‘Live PD’ Producer Big Fish Hits Back Against “Meritless” Lawsuit From A&E Over ‘On Patrol: Live’

13.12.2022 - 01:35 / deadline.com

The battle between Live PD and On Patrol: Live producer Big Fish Entertainment and A&E Television Networks is heating up.

Big Fish has hit back at the lawsuit filed by the cable networks group in August, calling it “meritless” and laying out the reasons why.

The Amazon/MGM-owned production company has filed a motion to dismiss in the U.S. District Court Southern District of New York.

The crux of the issue is whether On Patrol: Live, which became a ratings success for Reelz, was a “clone” of Live PD, which was canceled by A&E in June 2020 in the aftermath of George Floyd’s killing.

“In 2020, A&E decided to cancel the show, wrongly believing that the public’s interest in live police programs had waned. After A&E rebuffed Big Fish’s efforts to reboot Live PD at A&E, Big Fish moved on and developed On Patrol: Live, eventually striking a deal with Reelz,” the motion notes.

“After On Patrol: Live became an instant success on Reelz, debuting as the #1 cable show in the coveted 25-54 demographic, A&E’s decision appears short-sighted and foolish. To save face, A&E now tries to enlist the Court to award profits from a show it did not want, but there is no viable claim here, let alone under the copyright, trademark, or unfair competition laws,” it added.

In its August filing, the Heart and Disney-backed company used phrases such as “brazen theft” and “flagrant violation”.

However, Big Fish says that A&E has not alleged that its new show “copies a single original element” from Live PD, given that Big Fish calls the elements that A&E identifies “nothing more than unprotectible stock features of police ride-along shows, and often of news programming more generally”.

Some of the areas that A&E has taken issue with include the fact