On the heels of the release of the Frida on Amazon’s Prime Video, the Frida Kahlo Corporation has filed suit on alleged Amazon vendors for copyright and trademark infringement.
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Frida Kahlo, an artist that gained recognition during the 1900s, died in 1954 leaving the rights to her artworks to her remaining family. Kahlo’s family formed the Frida Kahlo Corporation (“Kahlo Corporation”) in collaboration with an outside partner in 2004. The Kahlo Corporation aims to protect and promote Frida Kahlo’s image and brand, providing guidelines for artists referring to Frida Kahlo in their artwork on their website.
In furtherance of this mission statement, the Kahlo Corporation owns a variety of U.S. registered trademarks associated with the Frida Kahlo name, including as a standard character word mark for “Frida Kahlo” for multiple goods, such as cosmetics, alcoholic beverages, cigars, games, dolls, coffee, clothing, dishware, etc. and a stylized mark for “Frida Kahlo” for protective face masks and sanitizing wipes. Additionally, the Kahlo Corporation owns the copyrights to many of Frida Kahlo’s famous 2-D artworks that have gained public recognition over the years.
However, the Frida Kahlo Corporation has received criticism for serving broad takedown notices to artists. Local artists have noted in legal complaints that the Corporation is ruining Kahlo’s legacy and image. These lawsuits have been addressed via settlement.
Recently, the Kahlo Corporation filed a lawsuit against an undisclosed amount of counterfeit sellers on Amazon aiming to protect the general public from confusion and deception as to the origin and quality of counterfeit goods.
The lawsuit targets online vendors selling goods with Frida Kahlo’s name and likeness or copyrighted works printed across them. In the complaint, the Kahlo Corporation alleges the online vendors have deliberately copied and reproduced or made derivative works of Frida Kahlo’s protected art. The complaint notes that the online vendors work together to sell goods manufactured by a common source under different names.
The Kahlo Corporation argues that the counterfeit sellers cause consumer confusion, dilution, and tarnishment of their trademarks. Further, the Kahlo Corporation asserts that consumers must be protected from purchasing unauthorized counterfeit products online.
The Kahlo Corporation requests that the online vendor accounts be disabled and forced to cease sales of the infringing products. Further they have requested the anonymous sellers pay an undisclosed amount equivalent to “all profits” obtained through these online sales, or, alternatively, a $2 million “award of statutory damages” to account for “each and every counterfeit use.”