On Thu, Nov 25, 2010 at 5:25 PM, P. <[email protected]> wrote: > On Nov 25, 8:04 pm, Tom Wolper <[email protected]> wrote: >> The fact that these copycat shows exist means that the production >> companies don't see the markets as >> lucrative enough to fight for. > > Or as a media lawyer expressed in a recent convention: "in some > countries the first thought, instead of ''Is this legal?'' is rather > "Are we gonna get caught doing this?'' "
Let's at least be aware that there's no one-size-fits-all standard for the way media companies deal with each other and the way different countries operate with respect to copyright law. Even if we agree that performing an imitation of another country's show is unethical, no matter what the circumstances. Among English-speaking countries there seem to be some norms developing. An American network could have seen the success of Survivor, Big Brother, Top Gear, or American Idol overseas and they could have set up similar American shows, changing just enough detail to stay out of court. Between having easy licensing opportunities from production companies with prior experience and catching on with an international brand, none of the networks seems to have suffered for pursuing licensing deals. > > >> 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, > > But why not? Since the technology allows it, isn't it better to have a > world-wide audience for your products? When I mentioned the example of a Late Night clone from Israel before, it was before the internet and the only people who knew what was going on were people who spent time in the US watching late night TV and understood Hebrew fluently enough to watch a prime time talk show on Israeli TV. That would be only a tiny number. How many regular viewers of Ce Soir avec Arthur have any interest in watching an undubbed Late Late Show? I think it would also be a tiny number. That said, companies like Endemol and Fremantle see globalization happening and they are preparing to take advantage of opportunities wherever they will come up. Legacy media companies in the US will end up behind the curve. > > >> 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. > > Just a hunch, but watching the segments again, I highly doubt it. > That guy is way too into this to just drop it completely. But on the other hand, he's got nowhere to take it. Craig has said repeatedly in interviews that he doesn't like to hold on to comedy bits too long and he drops them when he feels they are getting stale. If Arthur continues doing lip-sync numbers after Craig drops the idea and moves on to something else, is Arthur still stealing? And if Arthur just did this bit as a one time thing then CBS might as well let it go. Once the French public is aware that Arthur is using stolen material I think he'll give it up. -- 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
