Jillian Michaels Scores $5.7 Million in Dispute Over YouTube Fitness Videos
”This decision represents a firm pronouncement that placing work on YouTube for free devalues it, and damages artists,“ celebrity fitness expert’s lawyer tells TheWrap
“The Biggest Loser” alum Jillian Michaels has emerged a big winner in her dispute with Lionsgate.
Celebrity fitness expert Michaels has been awarded $5.7 million in an arbitration ruling against Lionsgate, stemming from a legal battle over fitness videos posted to YouTube, the Tennessean reports.
Michaels initially struck a deal with Lionsgate that allowed the company to distribute Michaels’ workout videos in DVD form. As part of the agreement, Lionsgate was allowed to promote the DVDs with clips on YouTube.
The fitness expert cried foul, however, after Lionsgate launched its fitness channel BeFit on YouTube, featuring Michaels’ content.
While a settlement was reached between Lionsgate and Michaels over royalties from the YouTube videos, Michaels further argued that consumers were less likely to pay for the videos she posted on her own subscription site, if the YouTube content was available for free.
The Tennessean reported that BeFit’s content jumped from 6.7 million views to 27.5 million between 2012 and 2013, a period during which Michaels’ DVD sales declined, and continued to decline through 2015, while BeFit’s views remained steady.
While Michaels’ content accounts for about three percent of BeFit’s total catalog, views for Michaels’ content have made up between 39 and 50 percent of BeFit’s total views.
Michaels’ attorney, Richard Busch, called the ruling, which was handed down Wednesday, an “incredibly important decision for all artists in the YouTube era.
“We are thrilled to have won this for Jillian. This is an incredibly important decision for all artists in the YouTube era in which we live. This decision represents a firm pronouncement that placing work on YouTube for free devalues it, and damages artists, like Jillian, who created it,” Busch said.
“We argued throughout that Lionsgate tried to build a YouTube business, BeFit, on Jillian’s back and popularity, but did not care that it did not have the right to do so, or the damage it did to her,” Busch added. “We are very happy with the Arbitrator’s decision, including the Order requiring the removal of Jillian’s content from YouTube.”
Pamela Chelin contributed to this report.
11 Summer TV Winners and Losers: From 'Stranger Things' to 'Mr Robot' (Photos)
As the summer of 2016 draws to a close, some TV shows that debuted this season will live on in our minds for years, while others fade into obscurity. TheWrap looks back on some of the best and worst shows of the summer.
Netflix/USA
Winner: "Stranger Things" This Netflix series from the Duffer brothers didn't have a lot of buzz going in, but once it dropped it was all anyone could talk about for weeks. The mix of '80s nostalgia and spine-tingling thrills and chills made the show a hit. Add a scene-stealing turn from Winona Ryder and the top-notch young cast and you've got fans already clamoring for more.
Loser: "BrainDead" CBS' newest summer series came in with plenty of buzz. Created by Robert and Michelle King -- the team behind "The Good Wife" -- the show promised to be a smart look at DC insiders through the lens of an alien invasion sci-fi series. But the show's ratings have been disappointing to say the least, averaging less than 3 million viewers per episode thus far.
CBS
Winner: "Orange Is the New Black" The Netflix prison dramedy returned in fine form in Season 4, generating laughs and tears in equal measure. The show also stirred plenty of controversy when it killed off a fan favorite and gave characters played by Natasha Lyonne and Lori Petty incredibly memorable story arcs.
Loser: Viacom This has been a horrible summer for Viacom, one that mercifully may be on the upswing following the official ousting of Philippe Dauman. And that's not the only key turnover at the publicly traded company. In addition to all that boardroom drama, Larry Wilmore was let go from his Comedy Central show after just 18 months. Then there was that whole weird thing with "Inside Amy Schumer" ... let's just hope Trevor Noah improves.
Winner: NBC NBC did exactly what executives said it would -- the broadcaster overtook CBS to become top dog in the 52-week TV season, thanks to the Rio Olympics. While the Summer Games didn't blow Nielsen away, they did exactly that to the competition. It wouldn’t be fair to peg NBC's entire summer on just two weeks, since series like "America's Got Talent" and "American Ninja Warrior" shined for far longer.
NBC
Loser: HBO HBO had another great Emmy season, with more nominations than ever for "Game of Thrones," but it was a rocky road for its latest big prestige project hope, "The Night Of," which didn't exactly become the next "True Detective." Fellow summer series "Vice Principals" also failed to make much of an impact.
Winner: Justin Baldoni While The CW made a breakout star out of "Jane The Virgin's" Gina Rodriguez, it's also made a winner out of her co-star Justin Baldoni, who's gotten to see his passion project "My Last Days" not only run on the network's streaming service CW Seed, but become a primetime TV show as well.
Getty Images
Loser: "Mr. Robot" Despite the USA series garnering four Emmy nominations, its second season has failed to generate the same buzz as the first. The ratings for Season 2 are about half of what Season 1 generated. Some Emmy wins and delayed viewing may boost it down the road, but for now this one falls in the loser column.
USA Network
Winner: Fox News Fox News Channel should have been a huge loser this summer, as former CEO and chairman Roger Ailes stepped down in amid sexual harassment claims. However, viewers tell a different story and Fox has continued to dominate cable news ratings despite the on-going turmoil surrounding Ailes.
Winner: ABC Game Shows ABC dominated the summer with the surprise hit "Celebrity Family Feud," and the network expanded that strategy by adding revivals of three other classic game shows, "Match Game," "$100,000 Pyramid" and "To Tell the Truth" to the line-up this year.
ABC
Winner: NBA Well, we got a seven-game championship series -- it was just a weird journey along the way, complete with a key suspension for Draymond Green's below-the-belt obsession. Not that ABC's complaining, of course -- especially after that traditional fall TV season.
NBA
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TheWrap reveals which networks boasted the biggest hits of the summer, and which landed duds or off-screen drama
As the summer of 2016 draws to a close, some TV shows that debuted this season will live on in our minds for years, while others fade into obscurity. TheWrap looks back on some of the best and worst shows of the summer.