News / Business
Mattel Sues China Barbie to Protect Doll from Porn
Toymaker Mattel, Inc. is in court today to protect the name of one of its beloved products from being attached to pornography. In a lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Manhattan, Mattel said the website for an adult entertainer named China Barbie has tried to benefit from El Segundo-based Mattel's success with the doll.
China Barbie's site says she's a "cordial young lady" who sat behind the desks of some of the world's leading investment banking firms and advertising agencies in New York before getting into porn. It says her filmography includes "Me Luv You Long Time," "Ethnic Cheerleaders 8" and "Passport to Paradise."
The site charges $19.95 for monthly access to its photos and video clips.
The lawsuit said Mattel had registered its trademarks to protect the Barbie line of dolls and the $1.6 billion in sales that it generates. Mattel said it has sold more than a billion Barbie dolls worldwide and a typical American girl owns eight of them.
According to the lawsuit, the offending Web site is registered to Global China Networks LLC and is operated by Terri Gibson, a Hollywood, Fla., resident.
Mattel is suing for up to $100,000 in damages. El Segundo, Calif.-based Mattel said the Web site is toying with an image it had carefully crafted since company co-founder Ruth Handler created the Barbie doll in 1959 after discovering that her daughter, Barbara, preferred to play with paper cutouts of adult female fashion dolls rather than baby dolls.
