Arbitrator Scolds Fox and Orders It to Pay $178 Million to ‘Bones’ Team

Complicating matters is that both Mr. Rice and Ms. Walden are weeks away from moving into senior leadership roles at the Walt Disney Company after it closes on its purchase of the bulk of 21st Century Fox’s entertainment properties.

Fox has been under the leadership of its chairman, Rupert Murdoch, who built his media empire over more than six decades. Last year he agreed to sell the majority of his business to Disney for $71.3 billion. As part of the transaction, Mr. Rice is poised to become the chairman of Walt Disney Television and Ms. Walden will become the chairwoman of Disney Television Studios and ABC Entertainment.

Hours after the ruling become public, Disney’s chief executive, Robert A. Iger, defended his incoming senior executives.

“Peter Rice and Dana Walden are highly respected leaders in this industry, and we have complete confidence in their character and integrity,” Mr. Iger said in a statement. “Disney had no involvement in the arbitration, and we understand the decision is being challenged and will leave it to the courts to decide the matter.”

At minimum, the producers and the stars of “Bones” will be awarded $50 million in damages, but it’s unclear who will be on the hook for that payment. The plaintiffs sued Fox’s television studio, which produced the show; the broadcast network, which aired the show; and 21st Century Fox, the studio and network’s parent company.

In the coming weeks, Fox’s television studio will become part of Disney but the broadcast network will remain with Mr. Murdoch as part of a smaller company to be named Fox Corporation. Both Disney and Fox did not offer any explanation for who would be responsible for payment.

The extraordinary award for damages has piqued the interest of the creative set in Hollywood. The entertainment industry has undergone a remarkable change with Netflix, Hulu, Facebook, Amazon and Apple cutting big checks for original content. Older fare has also become incredibly valuable. Netflix paid about $100 million to keep “Friends” for at least another year. The show, a decade-long hit for NBC, went off the air in 2004.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/27/business/media/bones-fox-arbitration-award.html?partner=rss&emc=rss