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Originally Posted by Zinjo
HG successfully TM'd the name in early 2003 after about 4 years of a mexican stand off with BW at the trademarks office. The 25th anniversary merchandise sales to foreign markets may play a large role in future TM challenges as well. With the internet downloads of MF giving the franchise sufficient exposure, it may prompt BW to challenge the TM as IP rights holders.
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While this may yet be the subject of a legal challenge, I can't see how Harmony Gold has a legal leg to stand on since all of their rights were purchased from Tatsunoko, and Tatsunoko was ruled to not have the right to sell off the trademark. The expense and trouble of any potential lawsuit would still be a major impedement towards any such move though.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Zinjo
The impression I tend to get from BW is that it is afraid of loosing and thus either incurring an expensive long term lawsuit or loosing what grey area rights they have in the North American market. In the age of successful IP rights challenges this seems a bit irrational, but then again so is fear...
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I get the feeling that it's more a combination of Big West being unfamiliar and uncomfortable with the American legal system, and that they're not really sure what they want to do with Macross in North America.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Zinjo
If WB and Maguire are set on using Macross as the basis for the movie then they will have to deal directly with BW and most likely HG will NOT be allowed in the negotiations or directly profit from the Macross property. Had they stayed quietly on the fence during Japanese the court battle BW might be willing to deal with them, but since they sided with Tatsunoko, they are considered a common enemy.
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From what I gather, all of Warner Brothers' dealings have been with Harmony Gold who are certainly working in cooperation with the pre-production of the movie. I haven't heard of Big West's association with the production at all. This means that either they're tackling just the Mospeada section (Big West also owns Southern Cross), or they're ignoring Big West's ownership.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Zinjo
A month or so after the movie announcement a poster on the Robotech.com boards said that an insider told him that the movie was "facing" litigation, which could only mean that BW made their ownership known to WB.
It is not uncommon for a studio to shelve a project for years. So long as they continue to pay Frank Agrama for the option of making a movie he won't push it either. If WB is determined to make the film based on Macross they will have to gain the option from BW themselves and despite what a lot of Americans think, a truck load of money won't be enough. This is about saving face and honor to the Japanese and that can't be bought.
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From a piece a month ago, Tommy Yune said that the movie is still a go with no mention of any litigation. Admittedly, it's not exactly the kind of thing that they'd advertise, but it's still a much more reliable source than a random poster. The impression I got is that the Robotech movie is very much still in motion and that there's a fair bit of communication between Warner Brothers and Harmony Gold (which admittedly should be taken with a grain of salt).
Quote:
Originally Posted by Zinjo
I am hopeful a resolution can be made, but unless someone ponies up the money to challenge HG's TM, we may only be able to hope to see, at best, subtitled releases from BV Japan on Bluray Disc.
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I agree. It's still a bit unlikely to happen; therefore, Macross Frontier itself will probably be one of the most desirable properties to lie unlicensed for some time to come.