Sony betaalt filmkijkers $1.5 M vanwege neprecensies

[Qzyn]

Sony Will Pay $1.5 Million in Fake Critic Case
Wed, Aug 03, 2005

Sony Pictures has reached an agreement to pay a pack of disgruntled moviegoers some $1.5 million to settle a class action lawsuit stemming from the studio's use of a fake critic in print ads.
According to the AP, a California judge approved the agreement, which will provide $5 in reimbursement to any moviegoer who saw "Vertical Limit," "A Knight's Tale," "The Animal," "Hollow Man" or "The Patriot" during their theatrical runs, provided they file a claim. To keep things in perspective, all of the settlement money that doesn't go to greedy fans will go to charity.

In a world in which anybody with blogging software can pretend to be a film critic, Sony went one step beyond. A series of ads featured reviews from a critic named David Manning of The Ridgefield Press in Connecticut. Although the paper was real, Manning was not. Two Sony executives were suspended.

The lawsuit was first filed in 2001 by a pair of California moviegoers, who claimed that they were enticed into seeing "A Knight's Tale" by the imaginary Manning's claim that star Heath Ledger was "this year's newest star."

While Manning may have been "A Knight's Tale's" most vocal champion, he was hardly the only critic to find the film an amusing trifle. The summer movie, which featured Ledger and Paul Bettany, has a perfectly respectable, but unremarkable, 57 percent "Fresh" rating over at RottenTomatoes.com and nobody seems to have sued legitimate, but quote-happy scribes like Peter Travers of Rolling Stone for recommending the project.

Bron: zap2it.com

[Joris van Laarhoven]

Zielig zeg, haha.

[Ron kars]

Jah das wel heel sad, ik word trouwens toch moe van al die posters en dvd-covers waar megagroot op staat "Movie of the Year" dat maak ik zelf wel uit.