Activision’s main response to No Doubt’s claim is that that the band requested their likenesses be limited to perform the band’s own songs in-game – however, it made this request “only after the Band Hero programming was finalized.” Activision seeks an unspecified amount of damages and interest from the band, as well as court and attorney fees, and a return of all payments dispersed to the band for their initial involvement.

Activision countersues No Doubt, which is likely not feeling ‘Hella Good’, Joystiq

Activision, who publish the Guitar Hero franchise, continue their plummet toward ultimate indecency. They put Kurt Cobain’s likeness in Guitar Hero World Tour, or 4 …or 5 and then allowed you to unlock him as a playable character to sing Van Halen songs.

Courtney Love pulled her head from a mound of cocaine long enough to go apeshit, but then it turned out a contract had been signed that said Activision and developer Neversoft had the right to do whatever they wanted with Cobain’s image.

In a repeat performance, No Doubt are suing Activision for allowing their likeness to be used as a “virtual karaoke circus act” in Band Hero (no, really, that’s also a game). But they’re being countersued by Activision, with the demands quoted above, who once again claim to have the contractual right to do whatever they want with the band’s likeness.

Vidguy in the Joystick comments quotes the contract itself, and it appears that Activision do indeed have those rights:

Artists grants to Activision the non-exclusive, worldwide right and license to use the Licensed Property (including Artist’s likeness as provided lay or approved by Artist ) solely in the one (1) Game far all gaming platforms and formats, on the packaging for the Game , and in advertising, marketing, promotion and PR materials far the Game.”

No restrictions as to the use. In addition:

Actlvision shall not be required to submit for approval uses of previously approved assets, provided such uses fall within the rights granted herein.

So as long as they got the avatars approved, they could make any use they wanted in Band Hero.

Bands have been signing up for this without fully appreciating the extend of Activision’s intentions, which frankly is understandable. Guitar Hero and Rock Band are a healthy indulgence in music. They’re for people who love music and want to get closer to it, involved in it and have fun with it. It’s a drunken, party-friendly extension of being a music fan.

By and large I think that true music fans are respectful of their idols and heroes. If you’re an artist (emphasis on that word) signing yourself up to be part of a game, you are going to expect without a second thought that your participation is going to be respected by the game’s makers in the same way it would be respected by your fans. They want to feature your song, and they want to make it more fun by having an image of the real band performing and immerse the fans closer to the music. It makes the game better.

Harmonix—who used to make Guitar Hero before it became a corpse-reanimating pimp—make Rock Band, and Beatles Rock Band …and Lego Rock Band. Fine, I concede, the genre is saturated.

The Beatles Rock Band is a game entirely featuring the Beatle’s image, related art and style. It’s all about them. It’s a beautiful indulgence in that band, polished and perfected, the cut-scenes and interviews and material the game includes feels like a tribute. (If you haven’t seen it, watch the intro cinematic on YouTube, it’s beautiful.) Then, when you’ve played all The Beatles albums are you able to take John Lennon and have him sing Wonderwall? No. No you fucking can’t and fuck you for wanting to try.

Lego Rock Band also includes the likeness of a few bands. Blur, Queen and Iggy Pop amongst others. Oh, except, they’re all Lego minifigs (they’re sort of cute.) Again, they just sing their songs. Iggy Pop singing P!nk? That doesn’t happen.

Harmonix do it right. They are clearly fans of music itself, respect the artists that make the music and build games for fans like them. By contrast Neversoft treat their ‘officially licensed megastars’ as action figures. Someone that loved music wouldn’t do that. It wouldn’t be about having the legal right to a face, if you were building a game trying to realize the experience of music, you wouldn’t even want to abuse an artist’s image in the first place.

Unfortunately, Guitar Hero and Rock Band are superficially identical. I’m not sure that any other potential musician collaborator is going to see this lawsuit and care enough to distinguish between the developer who creates awesome tributes to music, and the developer that might be better off making a Barbie simulator. After this, there’s a risk that only the musicians with more greed than Activision will be left signing over their faces, and I’m sure that plenty will be wary of music gaming in its entirety. Via: joystiq.com.