50 CENT - 50 CENT SUES OVER SHOOTING GAME

Hip-hop star 50 CENT has filed a lawsuit against internet advertising company Traffix Inc. for illegally using his image in a game about the rapper. 'Shoot The Rapper' invites users to gun down a '50 Cent character' who walks back and forth across a small advertisement at the top of a webpage. By clicking on the game, the user is brought to Traffix Inc's client's retail website. 50 Cent, real name Curtis Jackson, filed the suit in a New York court on Friday (20Jul07) and is seeking $1 million (GBP500,000) in damages and a ban on his likeness being used in the game. His lawyer Peter Raymond notes the company does not use 50 Cent's name, but adds, "It looks like him, and there's no doubt the character is intended to be him… he is personally offended."