Judge Denies CBS's GLASS HOUSE Restraining Order

EWonline reports that a federal judge has denied a temporary restraining order filed by CBS to block the premiere of the ABC reality series THE GLASS HOUSE. CBS claimed the series, set to premiere Monday, June 18, was too similar to their long-running reality show Big Brother. 

U.S. District Judge Gary A. Feess explained his decision in court, saying the differences between the two shows are great enough to prove that ABC did not steal the idea. “The audience involvement playing a constant role is very likely to induce quite different behavior than one would see on Big Brother,” the judge said.

Feess also concluded that GLASS HOUSE should not have any impact on the future success of Big Brother.  “I am not persuaded the adult appetite of viewers for Big Brother (will change),” he said, adding, “I thought after one or two reality shows we would never see others. Audience fascination with these shows is well understood even if some of us can’t understand it.”

A CBS attorney made an unsuccessful attempt to convince the judge of the similarities by showing online streams of the new ABC series and indicate how they seemed to mimic similar situations on Big Brother. The judge commented that all hope was not lost for CBS yet when it came to proving a copycat case, it would be  “more difficult in this area. The closer we get to nonfiction (programming), it’s more difficult to argue copyright infringement.”