The way we watch Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy! may be drastically different soon. Recently, a court decided that Sony will take over distribution of the two biggest game shows on television from CBS. The network tried to block this from happening but now Sony doesn't need to deliver episodes to them. CBS delivered a statement immediately afterwards, stating that they're going to appeal this ruling.
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"This is only a preliminary ruling based on partial evidence, not the outcome of the full case," they say of their bout for Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune. "We're confident once all the evidence is heard at trial, we will prevail on the merits. In today's ruling, the court itself recognized the balance of harm tips in CBS's favor, so we will ask the appellate court for a stay pending our appeal."
Sony Takes Full Control of Distributing Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune Episodes
Sony ends up pressing this issue because they felt like CBS wasn't holding up their end of the shared contract. They claim the network was entering into unauthorized licensing agreements and harming revenue. In layman's terms, CBS would hinder advertising and marketing sales for their two massive shows. Consequently, Sony pushed to take matters into their own hands with Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune.
So what's next? Sony releases a statement, celebrating their victory in court. There, they reveal that they plan to leave CBS in the dust and shop their two massive shows around to various stations. As a result, your usual broadcasting might end up on different channels entirely. "We are gratified by the Court's ruling today and we look forward to distributing our shows, Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune, to the 200+ stations that license and count on this programming in the U.S. and around the world, and the millions of fans who tune in to these beloved game shows every week," the company says.
