Playboy takes Auckland bar to court

The Playboy image, name and bunnies are all copyrights that are fiercely protected by Hugh Hefner and the media empire he founded. Photo / supplied

Adult entertainment giant Playboy is suing an Auckland bar and promotions company for having an "official" Playboy party without its consent.

Playboy Enterprises International has taken Bakehouse Entertainment Limited, which owns Osborne Street Bar in Newmarket, and promoter Lenium Beats Limited to court for breaching its Playboy, Playmate and famous Rabbit Head trademarks.

A flyer produced for the party said it was being held "in association with Playboy", and would "bring to life the dark secrets and mysteries of the Playboy lifestyle".

"This is not a night for the faint hearted. Be prepared to indulge and be indulged in a sexy night of mystique and seduction," it said.

Tickets were on sale for $15 each.

The invitation was displayed outside the bar and in other public places around Auckland. It also appeared on two event websites and on Facebook.

Playboy is seeking a court declaration that its trademarks were infringed. It also wants an injunction restraining the defendants from doing it again, destruction of all infringing material, an inquiry into damages suffered by Playboy, and for the defendants to pay for its court costs.

"The activities of the defendants... are likely to cause confusion or deception in the course of trade and will result in the defendants' services being passed off as the plaintiff's services," Playboy's statement of claim said.

Lawyers for the three parties briefly appeared in the High Court at Auckland this morning but NZPA understands there have been moves to settle the matter outside of court.

- NZPA