Beastie Boys sue Monster for copyright abuse

The Beastie Boys have appeared in court to sue Monster, an energy drinks company, for more than $2 million after it used their music to endorse the company’s products.

In court, the company admitted it had infringed copyright “by mistake” although the rappers had made it clear they would never license songs to endorse commercial products.

A promotional video, featuring a remix of the songs ‘Sabotage,’ ‘So What’cha Want’ and ‘Make Some Noise,’ was produced for a snowboarding competition which began a day after band member Adam Yauch’s death in May 2012.

The group’s lawyer said Yauch had been of the same feeling, leaving specific instructions in his will to prevent the use of his music or image in any advertising.