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Robotech and HG license debates


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That really isn't surprise, is it?. Anyone who thought otherwise was fooling themselves. Animiego was working for HG. Kind of like how Rhino works for other companies in remastering/releasing DVDs(Battle of Planets,Transformers etc).

It wouldn't do any good for Animeigo to own the remasters outright, they couldn't distribute it without HG being involved anyway.

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Again, the particulars of the situation are unknown, but to make an anology from the publishing industry, if you sign a contract with a publisher for them to sell a book you've written, you still have copyright to your work. The book publisher can create printing plates, print the book, and sell it. You don't own the plates unless specified in the contract. You can however contract with another publisher to have them sell the book, if your original contract doesn't preclude it--for example, if you originally contracted only for hardcover rights, you could have another publish a softcover version using brand new printing plates prepared from your manuscript.

Similarly, Harmony Gold and Animeigo have a contract which allowed Animeigo to remaster SDF Macross and distribute it in North America. So HG's involvement has already been settled as far as Animeigo's ability to distribute the remastered version.

It may or may not be a surprise that HG owns the SDF Macross remaster. But I believe that the reason they own it (if they do--this still hasn't been spelled out with 100% certainty) is because the Animeigo contract says so, not because of some principle by which a copyright holder owns the masters of his work.

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Maybe they finally found out who owned the DYRL license in the US and bought it from him/her/them ?

Yeah, I was digging through my files the other day and found the license. I sold it to HG for a six-pack of bud and a packet of mini-Oreos.

Sorry, I didn't know any better. :)

H

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WHAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :angry::angry::angry::angry::angry::angry::angry:

They don't have the DYRL rights, how the hell are they making DYRL posables.

Time for Big West to make an injunction on them for once.

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What will Yamato think of their expensive liscence now??

Maybe Yamato could sue HG/Toynami this time.

They are on Yamato and Bandai's turf when it comes to DYRL products.

Maybe Graham should show his Yamato contact the web link.

Edited by Anubis
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Maybe they finally found out who owned the DYRL license in the US and bought it from him/her/them ?

Yeah, I was digging through my files the other day and found the license. I sold it to HG for a six-pack of bud and a packet of mini-Oreos.

Sorry, I didn't know any better. :)

H

What? Flash enough 0s infront of the license holder and I doubt he would have second doubts about selling the license. <_<

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heres the post from Tom Bateman at RT.com. Note he says First series

Profile

Hey everyone,

ROBOTECH.COM, Harmony Gold and Toynami are please to present the first series of toys based on the classic 1984 anime motion picture "MACROSS: Do You Remember Love?"

This first series contains three of the Skull Squadron Battroid Valkyries from the film:

Roy Focker VF-1S Strike Battroid Valkyrie

Hikaru Ichijo VF-1A Super Battroid Valkyrie

Hayao Kakizaki VF-1A Super Battroid Valkyrie

Pre-order now for just $39.99

Celebrate the 20th Anniversary of the seminal films of anime.

Tom Bateman

ROBOTECH.COM

http://www.robotech.com/community/forum/re...5227&forumid=23

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heres the post from Tom Bateman at RT.com. Note he says First series

Profile

Hey everyone,

ROBOTECH.COM, Harmony Gold and Toynami are please to present the first series of toys based on the classic 1984 anime motion picture "MACROSS: Do You Remember Love?"

This first series contains three of the Skull Squadron Battroid Valkyries from the film:

Roy Focker VF-1S Strike Battroid Valkyrie

Hikaru Ichijo VF-1A Super Battroid Valkyrie

Hayao Kakizaki VF-1A Super Battroid Valkyrie

Pre-order now for just $39.99

Celebrate the 20th Anniversary of the seminal films of anime.

Tom Bateman

ROBOTECH.COM

http://www.robotech.com/community/forum/re...5227&forumid=23

There are seriously going to try to push 20th anniversary maerchandise under Big West's nose. <_<

Get a rope.

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Hmm fiiguring this is true wouldn't this open the doors for Big West to release more Macross items in the states, namely Yamato and Bandai valks. HG could no longer use the excuse that it would confuse the market or claim they are to close to the ones used in Robotech since these are clearly maked as Macross with the different designs. Throws the 20% rule out the window right? Since Big West would be the one to own the designs couldn't they release them anywhere they wanted to?

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There are a lot of possibilities here, but one is indeed that a settlement has been reached. Another is that the the contracts between Big West and Tatsunoko say more than most of us have been willing to admit. Take a look at this thread: Macross 2 Valks. Graham wrote "Yamato cannot legally make Macross toys for the US market." I don't know if this was an inexact paraphrase of the legal standoff, or if it accurately represents Yamato's current understanding of their rights. If so, it represents a turnaround from what Yamato reportedly told George Sohn back in 1999. From http://www.valkyrie-exchange.com/news/toynami/1242001.html :

In 1999, Toycom and Yamato purchased their license directly through Big West. George inquired about the Harmony Gold Macross rights and Big West indicated that they owned the rights to the television series, not the Macross movie.  If Toycom were to produce any VF-1 Valkyries, the Valkyries would have to be designed from the Macross movie, and the box would have to be properly labeled “Macross movie, Do You Remember Love” Valkyries.  Haven been assured that there were no legal issues, Toycom and Yamato proceeded with their Valkyrie plans.
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There are a lot of possibilities here, but one is indeed that a settlement has been reached. Another is that the the contracts between Big West and Tatsunoko say more than most of us have been willing to admit. Take a look at this thread: Macross 2 Valks. Graham wrote "Yamato cannot legally make Macross toys for the US market." I don't know if this was an inexact paraphrase of the legal standoff, or if it accurately represents Yamato's current understanding of their rights. If so, it represents a turnaround from what Yamato reportedly told George Sohn back in 1999. From http://www.valkyrie-exchange.com/news/toynami/1242001.html :
In 1999, Toycom and Yamato purchased their license directly through Big West. George inquired about the Harmony Gold Macross rights and Big West indicated that they owned the rights to the television series, not the Macross movie.  If Toycom were to produce any VF-1 Valkyries, the Valkyries would have to be designed from the Macross movie, and the box would have to be properly labeled “Macross movie, Do You Remember Love” Valkyries.   Haven been assured that there were no legal issues, Toycom and Yamato proceeded with their Valkyrie plans.

Sounds plausible... or does it? If a settlement had been reached, we would know. Its not exactly the kind of thing that goes unnoticed.

Or.... it might be just a limited edition, one time thingy that HG is trying to push, and they might think its not big enough to cause ripples on the pond or something.

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I sent Graham a PM, maybe he'll have something fun to say about this.

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Sounds plausible... or does it? If a settlement had been reached, we would know. Its not exactly the kind of thing that goes unnoticed.

Well, you always hear about something somewhere first. The settlement could have happened last week and HG rushed to make the preorder announcement. And the settlement may have had a nondisclosure clause to avoid embarassment. Or at any rate, HG may not have felt like publicizing the fact that there was a dispute.

Or.... it might be just a limited edition, one time thingy that HG is trying to push, and they might think its not big enough to cause ripples on the pond or something.

I doubt it. If BW refused to let Toycom pay tribute to HG, and later pulled M7 trash for the same reason, I don't think they'd take this sitting down.

Edited by ewilen
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Sounds plausible... or does it? If a settlement had been reached, we would know. Its not exactly the kind of thing that goes unnoticed.

Well, you always hear about something somewhere first. The settlement could have happened last week and HG rushed to make the preorder announcement. And the settlement may have had a nondisclosure clause to avoid embarassment. Or at any rate, HG may not have felt like publicizing the fact that there was a dispute.

Or.... it might be just a limited edition, one time thingy that HG is trying to push, and they might think its not big enough to cause ripples on the pond or something.

I doubt it. If BW refused to let Toycom pay tribute to HG, and later pulled M7 trash for the same reason, I don't think they'd take this sitting down.

It still sounds kind of odd. Why aren't RT fans making a alot of noise about it? We've had ppl come here and start trouble for no reason.... and now they have a reason to gloat... and nothing. :blink:

Even if the settlement had happened last week, you would still hear about it a few days after. Even if theres a nondisclosure clause, it doesn't mean that someone, somewhere won't make tell everyone about it.

Still sounds fishy to me. And if a settlement was reached.... what about the person/company that holds the rights to DYRL in the US?

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I'm guessing that since no one knows who has the DYRL rights in the U.S. HG's just seeing if they could get away with unloading some extra super posable stock in DYRL paint jobs.

One would think so... but they would have had to make the strike cannons, so it's not as easy as just a repaint.

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I'm guessing that since no one knows who has the DYRL rights in the U.S. HG's just seeing if they could get away with unloading some extra super posable stock in DYRL paint jobs.

The VF-1S is the Strike variant.

True, but couldn't they just have tossed some Super Ss back to the factory and fixed up on of the back packs?

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I shoudln't have been that hard to create the strike cannon. Just basicly carve it out of one of the fast pack mold on the original versions. If it doesn't move that could very well be exactly what they did. Everything else is just repaint and with bit of scupting here or there.

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