(Photo: Barrydriller.com)

We somehow doubt that Alki David, the irreverent prankster behind Aereo competitor (and hilariously named) website BarryDriller.com, didn't see this one coming. Today, news broke that IAC chairman and Aereo board member Barry Diller is suing both Mr. David and BarryDriller.com for using his likeness to falsely advertise the business.

The Hollywood Reporter has the complaint, which states that Mr. David is:

"Seeking to unfairly capitalize on the success of the new business venture supported by Plaintiff, Defendants devised a scheme to launch what they characterize as a competing business called 'BarryDriller.com.' "Defendants are using Plaintiff's name in their 'BarryDriller.com' business to (1) associate their service with Plaintiff, and (2) mislead the public into believing that Defendants' service has been judicially sanctioned."

Mr. Driller is seeking "injunctive relief and punitive damages," which we assume means a big fat check.

This is a delicious twist in an otherwise amusing saga, but we can't help but feel bad for BarryDriller.com's 28,000 users. Maybe they can just use Aereo now?

UPDATE:

Mr. David provided Betabeat with the following statement:

Barry Diller’s Aereo is as irrelevant as is Network Television. The only reason for having Network TV on a virtual-cable service likes BarryDriller these days is because Consumers believe it is better to have it. People want TV but they want their kind of TV not what someone thinks it should be. Hence the popularity of YouTube, Hulu et al. Our numbers clearly show that Bikini TV and BattleCam are individually more popular than the major Networks combined.

(Photo: BarryDriller.com)

If you got word that someone purchased the domain name BarryDriller.com--that's Driller, with an "r"--what would you assume you'd find therein? Reared on a steady diet of innuendo-laden Gawker posts about the IAC chairman's "Sexy All-Boy Thanksgiving" or "His Hot Gay Facebook Friend," one naturally pictures a delightful, tongue-in-cheek video series about an accomplished media mogul carousing, yacht-bound, with his young friends.

BarryDriller.com, as it turns out, is nowhere near as fun. Mr. Diller himself seems to agree, telling The Wall Street Journal, "I had hoped that if they steal my name they’d do it for something more provocative.” You and me both, mister.  

The site is actually the invention of one Alki David, the CEO of FilmOn, an online video site. He's wasting using the address to market a competitor to Aereo--a service, backed by Mr. Diller, that lets you live-stream broadcast TV.

Mr. David may have a bone to pick with Aereo. FilmOn launched a similar offering in 2010, before agreeing to a $1.6 million settlement with the major TV networks that were trying to sue it out of existence. Aereo, which is also being sued by those same networks, seems to be having better luck in court, perhaps buoyed by a $20.5 million investment round led by IAC.

Mr. David told the Journal that BarryDriller.com has more than 28,000 paying subscribers. But he admits to no animus against the IAC mogul, telling the paper that the site is an “homage to a great guy and at the same time, it’s drilling him a bit.” Oh, quit teasing.