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Tag Archives: Who Wants to Be a Millionaire
Who Wants To Be A Millionaire is giving away a Walt Disney World Resort Vacation
Watch “Who Wants To Be A Millionaire” April 29-May 3, and join the celebration of New Fantasyland. One lucky “Millionaire” viewer will win a Walt Disney World Resort vacation for four and experience the magic of New Fantasyland at Magic Kingdom Park. During Millionaire’s “Magical Family Getaway Week,” contestants will be winning vacations in addition to cash! And you don’t want to miss that magical moment when one lucky contestant surprises his family with the news “We’re going to Walt Disney World!”
Viewers can enter the “Magical Family Getaway” Sweepstakes once a day by visiting http://www.millionairetv.com/, beginning Monday, April 29, 2013, at 12:00 a.m. ET through Friday, May 10 at 11:59 p.m. ET.
Court upholds $319M verdict against Disney over ‘Who Wants to Be a Millionaire’ profits
A federal appeals court has upheld a $319 million verdict over profits from the game show “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire” and rejected the Walt Disney Company’s request to have a new trial for the case.Back in 2010 a jury decided that The Walt Disney Company hid the popular game show’s profits from its creators, London-based Celador International. The ruling by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found no issues with the verdict or with a judge’s rulings in the case.
Disney did not comment on the decision. The ruling comes two years after a jury ruled in Celador’s favor after a trial that featured testimony from top Disney executives. Celador sued Disney in 2004, claiming Disney was using ‘creative’ accounting to hide profits from the show, which ran in the United States from August 1999 to May 2002 and was a huge hit for ABC. The jury ruled that Celador was owed $269.2 million, and a judge later added $50 million in interest to the judgment.
Related articles
- $319M verdict upheld in Disney case (abc15.com)
- Court upholds $319M verdict in ‘Millionaire’ case (news.yahoo.com)
Walt Disney Co. Urges Court of Appeal to Overturn $319 Million ‘Millionaire’ Verdict
The Walt Disney Company legal eagles showed up in full force on Wednesday seeking to overturn a $319 million dollar judgement over profits from the ABC hit TV show “Who Wants To Be A Millionaire“.
The Disney lawyers contend that the 2010 jury verdict was caused because of an improper reading of a 1999 contract with the UK-based Celador (who gave ABC and Buena Vista of North America the rights to the program). Disney claims the jury improperly awarded Celador a share of revenue generated by ABC when they were only entitled to 50%. They are seeking a new trial on the issue of contract interpretation.
Celador argues back that the jury was correct because they found that Disney had engaged in self-dealing transactions to keep ad revenue for ABC without sister company Buena Vista earning a profit which in turn they would have to share with Celador in accordance to the agreement.
Millionaire, hosted by Regis Philbin was a huge hit on ABC from 1999 to 2002, airing as often as 4 or 5 nights a week. A syndicated version of the show still airs in many markets.
Related articles
- Disney Seeks Reversal of $319 Million ‘Millionaire’ Loss – Bloomberg (bloomberg.com)
- Finally….A New Website for Disney! (chipandco.com)
Federal jury awards $269.2 million in damages in “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire” suit
After three days of deliberations, a federal jury in Riverside awarded the creator of “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire” nearly $269.2 million in damages from the once-popular prime-time game show.
The decision strikes at the heart of the “vertical integration” argument that has buttressed the wave of consolidation that has swept Hollywood over the last 20 years, in which media giants contend that it is economically advantageous to control both the production and distribution of TV programming.
Creator Celador International sued The Walt Disney Co. in 2004, claiming that it had been denied its fair share of profits from the show, which aired on the entertainment giant’s ABC network for three years beginning in the summer of 1999 and continues to appear on local TV stations. Celador argued that a series of “sweetheart deals” struck between a clutch of Disney-owned companies kept the show in the red, even as it became ABC’s first No. 1 show in more than a decade.
Celador asked the jury to award damages of up to $395 million in broadcast licensing fees, based on what one expert said would be the fair market value of the show. The U.K.-based company also claimed that it was owed $10 million in revenue from the sale of “Millionaire”-inspired games and other merchandise.
The jury arrived at a figure that was slightly less — $260 million in licensing fees and $9.2 million in money owed from the sale of merchandise. Disney issued a statement, saying it plans to challenge the award.
“We believe this verdict is fundamentally wrong and will aggressively seek to have it reversed,” Disney said in the statement.
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‘Millionaire’ may cost Disney Millions
A jury is set to continue deliberations this week over a suit from the game show’s creator seeking $395 million in damages. A decision for Celador International could be a setback for media mergers.
To use a phrase from “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire,” the game show handed ABC a lifeline.
Now the network could be on the hook.
The Walt Disney Co.-owned network had been trailing in the ratings in the summer of 1999 when “Millionaire” premiered, offering a $1-million prize for the contestant who could answer increasingly challenging questions. “Millionaire” was an overnight sensation — and would become ABC’s first top-rated prime-time show in more than a decade. Former Disney Chief Executive Michael D. Eisner proclaimed it “the most important thing to happen to ABC since I don’t know when.”
As big a hit as “Millionaire” was for ABC — the network at one point slapped it on the air five nights a week — the one thing the British import didn’t do was make a profit for its creator, according to a lawsuit and trial now underway in Riverside County that is seeking up to $395 million in damages.
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