The sound of the judge’s gavel echoed in a courtroom, where a copyright clash between Gervase Peterson, a former “Survivor” contestant, and the almighty Netflix, along with Goldin Auctions and its founder, Ken Goldin, had just reached its conclusion. Pulling the curtain on this legal drama, the judge’s verdict came in favor of the latter party, dismissing the infringement case altogether.
The seeds of discord had been sown when Peterson had alleged that his never-realized creative brainchild, a reality show titled “The Goldin Boys,” bore an uncanny resemblance to the Netflix-acquired “King of Collectibles”. He claimed that the seed of his concept was planted during a discussion of the idea with Goldin in 2019. Tale has it that the communication line went ominously silent midway through 2020 only for a concept strikingly similar to Peterson’s to arise from the intellectual ashes soon after. The thorn at the heart of the dispute was the perceived overlap in themes between Peterson’s unborn show and what would later materialize as the reality series diving into the workings of Goldin Auctions, along with snippets from Goldin’s life.
As compelling as the narrative might have been, the defense donned their capes, charging into the debate with counterarguments citing that the contested reality show was but an amalgamation of common themes and concepts, thus falling outside the ambit of the Copyright Act.
Judge Christine O’Hearn of the New Jersey federal district court stepped up, becoming the decisive voice and arbitrator of this debate. She sided with the defense, explaining how the elements Peterson had cloaked with protection rights were, in fact, no more than scènes à faire – a legal term denoting scenes or themes typical to a genre, and therefore, not landing under the purview of copyright protection. The genre, in this case, being reality television with its fair share of run-of-the-mill elements.
Judge O’Hearn pointed out that reality-based subjects and recurring themes in such shows have often been categorized as unprotectable, taking strength from historical legal precedents where cases of similar context were ruled upon. The dismissal of Peterson’s case confirmed the uphill battle to secure copyrights over broad concepts and themes that fill airtime in reality television.
Not only emerging victorious in this legal tug-of-war, but the “King of Collectibles” has also flaunted its increased clout in the entertainment world, bagging a nomination for the coveted Emmy award. It seems this real-life drama has only enhanced the plot of this reality show, making the journey from the initial accusation to eventual vindication a saga worth watching. Despite playing out off-screen, the dismissal of Peterson’s claim has certainly added a tantalizing plot twist to the reality television genre and the complex interplay of content creation and copyright legality.