AT least P21 million in damages and lawyer’s fee have been sought by “Eat Bulaga” hosts Tito Sotto, Vic Sotto, and Joey de Leon from Television and Production Exponents Inc. (TAPE) for airing replays of the show without their consent after their departure.
The hosts, collectively known as TVJ, asked for P17.482 million in damages for three days’ worth of replays, and another P3.5 million in damages and attorney’s fees.
They sought the amount in the copyright infringement and unfair competition case they filed against TAPE and GMA Network.
As reported by bilyonaryo.com, the hosts disputed the statement of the production outfit, which is controlled by the Jalosjos family, that the long-running noontime show was in the red.
They said “Eat Bulaga” had been raking in P5.827 million daily, or P1.824 billion annually, for TAPE.
Claims of losses for “Eat Bulaga” were “erroneous and baseless,” TVJ said.
Jalosjos began taking an active interest in the show’s operations early this year and sought to revamp it to reverse the supposed losses.
His efforts to restructure the show and replace the hosts led to the dispute with TVJ and the latter’s departure, along with that of other hosts and staff members.
This also triggered a tug of war over the name “Eat Bulaga,” which De Leon coined, but which TAPE had registered as a trademark.
TVJ has challenged TAPE’s continued use of “Eat Bulaga.”
