A Chatsworth-based toy company must pay Atlanta rapper T.I. and wife Tiny more than $71 million for infringing on the style of their daughter's pop group, a jury decided Monday.
The Santa Ana jury found that some of MGA Entertainment's LOL Surprise OMG dolls are similar to the OMG Girlz, a girl group created by Tiny — real name Tameka Cottle-Harris — and featuring Zonnique Pullins, daughter of Tiny and stepdaughter of the hitmaking rapper, whose real name is Clifford Harris Jr.
MGA Entertainment, which also owns Little Tikes and makes Bratz dolls, was found to have infringed on the "likeness and trade dress" of the girl group with their LOL Surprise OMG dolls, as reported by Legal Affairs and Trials with Meghann Cuniff.
Not only do the dolls and group share having "OMG" in their names, but both also featured brightly colored hair that resembled styles worn by real-life members of the group.
After the verdict was announced on Monday, members of the OMG Girlz and Harris family praised the jury's decision to Cuniff.
OMG Girlz member Bahja Rodriguez said it's “a big win for creatives, because often times we feel like our ideas are just ideas, and we can’t fight for them."
“Yeah, we couldn’t be more happy or thankful,” Tiny said.
MGA's attorneys declined Cuniff's request for comment.