Pasapalabra is one of the most memorable contests on Spanish television, both in format and participants, as well as its hosts. Since it premiered in 2000 with Sílvia Jato at the helm, the program has gone through many stages and memorable moments, whether with Christian Gálvez or Roberto Leal. However, its move from Telecinco to Antena 3 triggered the start of an intense legal battle, which was not resolved until last May 21, with a result that affects the San Sebastián de los Reyes network.
The Supreme Court thus published its final ruling on the use of El Rosco in the Atresmedia version, formally prohibiting the test from continuing to be seen on the orange channel. The document dismisses the appeals filed by the group and ITV Studios, confirming that the great challenge of the contest is a work protected by intellectual property, with its current holder being the Dutch production company MC&F. As a result, Antena 3 must stop showing El Rosco as soon as it receives the official notification from the court.
In parallel to the ruling, Mediaset España has made a striking move in response to the sentence: creating a program with El Rosco as the main piece. Days after it became known that the Italian media group had acquired the rights to the test, following an agreement signed more than a year ago with MC&F, the corporation announced this Wednesday the production of a new format through a brief statement on the social network X.
Endless legal dispute
After the sentence was announced, legal sources explained to Europa Press that Antena 3 will be able to continue broadcasting Pasapalabra with El Rosco until the judicial resolution is formally executed, a process that could last days or even weeks.
The intellectual property of El Rosco has been the subject of a long legal battle in Spain. ‘Pasapalabra’ debuted on Antena 3 in 2000 with Silvia Jato as host, although at times Constantino Romero also led the show.
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In 2007, the format moved to Telecinco, where it remained until 2019. That year, the Supreme Court forced Mediaset España to stop broadcasting the program after resolving the dispute it had with ITV Studios over the rights to the contest then hosted by Christian Gálvez.
Subsequently, Pasapalabra returned to Antena 3 thanks to an agreement between Atresmedia and ITV Studios to adapt the British format ‘The Alphabet Game’ in Spain, currently hosted by Roberto Leal.
However, the legal dispute continued. In November 2022, the Barcelona Court concluded that Atresmedia was using El Rosco without having the corresponding intellectual property rights, which belonged to MC&F, the company that initiated the legal procedure. The recent decision of the Supreme Court now confirms this criterion and strengthens the position of the Dutch production company regarding the exploitation of the popular final segment of the contest.
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