Harmony Gold being Harmony Gold (again)

Discussion in 'BattleTech (Harebrained)' started by MagnusEffect, Aug 21, 2017.

  1. MagnusEffect

    MagnusEffect Administrator Staff Member Jarl SC Huscarl

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    Was surprised to see this pop up on Youtube, but thought it would be something of interest here.



    They are going after everyone; Piranha, Catalyst, and Hairbrained. Apparently Harmony Gold is so incompetent as to confuse an Atlas for one of their licensed designs (11:40). HG can't come up with a single fucking original idea so they decide to shit on everyone else's parade.

    Amusingly, some people are comparing HG to xenomorphs:
    Ouch.
     
    Last edited: Aug 21, 2017
  2. MagnusEffect

    MagnusEffect Administrator Staff Member Jarl SC Huscarl

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    Some comments from the HBS forums that seem to know more about this than me:
     
  3. Lardaltef

    Lardaltef Well Liked Berserker

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    Pretty sure sony bought all those rights years thus why we started officially seeing the unseen mechs again. Because sony is planning on doing a live action robotech movie (seriously this time). Unless i am mistaken.
     
  4. Damion Sparhawk

    Damion Sparhawk The Missing Link Viking

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    Personally I just want to see someone build a mech, and then use it to obliterate HG, at this point. :p
    [​IMG]
     
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  5. Solis Obscuri

    Solis Obscuri Well Liked Hirdman

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  6. Trevnor

    Trevnor Tokin' Canadian Staff Member Jarl SC Huscarl

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  7. MostlyHarmless

    MostlyHarmless Master of Recruits Staff Member Jarl SC Huscarl

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    :facepalm:

    To quote that great cultural thinker, Ron White, "you can't fix stupid."
     
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  8. Solis Obscuri

    Solis Obscuri Well Liked Hirdman

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    If I were to hazard a guess, I'd say "going full retard".
     
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  9. Solis Obscuri

    Solis Obscuri Well Liked Hirdman

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  10. MagnusEffect

    MagnusEffect Administrator Staff Member Jarl SC Huscarl

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    My understanding is that HG is scraping the bottom of the barrel. It's founder, Frank Agrama, has already been convicted of tax fraud and embezzlement. I seem to recall he was also involved in money laundering. On paper, the company is now "managed" by his daughter, but who can say she is any better? They were just in more legal trouble last year, but charges were dropped due to statute of limitations.

    Sources:
    http://articles.latimes.com/2006/nov/29/local/me-agrama29
    https://web.archive.org/web/20140207101452/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-20102215

    More recently HG tried to sue Hasbro (and lost)
    http://web.archive.org/web/20131014085251/courthousenews.com/2013/07/23/Transformers.pdf
    Apparently they tried to make a connection with their Robotech to some "GI Joe and the Transformers... The Epic Conclusion".
    [​IMG]
    Oh.. I see what they did there...


    Anyway, I think they've just been waiting all this time for PGI and HBS to make some money so they can attempt to take a large chunk of it. The company is about as corrupt as they come.
     
    Last edited: Aug 22, 2017
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  11. Hollister

    Hollister Fun-Taker Berserker

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    Go get some popcorn.. This is a long one..
     
    Last edited: Aug 23, 2017
  12. MagnusEffect

    MagnusEffect Administrator Staff Member Jarl SC Huscarl

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    It's not really a "popcorn" moment for me. It's more like a "tighten butthole" moment. I'm too emotionally invested to enjoy it. I just want it over and with Battletech's "womenhood" intact.

    EDIT: I think I just indirectly compared HG to rapists... holy shit. I really don't like them. :wat:
     
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  13. Hollister

    Hollister Fun-Taker Berserker

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    This whole legal crap has been going on for what three decades now? I think everyone is done with it. HG only has the distribution rights. They cant even legally make there own show with the art because they don't own the designs/art to anything Macross. Which is why they haven't ever done anything besides the one movie from what I remember which used different artwork from another show they own. They own the shows distribution rights along with the name Macross outside of Japan. In japan HG doesnt have the rights to anything.. Zero.. nothing. which is why they could never make a anime and Shoji Kawamori has continued making anime with original art from Macross. Studio Nue/Big West own all the art which is Shoji Kawamori's.
     
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  14. Solis Obscuri

    Solis Obscuri Well Liked Hirdman

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    In deference to actual sexual assault victims you probably shouldn't, but I fully understand the sentiment.

    And what HG is doing isn't just bad for Battletech, it's bad for the whole industry. A victory for them go a long way toward undermining precedents for fair use such as parody and original composition; allowing existing licensing and distribution rights to be suppressed by later agreements would be messy as a precedent; hell, just accepting the argument that distribution rights are equivalent to ownership of images and IP (rather than the creator) would be a catastrophic precedent.

    Just for the sake of entertainment law, I think HG needs to outright lose one of these cases instead of forcing an out of court settlement. Unfortunately, they have pretty deep pockets still thanks to the half-assed prosecution of their fraud and money laundering activities in Europe.
     
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  15. Lardaltef

    Lardaltef Well Liked Berserker

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    Any news about this?
     
  16. Hepatitis TK

    Hepatitis TK Decorative Flounce Berserker

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    Not for you
     
  17. Lardaltef

    Lardaltef Well Liked Berserker

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    I resent you.
     
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  18. Hepatitis TK

    Hepatitis TK Decorative Flounce Berserker

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    ❤❤
     
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  19. Tanedin

    Tanedin New Guy Berserker

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    From what I understand, Harmony Gold and Tatsunoko have had some kind of falling out. I watched Leonard French's video on the arbitration and it sounds like Tatsunoko has no desire to renew the license with HGold in 2021. Additionally, the case confirmed that there are some "41 character designs" that HGold does not get as part of their license.


    Cut down version of Leonard French's reading of the arbitration award.

    http://web.archive.org/web/20020803190522/http://www.macross.co.jp/contents/index.html
    Notice from president of Big West, owner of the designs. Pictures are all dead, but the names at least are all listed there on the left. Notice "Spartan," "Glaug," etc.

    Wonder if HGold might be better off just dropping this lawsuit. Not sure on what grounds they think they can proceed when they do not and never have owned the copyright they accuse Battletech of infringing.
     
  20. MagnusEffect

    MagnusEffect Administrator Staff Member Jarl SC Huscarl

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    This is good news! It sounds like HG doesn't have a leg to stand on for claiming rights to the original Unseen mech designs. Fingers crossed, but it sounds like our Whammys and Mauraders are safe.

    Here's a full list of all Macross designs:
    http://www.macross2.net/m3/masterlist/masterlist-index.html
    Should be able to find all the mechs listed as part of the "original 41" on this list.
     
    Last edited: Sep 21, 2017
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