Sony, CBS resolve Jeopardy!, Wheel of Fortune legal spat with distribution deal

The Wheel of Fortune row began a year ago when SPT filed a lawsuit against CBS

Sony Pictures Television (SPT) and CBS say they have reached an “amicable resolution” to the ugly year-long legal battle over the distribution rights to US gameshows Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune.

With the agreement, jointly announced on Friday, CBS will handle US distribution of the shows until the 2027/28 broadcast season, at which point the rights will shift to SPT, while international distribution of both shows will transfer from CBS to SPT at the beginning of next month.

In addition, CBS will continue to handle US marketing, promotions and affiliate relations until the end of the 2025/26 season, before they move to Sony.

The resolution comes just over a year after the dispute spilled into public view when SPT filed a lawsuit against Paramount-owned CBS alleging that it had licensed the shows at below-market value, gutted the teams that distribute and sell advertising around the shows and been guilty of self-dealing. As a result of the alleged contract breach, Sony claimed it was entitled to terminate its distribution contracts for the gameshows.

CBS subsequently counter-sued, arguing SPT was looking to “escape” the deal by “attempting to obtain in court what it could not get at the bargaining table: the rights to the series for free, by finding any excuse it can muster.”

In February, SPT sent a letter to CBS saying it was taking over distribution rights of the show, with a judge then granting CBS a temporary restraining order to prevent SPT from doing so. In May, an LA court ruled that CBS would retain the distribution rights until the legal issue was resolved.

In terms of court filings, all of the major steps in this dispute took place under Paramount’s previous ownership. The resolution is one more thing off the plate of the new David Ellison-led leadership team, which is in the midst of trimming Paramount’s global workforce by more than 2,000 staff and making moves to acquire Warner Bros Discovery.

Both Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune have been under the Sony umbrella since 1994, when it acquired their original producer, Merv Griffin Enterprises. Eleven years before that, Merv Griffin Enterprises had signed a long-term deal with production and syndication company King World, which was subsequently acquired by CBS in 1999.

“We have reached an amicable resolution regarding the syndicated distribution of Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune,” said Sony Pictures Television and CBS Media Ventures in a joint statement.

“We look forward to working together to continue bringing these beloved shows to audiences and stations around the world.”