If you're in the US, enjoy your holiday and, whatever you decide to do, please, be safe.
Remember, too, that today is about appreciating what you have, not about your place in line at a retail store or how much you can save on merchandise.
I'd tell you that, come tomorrow, I'm returning to regular posting, but, c'mon, we both know that, around here, it's always Thanksgiving (or Christmas, or New Year's, or some holiday).
Major Distribution Agreement Announced
LONDON & NEW YORK, Nov 19, 2012 -- FremantleMedia Enterprises (FME) today announced a major new distribution agreement with WWE (NYSE:WWE) for the exclusive home entertainment rights to WWE’s catalogue of programming across Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA).
The deal goes into effect in January of 2013 and will see FME manage the DVD, Blu-ray and digital rights for all new and existing WWE content, making it the first time that fans of WWE’s popular programming can access it digitally across EMEA. Some of the new titles that will be released include Night of Champions 2012, Hell in a Cell 2012, Top 100 Raw Moments, Attitude Era and WrestleMania 29.
WWE is a recognized leader in global entertainment. The company consists of a portfolio of businesses that create and deliver original content 52 weeks a year to a global audience. WWE is committed to family-friendly entertainment on its television programming, pay-per-view, digital media and publishing platforms. WWE programming is broadcast in more than 145 countries and 30 languages and reaches more than 600 million homes worldwide.
Pete Kalhan, SVP Home Entertainment & Archive EMEA, FME, commented, “WWE is an incredibly strong and ever-growing brand with a huge and extremely dedicated global fan base. The brand has a rich history and has performed exceptionally well on DVD for many years. We look forward to working with WWE to grow all aspects of their home entertainment catalogue and are particularly excited about introducing the content to the masses across EMEA via digital platforms.”
“WWE is pleased to partner with FremantleMedia Enterprises on the digital and retail distribution of our content in EMEA,” said Casey Collins, Executive Vice President, Consumer Products for WWE. “FME’s broad retail reach will allow us to place more WWE content across all channels where our fans shop.”
ABOUT FREMANTLEMEDIA ENTERPRISES & FREMANTLEMEDIA
FremantleMedia is one of the leading creators and producers of television entertainment brands in the world. FremantleMedia is part of RTL Group, the leading European entertainment network, which is in turn 92 percent owned by the international media company Bertelsmann. FremantleMedia’s worldwide production arm is responsible for many of the world’s highest rated prime time entertainment, drama, serial drama and factual entertainment programmes. FremantleMedia Enterprises is the brand extension arm of FremantleMedia, offering a one-stop-shop for all Licensing, Distribution and Home Entertainment around the world. The FremantleMedia Group (which includes FremantleMedia North America, UFA, FremantleMedia UK, FremantleMedia Australia, Ludia, @radical.media and Original Productions, amongst others) has operations in 22 countries, one of the most comprehensive global networks, creating over 9,200 hours of programming a year, rolling out more than 60 formats and managing over 300 individual titles. FremantleMedia has some of the world’s most sought after and long running formats in its catalogue, and globally, produces such programmes as: Idols (co-produced with 19 Productions in the US), Hole In The Wall, Got Talent (co-produced with Syco in the UK and the US), The X Factor (co-produced with Syco in the UK and the US), Take Me Out, Family Feud, The Price is Right, Farmer Wants A Wife, Gute Zeiten Schlechte Zeiten, and Neighbours.
www.fremantlemedia.com
ABOUT WWE
WWE, a publicly traded company (NYSE: WWE), is an integrated media organization and recognized leader in global entertainment. The company consists of a portfolio of businesses that create and deliver original content 52 weeks a year to a global audience. WWE is committed to family-friendly entertainment on its television programming, pay-per-view, digital media and publishing platforms. WWE programming is broadcast in more than 145 countries and 30 languages and reaches more than 600 million homes worldwide. The company is headquartered in Stamford, Conn., with offices in New York, Los Angeles, Miami, London, Mumbai, Shanghai, Singapore, Istanbul and Tokyo.
Additional information on WWE (NYSE: WWE) can be found at wwe.com and corporate.wwe.com. For information on our global activities, go to http://www.wwe.com/worldwide/.
SOURCE: WWE
Phoenix, Arizona - November 16, 2012 - Chris Escobedo, the owner of Elite Tattoo, has filed a lawsuit in the United States District Court of Arizona for copyright infringement against THQ, Inc., the makers of the hit mixed martial arts ("MMA") video games UFC Undisputed and UFC Undisputed 3. Escobedo, who is represented by Maria Crimi Speth of Jaburg|Wilk in the lawsuit, tattooed a large lion on the side of Carlos Condit, the current interim welterweight champion of the UFC. The lion tattoo was Escobedo's original creation, and was then re-drawn by THQ's animators for use in the video games. Escobedo did not authorize the copying of his original artwork.
"I would not have agreed to the recreation of the tattoo by an animator," says Escobedo, who explains that if he had been approached by THQ to license the tattoo, at a minimum he would have insisted on approving the artwork and being fairly compensated.
"People often believe that they own the images that are tattooed on them by tattoo artists," explains Speth. "In reality, the owner of the tattoo artwork is the creator of the work, unless there is a written assignment of the copyright in the tattoo art." Escobedo and Condit never had a written agreement. Thus, claims Escobedo in the lawsuit, he remains the owner of the copyright over the image he drew.
Carlos Condit is not the first celebrity to find himself in a dispute over his tattoo. Mike Tyson's facial tattoo was used without permission of the tattoo artist on a character in the movie The Hangover II. The tattoo artist filed a lawsuit, which was settled for an undisclosed amount, but not before a California District Court judge ruled that there was a likelihood of success on the merits of his case for unauthorized copying of the tattoo.
These cases are an important reminder to celebrities that if they want to own their tattoos, they must ask for a written assignment of the copyright from the tattoo artist. Otherwise, what they have paid for is merely a license to display the image on their body. This license, according to Speth, does not include the right to give third parties (such as video game developers or movie producers) permission to copy and commercialize the image.
For information contact Maria Crimi Speth at mcs@jaburgwilk.com, 602.248.1000 or click here to view the lawsuit.
SOURCE: Jaburg & Wilk, P.C.
Maiquel Falcão, who, with his well-traveled record of 31-4-1, is no stranger to fans of Bellator Fighting Championships or the UFC, has officially launched his website, available in English, Portuguese, and Spanish.
Falcão is still awaiting word on when he and Alexander Shlemenko (Bellator's Season-Five middleweight champ) will meet for Bellator's Middleweight crown, vacated by Hector Lombard when he signed with the UFC.
I should soon have more on that bout (including a look at how Falcão is training for Shlemenko).
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