Sources have reported that Walt Disney Co. has lost its appeal in a case concerning the smash hit television show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire.
In 2012, a federal jury ordered Disney to pay more than $300 million in damages to Celador International, the company that originally created the show. The judgment was ordered when the court found Disney’s accounting practices were less than on par, with Disney reporting that Millionaire ran a $73 million deficit for the company despite excellent ratings.
When the ruling was announced, Disney appealed on the grounds that errors were made by the U.S. district court. On Monday, Disney’s appeal was overturned and U.S. Court of Appeals judges upheld the 2010 ruling.
An ABC spokeswoman said:
We are extremely disappointed with the decision, as ABC and Buena Vista Television continue to believe that they fully adhered to the ‘Millionaire’ agreement.
With the new ruling, it appears that Disney’s legal options within this particular case are now at an end. We’ll let you know more if circumstances change.
