GoldieBlox and Beastie Boys Law Suit Settled

It looks like things have been settled after a dispute that went on for a couple of months. The Beastie Boys settled their lawsuit with GoldieBlox, the San Francisco toy company that inspired young girls to be more than just princesses. It appears as though the boys won... but that doesn't mean it's entirely a loss for the girls.

To refresh your memory, back in November GoldieBlox launched a video for their product, featuring a bunch of girls bored by the princess image projected onto them by the television. They used a fun and spunky version of the Beastie Boy's catchy song, "Girls," that has lyrics that empower rather than put down ("Girls, to build a spaceship/Girls, to code a new app/To grow up knowing/That they can engineer that" as opposed to "Girls, to do the dishes/Girls, to clean up my room/Girls, to do the laundry/Girls, and in the bathroom").

In the video, the young girls built a Rube Goldberg box. It certainly seemed like a game-changer in the world of kids' toys; primarily because it told young girls that they can do whatever they wanted to do, and secondarily because engineering often seems like a boys' playing field.

Yet Adam Yauch had requested in his will that the Boys' songs not be used for any other purpose, and GoldieBlox said the song was used under fair use. The band filed a suit stating copyright infringement.

Now it has all been settled, and a press representative for GoldieBlox issued a statement that said, "“That settlement includes (a) the issuance of an apology by GoldieBlox, which will be posted on GoldieBlox’s website, and (b) a payment by GoldieBlox, based on a percentage of its revenues, to one or more charities selected by Beastie Boys that support science, technology, engineering and mathematics education for girls.”

At least money is going toward charities that support GoldieBlox's mission statement. And even though the song is gone from the GoldieBlox's advertisements, the fact that the company is still out there and promoting science education for young girls — and encouraging them to become innovators — makes it still a win for girlkind.