Mediaset España readies El Rosco show amid ITV Studios Pasapalabra battle

The El Rosco round of Pasapalabra

Mediaset España has confirmed it is working on a new show that will have El Rosco as its “final and main element,” days after Spain’s Supreme Court ordered fellow Spanish broadcaster Atresmedia to stop airing the round as part of gameshow Pasapalabra.

Mediaset said development began after the Supreme Court confirmed MC&F Broadcasting Production and Distribution holds the intellectual property rights to El Rosco, rather than ITV Studios, owner of The Alphabet Game, the original format on which Pasapalabra is based.

The court ruling brought an end to a lengthy legal battle over the authorship and exploitation of the gameshow’s final round, a dispute that for years involved MC&F, ITV Studios, Mediaset España and Atresmedia.

It recently emerged that Mediaset had signed a conditional agreement with MC&F around 18 months ago to secure the exploitation rights to El Rosco, a deal that was activated following the Supreme Court’s ruling in MC&F’s favour.

The move creates a new situation in the Spanish TV market. While Atresmedia will have to reformulate the final stage of Pasapalabra, Mediaset will look to capitalise on the recognition of one of the most emblematic rounds on Spanish television.

At the same time, Mediaset España continues its legal dispute with ITV Studios. This week, the group’s parent company, MFE-MediaForEurope, announced it will seek to annul the proceedings that ordered it to pay €73.2m (US$84.9m) for airing Pasapalabra without authorisation between 2012 and 2019, arguing that the recent ruling on El Rosco changes part of the basis used to calculate the compensation.