Warner Bros. Discovery sues Paramount over ‘South Park’ deal

Through Related Press

NEW YORK: Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. is suing Paramount World, announcing its competitor aired new episodes of the preferred animated comedy sequence “South Park” after Warner paid for unique rights.

Warner says it signed a freelance in 2019 paying greater than $500 million for the rights to present and new episodes of the irreverent display, in line with a lawsuit filed Friday in New York State Ideally suited Court docket.

HBO Max, Warner’s streaming platform, used to be scheduled to obtain the primary episodes of a brand new “South Park” season in 2020. However the corporate used to be knowledgeable the pandemic halted manufacturing, the lawsuit says.

Regardless of Warner’s unique rights to the display till 2025, the corporate alleges South Park Virtual Studios, which produces the presentations and is known as as a defendant within the lawsuit, introduced two pandemic-themed specials to Paramount, which aired them in September 2020 and March 2021.

The lawsuit claims the pandemic specials will have to were introduced to Warner beneath the preliminary contract. The transfer, known as “verbal trickery” within the lawsuit, drove the display’s lovers to the competing Paramount platform. Just about all South Park episodes premiere on Comedy Central, considered one of Paramount’s cable channels, the lawsuit says.

Display creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker, who introduced the display in 1997 and oversee the franchise, weren’t named within the lawsuit.

Gaining streaming rights to “South Park” is a aggressive procedure as a result of the doubtless profitable marketplace attracting extra subscribers, advertisers and a faithful fan base that Warner’s lawsuit says is composed most commonly of younger adults.

The 24-page court docket submitting additionally cites a $900 million deal in 2021 between a Paramount subsidiary and South Park Virtual Studios for unique content material at the Paramount Plus streaming carrier, which introduced the similar 12 months.

Warner claims the deal used to be a planned “scheme” between Paramount, its subsidiary MTV Leisure Studios and South Park Virtual Studios to “divert as a lot of the brand new South Park content material as conceivable to Paramount Plus in an effort to spice up that nascent streaming platform.”

Warner paid $1,687,500 in line with episode and alleges it has no longer but won all episodes lined by means of the contract, leading to damages of greater than $200 million.

Paramount World didn’t in an instant reply to emails from The Related Press in the hunt for remark at the lawsuit.

NEW YORK: Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. is suing Paramount World, announcing its competitor aired new episodes of the preferred animated comedy sequence “South Park” after Warner paid for unique rights.

Warner says it signed a freelance in 2019 paying greater than $500 million for the rights to present and new episodes of the irreverent display, in line with a lawsuit filed Friday in New York State Ideally suited Court docket.

HBO Max, Warner’s streaming platform, used to be scheduled to obtain the primary episodes of a brand new “South Park” season in 2020. However the corporate used to be knowledgeable the pandemic halted manufacturing, the lawsuit says.

Regardless of Warner’s unique rights to the display till 2025, the corporate alleges South Park Virtual Studios, which produces the presentations and is known as as a defendant within the lawsuit, introduced two pandemic-themed specials to Paramount, which aired them in September 2020 and March 2021.

The lawsuit claims the pandemic specials will have to were introduced to Warner beneath the preliminary contract. The transfer, known as “verbal trickery” within the lawsuit, drove the display’s lovers to the competing Paramount platform. Just about all South Park episodes premiere on Comedy Central, considered one of Paramount’s cable channels, the lawsuit says.

Display creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker, who introduced the display in 1997 and oversee the franchise, weren’t named within the lawsuit.

Gaining streaming rights to “South Park” is a aggressive procedure as a result of the doubtless profitable marketplace attracting extra subscribers, advertisers and a faithful fan base that Warner’s lawsuit says is composed most commonly of younger adults.

The 24-page court docket submitting additionally cites a $900 million deal in 2021 between a Paramount subsidiary and South Park Virtual Studios for unique content material at the Paramount Plus streaming carrier, which introduced the similar 12 months.

Warner claims the deal used to be a planned “scheme” between Paramount, its subsidiary MTV Leisure Studios and South Park Virtual Studios to “divert as a lot of the brand new South Park content material as conceivable to Paramount Plus in an effort to spice up that nascent streaming platform.”

Warner paid $1,687,500 in line with episode and alleges it has no longer but won all episodes lined by means of the contract, leading to damages of greater than $200 million.

Paramount World didn’t in an instant reply to emails from The Related Press in the hunt for remark at the lawsuit.