On Thu, Nov 25, 2010 at 8:03 AM, Kevin M. <[email protected]> wrote: > I think the Berne Convention might come into play here, but I'm not > versed enough in international law to know how or where. > > On Thu, Nov 25, 2010 at 4:48 AM, P. <[email protected]> wrote: >> >> I mean, what stops someone in another country to copy and profit >> unfairly from shows like "Big Bang Theory" (in Ukraine) or "Married >> with Children" and "Nanny" (a couple of years ago in Greece)? After >> all, intellectual property (even of a foreign entity) is protected by >> law in Europe.
Years ago at a hotel bar in Brussels I was chatting with two men from England whose job was to go around Europe and license game shows to different countries. So I can see damage there - a local producer who steals your game show idea is hurting your ability to get audience for a licensed product. If we look at the case of The Office (US), here's another instance of a show's owner making a deal to air a local, licensed version. If a hypothetical competing network put on a clone of The Office, NBC or Gervais/Merchant would have to prove that it was closer than just another workplace comedy to win a lawsuit. The last case I could think of would be a case where a show is being shopped around in the international marketplace and the production company can argue that a local ripoff version hurts the chances of selling that show in that country. The fact that these copycat shows exist means that the production companies don't see the markets as lucrative enough to fight for. In the case of the Late Late Show there's no chance that CBS or Worldwide Pants is either going to sell the show to France or set up licensed versions of the show, so while there may be actual copyright infringement, it just doesn't justify the legal bills. And it's entirely possible that Arthur's critics in France can make a stink about his stealing material that he'll drop his mimicry of The Late Late Show. -- TV or Not TV .... The Smartest (TV) People! You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "TV or Not TV" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/tvornottv?hl=en
