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Las Vegas wedding chapels are all shook up after they received cease-and-desist letters from the owner of the Elvis Presley brand, arguing the venues are infringing on intellectual property associated with the famous singer.
Authentic Brands Group, the owner of the Elvis Presley brand, argued in letters sent to Vegas Weddings and Viva Las Vegas Weddings that the businesses need permission to use Elvis’s image and likeness for their weddings. The company claims it does not intend to have any of the chapels offering Elvis packages in Las Vegas shut down and instead wishes to partner with each of them, according to CNN.
“We are sorry that recent communication with a small number of Las Vegas based chapels caused confusion and concern,” read a statement ABG shared with the Washington Examiner. “That was never our intention. We are working with the chapels to ensure that the usage of Elvis’ name, image and likeness are in keeping with his legacy. Elvis is embedded into the fabric of Las Vegas, and we embrace and celebrate Elvis fandom.”
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The president of Vegas Weddings and Viva Las Vegas Weddings, Melody Willis-Williams, has sought legal counsel since receiving the letters and discussed the matter with ABG. She argued that most of the chapels are small businesses going up “against a superpower with a lot of money,” she told the Las Vegas Review-Journal on Monday.
Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodman also expressed concerns over ABG’s letters, arguing the city’s wedding business struggled during the COVID-19 pandemic as well as “the economic devastation” caused by it.
Elvis Presley, known as the “King of Rock and Roll,” lived from 1935 to 1977 and is a pop culture mainstay in Las Vegas.
Las Vegas’s wedding industry produces $2 billion in a year, with Willis-Williams’s business doing “thousands” of Elvis ceremonies a year. Clark County, where Vegas is located, issued its 5 millionth wedding license in February.
ABG purchased the intellectual property associated with Elvis from Core Media Group in 2013. Other brands in ABG’s portfolio include Forever 21, Reebok, and Sports Illustrated.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
Viva Las Vegas Weddings has not yet responded to the Washington Examiner’s request for comment.
