In the entertainment world, celebrities and professional athletes no longer seek only money as compensation for their product and service endorsements. Instead, many are looking to secure hybrid ‘sweat equity deals’ that offer a combination of cash and equity ownership and/or revenue participation in connection with the products, service companies, and corporate brands they are…
Investment companies looking for the next big revenue stream have taken notice of the second-most popular social media platform in the world, namely YouTube. Jellysmack, a company that works with YouTube creators to help them expand onto new platforms, is reaching out to the owners of the most popular YouTube channels with offers to license…
NFT lawsuits involving content creators, celebrity endorsers, content distributors, businesses, and startups are becoming more frequent as the debate about who owns the underlying asset’s copyright and who has the authority to create an NFT becomes more contentious, and as digital assets grow in popularity and desirability. On one side of the argument, those who…
The recent lawsuit filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court by G2 Esports against NFT developer Bondly should serve as a warning to IP content owners and creators considering working with an NFT developer/sales agent. To avoid major disagreements and fully protect themselves, IP content owners/creators need a lawyer with experience in documenting and negotiating…
The increasing popularity of competitive video games has created a global Esports industry that in 2021 had an audience size of 474 million viewers and generated $1.6 billion. While the industry is generating billions off its’ tournaments and providing long term investments and sponsorship opportunities for brands, game publishers, and even private equity firms, many…
Sponsorship revenue for the NFL increased 12% during the 2021-22 season to a record $1.8 billion, according to sports partnership consultancy firm IEG. Despite not associating with gambling businesses in the past, sports betting and casinos saw the largest growth in sponsorship fees, growing more than 140%. In addition, teams took in 4% additional in…
To highlight the work of all writers employed on movie projects, members of the Writers Guild of America recently approved the establishment of an “Additional Literary Material” screen credit for feature films. Acknowledging the Work of All Writers Starting Jan. 1, 2022, the WGA can offer an “Additional Literary Credit” to writers during the credit-determination…
An increasing number of high-profile on camera talent lawsuits alleging breach of contract is resulting in scrutiny of the business practices of Netflix and Disney. Carole Baskin vs Netflix and Royal Goode Productions Carole Baskin and her husband, recently sued Netflix and “Tiger King 2” production company Royal Goode Productions for breach of contract. In…
In our last blog post, “Streaming Has Created a Showrunner Problem,” we discussed how the streaming of motion picture content and the binge-watching model of dropping all series episodes at once has not only changed the way Hollywood writers typically create. It has also negatively impacted other workers in the entertainment and media industries. Among…
The motion picture industry provides abundant opportunity for creative professionals to put their unique skills to work, because in no other industry can you find job roles that are more unique. Showrunners Disrupted One of these distinctive roles is that of the TV series showrunner, a position that combines the creative writer role with the…