The Provincial Court of Madrid has condemned Atresmedia to pay 50,000 euros to the protagonist of the viral “la he liado parda”, considering that the group reused her image and voice in entertainment programs for years without her consent.
The resolution increases the compensation set in the first instance and also requires the removal of the affected content, preventing the video from being broadcast again for that type of purpose, almost two decades after going viral.
The court distinguishes between the enormous dissemination that the video achieved on the Internet and the use that Atresmedia made of it for years. The ruling recalls that the affected person, who then worked as a lifeguard, is not a public figure and that her rights prevail in this case.
The plaintiff maintains that the impact of the video had consequences on her personal and work life. The Court recognizes the existence of moral damage, although it rejects the compensation of 300,000 euros that had been requested.
It all started in 2008, when a young lifeguard was interviewed by Antena 3 after an incident in a swimming pool in San Sebastián de los Reyes. His now legendary phrase, “I’ve messed it up,” became one of the first big internet virals in Spain and ended up entering popular language, being used even today.
