MGA Entertainment, the manufacturer of the popular Bratz line of dolls, has filed a lawsuit against Lady Gaga and her management firm over a breach of contract, reports Bloomberg. MGA alleges Gaga, her management company Atom Factory and the Universal Music Group-owned merchandising firm Bravado International Group delayed the approval of a Gaga doll line, and the company is seeking over $10 million in damages.
The lawsuit, filed in New York, claims MGA came to an agreement with Bravado in December 2011 to produce Gaga dolls, citing Bravado's "request and insistence." MGA paid Bravado a $1 million fee with plans to have the dolls ready for retailers this summer. But Bravado told MGA in April that Gaga wished to postpone production and shipping until 2013, when she plans on releasing a new album.
MGA claims final approval has pushed back the dolls' release until next year and estimates they've lost out on $28 million in revenue for the Fall 2012 retail reason because of the delay. "Defendants' conduct is egregious, in bad faith and is pretextual, especially in light of the fact that MGA has, among other things, paid Bravado a $1,000,000 advance, agreed to an excessively generous royalty rate, invested millions in the preproduction of the Lady Gaga dolls and put its reputation and goodwill on the line in order to secure distributors and retail shelf space," reads the complaint.
A spokeswoman for Gaga told Bloomberg that Lady Gaga was unaware of the lawsuit and that the pop star has "no legitimate reason" for being listed as a defendant, but "will vigorously defend MGA's ill- conceived lawsuit and is confident that she will prevail."
