My fellow fans of scummy summer reality TV can rejoice, because ABC’s “The Glass House” will begin its premiere season as planned on Monday at 10 p.m. ET/PT, now that a judge has denied rival network CBS’s request for production to be halted on the grounds that the show blatantly rips off their long-running “Big Brother.”
CBS’s complaint, which asked for multi-million dollar damages, was filed last Thursday. According to Deadline, the lawsuit “cited copyright infringement, trade-secret misappropriation, unfair competition, breach of contract and conspiracy among other claims.” CBS noted the fact that several “The Glass House” producers and staffers formerly worked on the very similar “Big Brother,” which likewise follows contestants stuck in a house together.
In his denial of an injunction, Judge Gary Feess said, “CBS seeks to protect the idea of a show of contestants in a house where cameras are running… you can’t copyright that…. I don’t know if ‘The Glass House’ will have any effect on ‘Big Brother’... It will continue to go forward and be successful.”
Clearly, “Big Brother” was a big inspiration for “The Glass House,” but rip-off shows have long been common in the reality genre. Is this scenario really any different from “Dancing with the Stars” and “Skating with Celebrities”? What about “The Voice” and the brand-new “The Choice”?
To watch previews of “The Glass House” and learn about the contestants, check out the show’s official website. And if you’re holding out for “Big Brother,” it will premiere on CBS later this summer, on July 12.