---

Aprilia Wins Spicy Court Case

25 February 2000

Spice Girls lose case against Italian motorcyle maker

AAP -- The Spice Girls today lost their court case against the Italian
motorcyle manufacturers Aprilia.

Justice Mary Arden dismissed the group's claim and ordered it to pay damages
and the company's legal bills for the case, which the Press Association news
agency estimated at about Stg1 million ($US1.6 million). A further court
hearing will be held to set the precise amount.

The group had sued Aprilia for Stg212,000 ($US340,000) in unpaid fees from
the company's Stg500,000 ($US800,000) sponsorship deal for the Spice Girls'
1998 world tour.

As part of that promotion, Aprilia made a Spice Sonic scooter with a
silhouette of all five singers on it. That product flopped when Geri
Halliwell left the group, the company said.

Arden ruled that Aprilia would not have signed the agreement on May 5, 1998,
had it known that Halliwell would depart at the end of the month.

The company claimed the group was aware of Halliwell's plans to quit when
the contract was signed.

Aprilia said in a statement that the company was pleased it had prevailed
and could now make a "substantial recovery" of its losses.

"It is regrettable that the matter had to come to court to achieve a
satisfactory resolution," the statement said.

Speaking for the group, Sporty Spice Melanie Chisholm said that "we were in
the right and all I can say is if we've lost the case, then justice has not
been done. We didn't know that Geri was going to leave."

Asked about the prospect of a Stg1 million ($US1.6 million) bill, she
responded: "Hey ho, life goes on!"-AP