Statement from MGA Entertainment Re: Ruling on Mattel's Motion for Injunction

LOS ANGELES, Dec 04, 2008 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Last night, US District Judge Stephen Larson granted Mattel's request for an injunction to stop MGA Entertainment from selling certain Bratz products. "We believe the jury verdict was clear in denying 99% of Mattel's copyright infringement claim and that issuing such a broad injunction is inconsistent with the limited jury verdict and the law," said Isaac Larian, CEO of MGA. Larian added that "MGA intends to immediately appeal the injunction Mattel was granted."
While the Order does provide that it will be stayed until February 2009 while the Court considers additional legal briefing on post-trial issues, MGA will request that the stay be extended pending resolution of MGA's appeal. "We will seek to stay enforcement of this Order until our appeal is resolved so we can maintain the over 1500 people that MGA employs, and continue to give our consumers a product they desire," Larian stated.
Further, the Order acknowledges that "[t]here is a strong economic interest, especially in these troubled times, in maintaining a profitable enterprise as a going concern," and MGA agrees, citing this as one of the important facts it will raise when it seeks to stay enforcement of the Order until its appeal is resolved.
Notably, Judge Larson previously stated Mattel's request was "quite a leap," and stated that "the measurable value to Bratz, the brand Bratz, to the dolls Bratz, to everything that came of it, is so much a function of what Isaac Larian and his team at MGA put into it." The broad Order is surprising given these foregoing sentiments and MGA looks forward to its opportunity to present its appeal to the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.
SOURCE: MGA Entertainment, Inc.