Wheeling, Dealing & Stealing
So, I noticed a page and an event floating around Facebook titled HOUSE DANCE INTERNATIONAL.
Hooray! One of my favorite dance events is back! Right? Isn't it? You may want to read on to find out.
I was immediately excited about this upcoming event so I reached out to the organizers Santiago and REDness whom I know from their past events. Imagine my surprise when they appeared to be confused as to what I was referring to. So I sent them the links. Their replies took me by surprise. They had no idea whose event this was, but it was not theirs. They were going to look into it. When they finally got back to me I finally had a first-hand glimpse of what people have said can go wrong with the House Community but never really saw for myself.
This is what I learned.
It seems that when HOUSE DANCE INTERNATIONAL began there were 3 event producers/partners. The first year things went well but due to irreconcilable differences 1 of the partners quit the event. There were no legal claims for him and he had not financially contributed to the production of the event. He had not created the logo nor named the event. These things will matter as you read on. For 3 more years the event continued with the 2 remaining event producers. It grew bigger and better each year with audiences going from sitting on the floor in a large hall with dancers in the middle during year 1 to the audience having seats in a large theater with the dancers on a huge stage by year 4. The event is known by House Dance enthusiasts from around the world and each year people came from near and far to attend. This is an International House Dance event in NYC!
Here is where this story takes an evil twist. It seems that invite I received had nothing to do with the OFFICIAL HOUSE DANCE INTERNATIONAL event that I had attended and supported for 4 years. Remember earlier I mentioned there were originally 3 events producers? Well this event was being given by the one who had quit after the first year. The one who has no legal claims to the event. That's right the event is being stolen and misrepresented right in front of our eyes.
Shortly after a message went up on the OFFICIAL HOUSE DANCE INTERNATIONAL facebook page, which was like 10,000 strong. It said something like 'Hey we don't have any upcoming events, we'll let you know if we do'. Shortly after, the page disappeared. Just poof, gone. When I inquired with the original and OFFICIAL HOUSE DANCE INTERNATIONAL producers about where the page went they informed me that a complaint had been lodged with facebook about their page using someone else's trademark! Guess who complained?! Yes the quitter had made a false claim and told facebook that THEY were using his property!
To me the timing says this person needed that page down so people wouldn't notice that there were no upcoming events on the OFFICIAL HOUSE DANCE INTERNATIONAL page and therefore would not know his event was unofficial. Talk about playing dirty! Wow! Turns out the quitter had gone and trademarked their logo shortly after he left. He never said a word to anyone even though the event went on for 3 more years. This person didn't say anything until he planned the same event with the same name using the same logo all of which he has no legal claims to.
The quitter also started his own unofficial HOUSE DANCE INTERNATIONAL website and went as far as to cut and paste the description from the original event, use their photos and videos as well. This person did not even take the time to use his own words! Check it out, the OFFICIAL HOUSE DANCE INTERNATIONAL website is still up and running and shows no upcoming events! www.housedancenyc.com. You will notice when you click on the facebook link it says page not found. Here's their OFFICIAL HOUSE DANCE INTERNATIONAL youtube page, also still up and active with 46,000+ views and counting: www.youtube.com/housedancenyc.
I guess these things could not just be shut down like a facebook page with a false complaint.
This leaves the OFFICIAL HOUSE DANCE INTERNATIONAL producers between a rock and a hard place and I know they are trying to handle this situation by the books just as they have everything else but it leaves me I wondering if the people who plan to attend this event are aware of where it is coming from and that they are basically being scammed into believe they are supporting the OFFICIAL HOUSE DANCE INTERNATIONAL event. A profit is being made from false representation.
What's interesting is that the OFFICIAL HOUSE DANCE INTERNATIONAL producers expressed that they are not at all upset at the actual event or its content. They are upset because someone is utilizing the brand they worked hard to produce, fund and present. I've heard of people quitting to go off and start their own versions of companies but they usually change the name and logo. You don't leave microsoft to start microsoft.
This is a real thorn in the side of our House Music Community and shows exactly why so many cannot or will not work together. I was saddened to learn this about an event that has become very dear to me and allowed me to interact with other dancers from around the world who traveled to NYC to be a part of it. I hope it's resolved soon. It's really about something so simple as a name change and finding your own logo. Doesn't seem that hard to do.
As they say what's in a name? I say everything!!
(After talking to a few people about this situation I've learned that the same individual has pulled the same “trademark after you quit” trick with another event he used to be a part of called FUNK BOX and that everyone involved in considering taking legal actions)