TV Formats: Trends and

Developments
Dr Venkat Iyer
Barrister
Senior lecturer, university of ulster
Law commissioner, northern ireland (UK)

Introductory
Increasing commercial value of format (e.g. American

Idol - >$2.5 b; 45% of all TV exports in the UK)

Extent of legal protection in national legislation weak
No provision in international treaties/norms
However, some protection offered by case law in
particular jurisdictions
Subject-matter of sizeable litigation
Courts have generally tended to view formats as generic
ideas rather than as creative works in their own right

Basic principles
For a programme format to be protected under copyright

law, two main conditions have to be satisfied:

- the format must be sufficiently original
- it must have been developed into a detailed
documentary form
Evidence trail is very important
The creative process from conception to final product
needs to be documented
Format can range from an outline of a show to a detailed
product consisting of know-how, copyright, designs, trade
marks and other valuable information
The dividing line between unprotectable ideas and
protectable expression is not clear

Strategies for exploitation of formats

Formalisation and sale of know-how which cannot be

easily gleaned from watching the show (e.g. sourcing

contestants, organising audience participation) these
are recorded in the format bible and supplied under
confidentiality agreements
Careful management of brand image to make copying
difficult (e.g. by registering trade marks, merchandising)
Putting in place established distribution pathways and
using retaliatory measures against pirates (e.g. threat of
non-supply of other programmes)
[Research by Bournemouth University, 2008)

Representative case law

Green v. Broadcasting Corpn. of New Zealand (1988): action

by creator of UK-based Opportunity Knocks game-show

against NZ show of same name despite many commonalities
(e.g. similar name, catchphrases, clapometer), the claim was
rejected (copyright does not protect the originality of ideas;
the subject-matter of copyright claim for the dramatic
format of OK is conspicuously lacking in certainty; there is
not the sufficient unity needed to be capable of
performance; the plaintiff had not produced the script for OK)
Miles v. ITV Network (2004): action by creator of a cartoon
programme Trusty & Friends against ITV programme
Dream Street the look and feel of the latter was different
from those of the former, but the central feature traffic
equipment was common to both. Held, no infringement

Representative case law

Castaway TV Productions & Plant 24 Production v.

Endemol (2004): action by creator of reality show

Survivor against another similar show Big Brother.
Despite similarities, held there was no infringement
because the original show had 12 key elements which had
not been copied in an identifiable way in the other show
Barbara Taylor Bradford v. Sahara TV (2003): action
by author of A Woman of Substance against producers
of Indian TV serial Karishma on the grounds that the
storyline was similar held there was no infringement
because there was no copyright in ideas

Representative case law

Meakin v. BBC & Ors. (2010): action by creator of game

show Cash Call Challenge Live! against BBC show Come

and Have a Go If You Think You are Smart Enough
held there was no infringements despite similarities
because BBC was able to show that its show was
developed without reference to Meakins proposal (which
had been rejected by the BBC)
Decision of Court of Milan (Italy) of 12 Mar 2004:
granted copyright protection to the format of Big
Brother and held that protection is available if:
- the format is detailed and has some degree of originality;
- the format provides sufficient elements to characterise in a definitive way
the nature and development of the events in the show

Representative case law

Other cases of relevance

CBS v. ABC (US, 2003): action by creator of Survivor

against creator of Im a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here
held untenable
Endemol v. SBT TV (Brazil, 2003): action by creator of Big
Brother against creator of Casa Dos Artistas who had been
offered a licence for BB but who had rejected it. Held, there
was infringement because of whopping similarities
between the two shows
ABS-CBN v. WilProductions (Philippines, 2010): action by
creator of show Wowowee against creator of show Willing
Willie damages of P127 m sought, reportedly pending

Possible legal implications

Copyright
Other IP rights (trademark, designs etc.)
Breach of confidence
Contract
Passing off

Protection through trade bodies

Format Recognition and Protection Association,

FRAPA (based in Germany): allows for registration

of formats on its Registry; strengthens evidential
base for future claims to originality; provides a
mediation service in disputes (with average costs of
between $15000-30000 compared to $150000400000 for litigation)

Practical hints
Creator should put his ideas for the format down in

writing, with as much detail as possible

Every stage of the development process should be
documented, including dates, times, and names of those
contributing to the development (even minutes of ideas
meetings)
Where logos are used, these should be registered as
designs or trade marks under national legislation (in all
major jurisdictions where the format is likely to have a
market)
It may also be a good idea to register and deposit a copy
of the format with a trade body such as FRAPA

Practical hints
Visual representation should be given utmost importance

a striking set with visual props and detailed

illustrations (which can be registered as an artistic work
for copyright purposes) will be helpful
During the course of development, if the format or a
part of it is shown to anyone, it would be advisable to
have them sign a confidentiality or non-disclosure
agreement; it would also help if all material relating to a
format being developed is marked confidential
The format should be innovated and refreshed on a
regular basis to keep it from being illegally copied

Practical hints
Value can be added to the format brand by spin-offs such

as mobile phone applications, merchandise etc.

It might help also to register a web domain name and to
use social networking sites to increase the popularity of
the format
Efforts should be made to market and license the
format as widely as possible
Up to a point, exclusivity and confidentiality clauses in
employment contracts with those involved in developing
the format will help
All the information, however minor, about the format
should be included in a format bible which should be
kept up to date

Practical hints
Where unsolicited format proposals/ideas are

received (esp. by post), it is a good idea to return

them unread where possible
Where any such proposal/idea is read, the date of
receipt should be recorded and stored safely
When a format is updated, it is worth retaining a
copy of the original with proper notation (version)