Copyright row over Poland’s favourite teddy bear
2008-07-04
After six months of proceedings a compromise has been reached in court over top Polish Miś Uszatek (Earflap Teddy Bear) TV cartoon copyright, TV24 reports. The lovable character was created by a Polish writer Czesław Janczarski and cartoonist Zbigniew Rychlicki. The teddy bear first appeared in the children’s magazine “Miś”. The heirs of the editor in chief of the magazine sued a company which is now producing the foppy-eared cuddly toy. The court case blocked their sales as the court banned the production and sales of Earflap.
REKLAMA
The company launched the production of the 43-cm teddy bear in 2005. They obtained a permission from the inheritors of the Rychlicki estate.
The suit proved that the licence the factory had obtained was incomplete as it didn’t take into account the contribution of Czesław Janczarski, the editor in chief of the magazine.
The parties did not reveal the details of the agreement. It is known, however, that a licence contract valid until 2011 was signed, which means the producer acknowledges the right of Janczarski’s heirs to the visual image of Miś Uszatek. The licence agreement the company previously signed with the heirs of Rychlicki will be prolonged to 2011. Good news for Earflap fans.
