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Disney bills Berkeley school $250 for showing Lion King without proper permit
By KTVU

BERKELEY, Calif. - A Berkeley elementary school is being billed by Disney's licensing agent for showing the Lion King remake.

The Parent Teachers Association at Emerson Elementary was billed $250 for screening the movie during a school fundraiser, Berkeleyside first reported.

Movie Licensing USA, the agency with whom Walt Disney and other major film studios contract, told the PTA and the school’s principal that watching the movie violated copyright law because the school had not obtained a Public Performance license.

Such a single-use permit costs $250, or schools can pay $536 for an annual license.

The licensing company had “received an alert” about the movie night, which was hosted by the Emerson Dads Club. The father bought the movie at Best Buy and the gathering was for to watch the film and eat pizza while their parents got a night out of affordable babysitting.

Berkeley city councilwoman Lori Droste, whose children attend the school, was incensed about the fee and made her feelings known on Twitter.

"Now I can imagine some of you may say there are legitimate concerns with copyright and PTA made a mistake," Droste wrote. "Sure, I get that but coming after an elementary school? Really?? Disney wants $250 when we are struggling to pay our teachers and spending per pupil is laughable?"

She is now helping to fundraise so that the school can buy the proper permit.

Link

I get that they are "legally" within their rights to do this... but they are going to win the battle and lose the war. For $250.

I'm sure some mid-level person at this agency sent the bill out and now there are a bunch of millionaires at Disney trying to figure out how they are going to get out ahead of this and turn it around... 6 figure donation to the school district? Free disney day in CA for Berkeley students and parents? This is going to cost them way more than $250.

I'm sure if you added it up all the times this happens Disney probably loses a whole lot more than this, but what they gain from letting kids watch their movies and stay engaged with Disney themes, products, and characters, seems like it would more than offset that.

That’s a very odd/pettty thing to do IMO. Unless there’s more to it, that’s not what I’d expect lol

Disney gets off on doing stuff like this.

Nintendo is the same way.

A couple years ago, my employer did some customer service training for all employees, and part of it was watching a video describing the event below:

THE PICKLE PRINCIPLE

Bob Farrell’s idea for giving pickles away came from the following letter.

Dear Mr. Farrell,
I’ve been coming to your restaurant for over three years. I always order a #2 hamburger and a chocolate shake. I always ask for an extra pickle and I always get one. Mind you, this has been going on once or twice a week for three years.

I came into your restaurant the other day and I ordered my usual #2 hamburger and a chocolate shake. I asked the young waitress for an extra pickle. I believe she was new because I hadn’t seen her before. She said, “Sir, I will sell you a side of pickles for $1.25.” I told her, “No, I just want one extra slice of pickle. I always ask for it and they always give it to me. Go ask your manager.”

She went away and came back after speaking to the manager. The waitress looked me in the eye and said, “I’ll sell you a pickle for a nickel.” Mr Farrell, I told her what to do with her pickle, hamburger and milkshake. I’m not coming back to your restaurant if that’s the way you’re going to run it.


He signed his name and, fortunately for me, included his address. I wrote him a letter and enclosed a card for a free hot fudge sundae. I assured him we don’t run our business that way, apologized, and asked him to please come back. I had a chance meeting with him years later and I thanked him in person for his letter because it became the “war cry” of our young company, “Give ‘em the pickle.” When something happens with a customer and you’re not sure what to do? “Give ‘em the Pickle!” Do what it takes to make things right!

The pickle philosophy has evolved from there as it’s been put into practice at various businesses. It may be about going the extra mile to make customers happy or putting your own personal stamp on customer service that sets you apart from your competition. At my favorite tire store they literally run to greet me when I step out of my car in the parking lot. I’ve met garbage collectors who stop to start lawn mowers and coffee baristas who add a heart or other designs in the latte foam. Those are all pickles. What are yours?


https://www.giveemthepickle.com/pickle_principle/

I don't think people realize just how ruthless Disney really is.

This is such a wrong express thread so far, Everyone knows what the rules are, every time you put on a (take your pick of type of content), that there is always written, before you can watch, that this is protected, and the unlawful distribution exhibition blah blah blah is not allowed.

It's not allowed for a reason, they should have just followed the rules.

Otherwise every person on the planet can have a theme party ...

And this was for a "FUNDRAISER" for the school?, that's double the red flag that they TOTALLY SHOULD HAVE KNOWN,

It's not just a party, it's a fundraising party, well nobody's going to want to show up to a fundraising party, (OH! we'll show em a popular "movie", and we don't have to worry about "right" or "regulations" or "rules" because the rules don't apply to us.

Well if they don't apply to you, then who else don't the apply to?

I'm surprised to learn it's only 537 for a full year of rights.
If someone wants to invite 100 people over to watch (whatever show) it's fine,
but the moment you make it public, to promote your business, and the moment you sell drinks and concessions, it's a violation.

That's why you have to sit through those 13 seconds of the FBI warning everytime you put on a copyrighted movie,

Really just follow the rules, what makes your kid so special? How about teaching them to follow the rules.

What gets me is there has to be at least more than one person who TOTALLY KNEW, and decided to ignore it, because, ..." not us?" it doesn't apply to us?"
Well tell me why not?

Congrats, everything you said is 100% factually correct, that's how you win the battle.

but...

When a company with profits of about $2 billion per quarter goes after an elementary school for $250..... that's how you lose the war.

So we can discriminate against companies now, because they make 2 billion dollars, (and I'm not worried about the battle or the war),

suppose it had been the folks who made the movie Super Troopers, and they came after a group the showed their movie

The point is, is the people who did something were school kids' parents teachers whatever, and so the characteristics of the company, are irrelevant

The only issue is, are some going to say well the "school kids" are above the law because , well because they are school kids, and that's somehow a special class.

and if so where does it stop. Does it stop when the take a reeses' cups from the grocery store, or does it stop when they knock an old lady over for her purse,
or does it stop when they break into cars, or is the line when they start knocking over convienent stores, or does it take until they start robbing banks before someone insists they follow the rules?

How about, I don't know, respect other peoples property, when you notice an opportunity to. How about this,
Police want to come after you if you leave your car running to warm it up, in the winter time,
AS If,
As if it's somehow ok, or expected for someone to steal a running car that is not theirs.

At what point is Disney too big of a company, at 2 billion dollars,
at 1 million. What if it's just a mom and pop laundry store, or chain of 5 in manhatten,

or maybe the line is just the guy at the end of the street who has a bigger house than the rest, and it's ok to harm his property.

Yes, Disney didn't need to do, to go after anyone, but, Disney didn't do anything, it's the others who broke the copywright. Disney is just cashing in,

Sort of like when someone cashes in a winning lotto ticket, or some frequent flyer miles, or uses a coupon,or super copons, or fuel points, or win a free sandwich after you pull the game piece off the fry box.

Discriminate against them, no. Point out their stupidity, yes.

Don't mess with Disney.

There is a composer/arranger whose name I'll not share (out of common decency) who found himself on their wrong side. He did some string quartet arrangements of tunes from The Lion King without their permission. They didn't just sue him for copyright infringement. They pressed theft charges... and dude spent 6 months in jail.

Don't mess with Disney.

Not at all far from anything I have heard about people who have dealt with them.

Its not about the money of the actual cases - is the "bigger picture" to them. So when they go after someone, they go after them to set an example and press for the strongest possible punishments plus if they can. The dont care about the 250.00 bucks, more so than telling the world, if you do this - we will destroy you.

I despise Disney - but my love for comics and star wars outweighs that disgust

Disney claims to be this major family oriented company,, I guess not

They are in it for the money.
There's blood on Goofy's paws.

This ain’t Walt’s Disney.

I use to have public relations all the time when I was younger. Now we pretty much just stick to the bedroom.

Part of the problem is that from a legal standpoint, they have to zealously defend their copyrights or they risk forfeiting them. So they are forced to send this threatening letter. It happens with high schools that "borrow" professional and college logos all the time. Threatening letter, "negotiation", settlement/licensing rights at low to no cost.

This being an advertised fundraiser, as soon as Disney found out about it they had to send out the letter. Now how hard Disney presses going forward is where Disney loses the "good corporation" battle. There's a reason Central Florida locals refer to Disney as "The Rat".

This. I have this problem. I have lawyers on retainer in 3 different countries right now to go after people who rip off my games. So they learn to keep their fingers off my stuff. I would rather have a bad reputation for sending lawyers after people then lose money from other games duplicating my stuff. Businesses have to protect their interests.

Disney is one of the worst companies in recent years. I'd sue them in federal court for being a monopoly.