Johannesburg - A massive court battle is looming as the organisers of the mega music festival Coachella are taking on Africa's Afrochella over copyright infringements.
Coachella, which is organised by Goldenvoice, a subsidiary of Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG) has sued Afrochella under the management of Culture Management Group (CMG) for "intentionally trading on the goodwill of the well-known Coachella and Chella festivals and trademarks“.
AEG is accusing CMG of "actively promoting music events in the United States and Ghana using the confusingly similar mark ‘Afrochella’ and by fraudulently attempting to register (the) plaintiff's actual trademark as their own“.
According to the court document, Afrochella is not only deliberately trading on the goodwill of Coachella but also promotes music festivals in the US and Ghana using the almost identical Coachella stylised mark.
The court documents pointed out that the organisers of Afrochella intentionally opted for the name with the intent to create the illusion that Afrochealla was part of Coachella.
A tweet by @mistameister in 2017 said criticised the move and said: "I just feel like they chose the name Afrochella because they want to create an African version of the Coachella vibe." In turn, Edward 'Dizzy' Elohim, co-founder of Afrochella, quoted the tweet and said: "A Coachella-themed event wasn't going to be called Gye Nyame Fest."
Coachella organisers reached out to the Afrochella team a few years before to make changes, but were reportedly ignored. AEG issued a warning to the Afrochella festival in 2019 regarding the infringement of copyright.
"We understand that you are using Afrochella as the name of a music and arts festival. We note that your event is part of a larger celebration that is designed to attract those living abroad (including those in the United States) to return home to Africa," AEG stated.
They also noted that regardless of the celebration, the use of Afrochealla as the name of a music and arts festival is likely to create confusion, especially for the public who believe that Afrochella is authorised by or associated with Coachella.
Attempts to get comment from CMG were unsuccessful.
Court documents stated that the African festival’s website is a North American-based domain, which helps lure US festivalgoers.
"A substantial portion of the revenue generated from the festival tours sold on the website accessible at the afrochella.com domain name are from US-based customers."
On top of the immediate restraining order on the Afrochella name, Goldenvoice has sought "damages for trademark and service mark infringement and unfair competition", and additionally asserted a claim for $100 000 for allegedly cybersquatting domain names.
AEG has taken legal action not only against Afrochella but also other festival companies that have infringed on their name, such as Hoodchella (2016) and the Twenty-Nine Palms Band of Mission Indians, who attempted to host a New Years event called Coachella Day One 22 in 2021.
After a pandemic-postponed Afrochella in 2020, the festival returned to Accra, Ghana, in 2021 and 2022 despite the warning. The festival is, however, slated to expand to South Africa later this month under the name Afrochella.
While arbitration does not usually impact ongoing activities until the case has been resolved, it remains to be seen how it affects aspects of marketing and ticketing for diaspora audiences, including those based in the US.