Sony has filed a US lawsuit Thursday accusing CBS of entering into unauthorised syndication deals for Wheel of Fortune & Jeopardy in Australia & New Zealand and failing to maximise revenues.
The suit alleges that Sony had pocketed $3.6 million in fees. Sony demanded the money, and was rebuffed, with CBS claiming that Sony had already received its fair share of the fees.
Sony also alleges that is “the tip of the iceberg,” alleging that the game shows have been offered as a package with less popular CBS shows like The Hot Bench and The Drew Barrymore Show.
“CBS’s bundling of Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune with comparatively unpopular CBS-owned shows lowers the gross receipts that CBS would otherwise secure for the Shows had they been sold independently,” the suit alleges.
In a statement, CBS denied the allegations, and said Sony simply does not like the agreement its predecessor signed decades ago.
“For more than 40 years, CBS and its predecessor company King World have been accomplished distribution partners and thoughtful stewards for Wheel and Jeopardy!’in the syndication market. This work has helped build shows into franchises, transform popular series into cultural icons and deliver Sony billions of dollars of revenue.
“Our contract is clear that we hold the distribution rights to these series in perpetuity. We strongly refute any claims by Sony that we did not use our best efforts in distributing the programs or otherwise failed to abide by our obligations under the agreements. Sony’s claims are rooted in the fact they simply don’t like the deal the parties agreed to decades ago.
“We look forward to vigorously defending this lawsuit in court.”
Wheel of Fortune US began screening on 10 last month, hosted by Ryan Seacrest while Jeopardy screens on Foxtel and SBS VICELAND.
Source: Variety
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