Netflix channels ‘Stranger Things’ kids in a legal warning
It sent a cease-and-desist letter to proprietors of a pop-up bar themed to the popular series. Shunning jargon, the admonition’s authors went the playful route while getting the point across.
You can’t always summon the Demogorgon.
Still, PR pros can learn a thing or two from Netflix’s lawyers.
Attorneys for the streaming service provided a lesson in authentic communications through an unlikely vessel—a cease-and-desist letter to Emporium Arcade Bar, which had launched an unauthorized “Stranger Things”-themed pop-up bar.
The note abandoned legal jargon for the voice of the ’80s tweens from the popular show:
My walkie talkie is busted so I had to write this note instead. I heard you launched a Stranger Things pop-up bar at your Logan Square location. Look, I don’t want you to think I’m a total wastoid, and I love how much you love the show. (Just wait until you see Season 2!) But unless I’m living in the upside-down, I don’t think we did a deal for this pop-up.
The note stayed in the voice of the show’s characters and made just two requests:
We ask that you please (1) not extend the pop-up beyond its 6 week run ending in September, and (2) reach out to us for permission if you plan to do something like this again.
Netflix’s attorneys concluded with a mild threat:
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