UAE: Actor loses Dh1.1 million lawsuit against TV channel

The defendant was accused of using the artist's name and images to promote a series he wasn't a part of

Published: Sun 31 Oct 2021, 9:24 AM

By
Ismail Sebugwaawo

An Arab artist and actor has lost a lawsuit in which he demanded Dh1.1 million from a television channel for damages after the channel used his name and images to promote a series he wasn't in on its website.

Official court documents stated that the man had filed a lawsuit against the channel demanding compensation for causing him financial loss. He claimed the incident damaged his reputation among his fans when it used his name and images to promote a TV series he hadn't taken part in.

The man claimed to be a well-known artist and actor in the Gulf region who played various television series roles.

He claimed that the television channel exploited him by using his photos and names to promote its series without his approval or consent.

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The plaintiff explained that he had received many inquiries from his fans regarding his participation in the series after seeing his name and photo on the channel's website.

When he opened the website, the actor noted that he confirmed that the defendant had exploited his name and artistic reputation, causing him great embarrassment to his followers and fans.

The actor said his name and image appearing in this TV series ad also caused him financial losses. He said he missed out on opportunities to sign contracts with other production companies as they assumed he already had a contract with the TV channel advertising him in their series, which wasn't the case.

The lawyer who represented the TV channel, however, presented the defence refuting the actor's claims.

He presented a memorandum showing that the company that produced the series had talked with the plaintiff, who was one of the artists to act in the series. However, there were some misunderstandings with the actor before filming, and the plaintiff declined to sign the contract.

The lawyer argued that the ads promoting the series' were shown based on the initial nominations for the actors before filming began and that there was no intention of exploiting the actor's name.

After hearing from all parties, Abu Dhabi's civil court for administrative claims dismissed the case due to insufficient evidence to support the actor's claims.

ismail@khaleejtimes.com