and have the potential to be negotiated.[19] According to a music lawyer, “every time a client has had a conflict with a radius clause, they’ve been able to work out permission to play the other show, though that may vary for more popular artists and bigger fests.”[20] At a minimum, the radius-clause serves as a deterrent for artists to play shows within the described terms. This is part of Coachella’s greater trend of ensuring its continued success through legal protections.
[1] The Legal Issues Surrounding #Not-So-Chilla, https://cardozoaelj.com/2017/05/04/legal-issues-surrounding-not-chilla/#_ftnref12 (last visited May 6, 2022).
[2] Ashley Cullins, Hollywood Docket: Coachella Trademark Fight Settles, (October 12, 2018) https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/hollywood-docket-coachella-trademark-fight-settles-1145285/
[3] Id.
[4] Id.
[5] Id.
[6] Tom Tapp, Coachella Organizers Awarded Temporary Restraining Order Against Live Nation Over “Coachella Day One 22” New Year’s Eve Event, (December 21, 2021) https://deadline.com/2021/12/coachella-music-festival-sues-live-nation-over-coachella-day-one-22-new-years-eve-event-1234890628/
[7] Chris Willman, Judge Rules Live Nation Can Keep Selling Tickets for NYE Festival in Coachella Contested by Goldenvoice, (December 29, 2021) https://variety.com/2021/music/news/coachella-judge-rules-new-years-eve-festival-goldenvoice-live-nation-tribe-1235144369/
[8] Murray Stassen, Live Nation Sued by Goldenvoice Over Alleged Infringement of Coachella Trademark, (December 15, 2021) https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/live-nation-sued-by-goldenvoice-over-alleged-infringement-of-coachella-trademark/
[9] Jesus Reyes, Tribe Chairman Slams Goldenvoice & AEG Over “Coachella” Lawsuit, (December 23, 2021) https://kesq.com/news/2021/12/23/tribe-chairman-slams-goldenvoice-aeg-over-coachella-lawsuit/
[10] Chris Willman, Judge Rules Live Nation Can Keep Selling Tickets for NYE Festival in Coachella Contested by Goldenvoice, (December 29, 2021) https://variety.com/2021/music/news/coachella-judge-rules-new-years-eve-festival-goldenvoice-live-nation-tribe-1235144369/
[11] Randall Roberts, Behind its Laid-back Image, Coachella Aggressively Protects its Trademark, (April 12, 2018) https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/music/la-et-ms-coachella-trademark-20180405-story.html
[12] Trademarking a Slogan – The Why and How, https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=4113f3b6-7ee3-4aa0-93a0-5e0c4c62f4aa (last visited May 6, 2022).
[13] Tom Tapp, Coachella Organizers Awarded Temporary Restraining Order Against Live Nation Over “Coachella Day One 22” New Year’s Eve Event, (December 21, 2021) https://deadline.com/2021/12/coachella-music-festival-sues-live-nation-over-coachella-day-one-22-new-years-eve-event-1234890628/
[14] Chris Willman, Judge Rules Live Nation Can Keep Selling Tickets for NYE Festival in Coachella Contested by Goldenvoice, (December 29, 2022) https://finance.yahoo.com/news/judge-rules-live-nation-keep-163153738.html
[15] Id.
[16] https://liveforlivemusic.com/news/goldenvoice-sues-live-nation-fake-coachella/
[17] Randall Roberts, Behind its Laid-back Image, Coachella Aggressively Protects its Trademark, (April 12, 2018) https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/music/la-et-ms-coachella-trademark-20180405-story.html
[18] Id.
[xix] Marc Hogan, Coachella’s Controversial Radius Clause Actually Isn’t That Hard to Get Around, (June 22, 2018) https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/coachellas-controversial-radius-clause-actually-isnt-that-hard-to-get-around/
[xx] https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/coachellas-controversial-radius-clause-actually-isnt-that-hard-to-get-around/