TWC titles to bow without rental warning

Federal court will take up indie retailers’ case Jan. 18

By Susanne Ault -- Video Business, 1/12/2007

JAN. 12 | The Weinstein Co. and Genius Products’ first releases of the year—The Protector and Seven Swords—won’t carry any message about being rentable only at Blockbuster when they street Jan. 16.

In December, the National Entertainment Buying Group and two indie retailers filed suit in Massachusetts Superior Court to block TWC and Genius from identifying their DVDs as not appropriate for rental from any retailer but Blockbuster.

On Jan. 5, a Massachusetts district judge said he was prepared to issue a temporary injunction through Jan. 18. Defense attorneys, however, opted to prevent an official ruling by agreeing that Genius would not distribute any TWC DVDs carrying such labeling through that date, according to plaintiff Todd Zaganiacz, president of NEBG and owner of Video Zone in South Deerfield, Mass.

In December, TWC, which distributes through Genius, struck a deal to sell its titles exclusively to Blockbuster in the rental channel. Though the First Sale Doctrine allows other rental stores to buy the DVDs elsewhere, such as from mass merchants, and rent them if they choose, TWC officials had indicated they might label their discs as rentable at Blockbuster only.

The case is moving from Massachusetts state court to U.S. District Court, and the first hearing in federal court is scheduled for Jan. 18. TWC and Genius declined to comment on pending litigation.

« Back | Print