Movie Studio Cracking Down on Unlicensed Harry Potter Festivals
Fans around the world love Harry Potter. The tale of the Boy who Lived has sold over half of a billion copies of the books, spawned 10 movies, and created a multimedia juggernaut. The problem isn't having enough fans to support the franchise, at this point - it's quite the opposite. Warner Brothers (the media company that owns the rights to the Harry Potter film franchise) is now on the hunt to shut down non-official Harry Potter-themed festivals.
Nola.com is reporting that festival bosses are being forced to turn their JK Rowling love-fests into generic celebrations of literary magic, because the alternative is shutting down the festival altogether. From Ithaca New York's "Wizarding Weekend" which has grown to around 20,000 robed and wanded fans, to the small Quidditch tournaments and neighborhood Potter-fests held year round in the US - every non-official festival or public event that features any of the copyrighted characters, locations, names, or events outlined in the books or movies will now be in the movie studio's crosshairs.
Warner Brothers issued this statement in response: "Warner Bros. is always pleased to learn of the enthusiasm of Harry Potter fans, but we are concerned, and do object, when fan gatherings become a vehicle for unauthorized commercial activity,"