Details of the controversial radius clause Coachella performers are expected to adhere to have been made public amid a court battle with promoters of the Oregon music festival Soul’d Out, who accuse the massive Southern California festival of engaging in anti-competitive business practices. According to court documents obtained by Amplify, artists signed on to play Coachella are prohibited from performing at any North American festival from December 15 to May 1. Coachella is typically held over two weekends in April.
The Oregon festival’s original civil complaint incorrectly stated that the radius clause extended to five states: California, Oregon, Washington, Nevada and Arizona. The complaint was amended on May 15 and included more restrictions Coachella imposes on its acts. From Amplify:
Artists are also barred from playing any hard ticket concerts in Southern California during that same time period.
Artists can’t “advertise, publicize or leak” performances at competing festivals in California, Nevada, Oregon, Washington or Arizona or headliner concerts in SoCal that take place after May 1 until after May 7.
Artists can’t announce festival appearances for the other 45 states in North America until after the Coachella lineup is announced in January, with exceptions made for Austin’s South by Southwest, Ultra Miami and the AEG-backed New Orleans Jazziest.
Artists must also wait for the January announcement before publicizing tour stops in California, Arizona, Washington and Oregon, with an exception made for Las Vegas casinos, but not Las Vegas festivals.
Attorneys for AEG, Coachella’s promotion company, defended the restrictions, claiming that “the entire purpose of the radius clause is to protect AEG from competitors unfairly free-riding on its creative choices in selecting its artist lineup.”
AEG’s counsel also stated: “As more festivals proliferate, maintaining a unique festival lineup is crucial for Coachella to remain competitive.”
Lawyers for AEG took issue with the terms of the radius clause going public as they maintain that they were part of confidential settlement negotiations with Soul’d Out’s promoters.
More details about the protracted legal battle can be read at Amplify.
