Cake-Up Tuesday: Former Rockstar North head sues company for $150M in unpaid royalties

[SalamiAttack]

Former Rockstar North head sues company for $150M in unpaid royalties



PURE fukkERY


"Leslie Benzies, former president of Rockstar North and one of the lead producers on theGrand Theft Auto games, is suing Take-Two Interactive for $150 million in unpaid royalties, alleging that the company tried to force him out after he took a sabbatical.

Reports that Benzies had left the company emerged in January, following a sabbatical that began in September 2014. But according to a statement provided by Christopher Bakes, partner at the law firm Locke Lorde LLP, "while on sabbatical, Mr. Benzies discovered numerous deceptions on the part of Take-Two, Rockstar, Rockstar North Ltd, Sam Houser and Dan Houser, who sought to force him out of the company and terminate his portion of royalty payments based upon arbitrary actions by the company's royalty Allocation Committee, a committee that may or may not have actually ever met."

These alleged deceptions, according to Bakes, include unpaid royalties worth over $150 million. The lawsuit specifically cites the "mounting resentments" of Sam Houser, one of the co-founders of Rockstar Games, which allegedly led to Benzies' denial of compensation and eventual ousting.

In 2008, Benzies, along with Sam Houser and Dan Houser, entered a long-term agreement with Take-Two Interactive and Rockstar North after years at the company. They signed that contract alongside Take-Two's introduction of an "incentive compensation program" that was based on profit sharing, according to a press release. In the statement detailing his legal complaint, Benzies' contract with and payment from Take-Two was said to be identical to that of the Housers until his departure.

Also in question is Benzies' sabbatical, which Take-Two and Rockstar previously said ended with Benzies' departure from the company. After the January report that the president had parted ways with Rockstar North, Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick confirmed the reports on a February conference call with investors.

"I can confirm that Leslie Benzies went on sabbatical in September of 2014," Zelnick said, according to a transcript of the call. "He's decided not to return to Rockstar Games." Zelnick went on to say he could not comment further on Benzies' future plans.

Benzies tells it differently. In the statement about the lawsuit, he claims to have attempted to return to work on April 1, 2015, only to find that his key had been deactiviated.

"After being let inside by building security, Mr. Benzies was then ordered to leave by the Rockstar North office manager without reason," according to the statement.

We've reached out to Take-Two Interactive regarding Benzies' allegations, as well as Benzies' legal team for clarification of the timing of events described in the lawsuit."

 

[ORDER_66]

GET THAT MONEY....

 

[Tunez]

Hurry up and pay that man

 

[SalamiAttack]

Former Rockstar North President Leslie Benzies Sues For $150 Million, Take-Two Counter-Sues

TAKE-TWO WITH THE COUNTER SUE

 

[ORDER_66]

Former Rockstar North President Leslie Benzies Sues For $150 Million, Take-Two Counter-Sues

TAKE-TWO WITH THE COUNTER SUE

This reminds me of the infinity ward vs activision suit a long time ago...

BTW the guys from infinity ward won that lawsuit....

 

[Dre Space Age]

Feuding like real rockstars lol

 

[SalamiAttack]

Red Dead Redemption stories emerge from court documents, including Houser panicking

The GAF is going in

COURT DOCS!!!

I NEED THE BENZ!!!

 

[SalamiAttack]

http://kotaku.com/gta-producer-leslie-benzies-sues-rockstar-for-150-mill-1770521370

 

[Kingshango]

I sense fukkery in the midst.

 

[ORDER_66]

Red Dead Redemption stories emerge from court documents, including Houser panicking

The GAF is going in

COURT DOCS!!!

I NEED THE BENZ!!!

sounds like he is owed that money and more... RDR was a masterpiece...

 

[Brandeezy]

I always thought "The Benz" was basically R*'s showrunner on whatever project. The Houser bros are better at writing/story

"Red Dead Redemption 2 |OT| 37% Metacritic. We needed the Benz!"

 

[SalamiAttack]

Grand Theft Auto devs planned to leave Take-Two


"Leslie Benzies lawsuit says he and the Houser brothers set up an independent company that would still work on publisher's IP

Rockstar
Leslie Benzies' 71-page lawsuit filed against Take-Two, Rockstar, and Sam and Dan Houser today includes a number of revelations, among them that Benzies and the Housers had once planned to go indie (sort of).

The suit describes the formation of Another Game Company in 2009, originally a business entity consisting of Benzies and the Housers that was established with the help of Take-Two to handle distribution of royalty payments to the trio. However, the suit details another purpose to the company.

"AGC was created by the Rockstar Principals to allow them to be able to leave Take-Two, and collectively launch a new independent company, with favorable economic and IP-based rights stemming in large part from Take-Two and Rockstar. The Rockstar Principals would collectively enjoy royalty-free rights to use certain Rockstar and Take-Two intellectual property, and financing arising from the Royalty Plan."

That's no small amount of financing. The suit says that just in the time since he took a sabbatical in 2014, the royalty plan the three developers struck with Take-Two had already paid out $93 million to the Housers, with up to $523 million in additional money as yet unaccounted for.

Benzies' suit says Sam Houser handled the establishment of AGC and all business matters surrounding it, allowing Benzies to be more heads down in development work. The suit claims Houser cultivated Benzies' trust, repeatedly telling him in emails that they were "partners forever," and ending messages with, "Love, Sam."

The arrangement seemed to work out fine until 2014, when Benzies started his six-month sabbatical and his royalty payments stopped. When Benzies asked a Rockstar executive about the issue, the lawsuit claims he was told, "Sam thinks you've had enough."

As for where the relationship soured, a potential source of friction between Sam Houser and Benzies came in late 2013 with the launch of GTA Online. The lawsuit noted that previous GTA games always had Sam Houser's name last, indicating him to be the most significant contributor. For GTA Online, which the suit says "the Houser brothers had little interest in," Benzies put his name last in the credits. A Rockstar executive acting as an intermediary between the two men allegedly told Benzies that Sam Houser was unhappy with the move, suggesting that Benzies "wanted to take over the company."

After Benzies tried to return to work at Rockstar North in April of 2015 and was turned away by the building's office manager, he enlisted legal counsel and sent Take-Two and Rockstar notice that they had breached their legal obligations to him.

"Take-Two and Rockstar responded by making scurrilous allegations, a revenge tactic they had used before with other respected employees, this time deploying it against Mr. Benzies in an attempt to concoct false grounds for termination for Cause and to intimidate him into not pursuing his royalty claims," the suit claims. "Take-Two and Rockstar threatened to use these false charges against Mr. Benzies if he continued to assert his rights. This was a shocking development given that Sam Houser himself had orchestrated and encouraged a company culture involving strip clubs, personal photography of employees in sexually compromising positions, and other conduct grossly in violation of standard workplace norms."

The criticism of Sam Houser's role in the company culture isn't the only attack on the developer within the suit. It also depicted the Houser brothers as "incapable of completing large and complex games without Mr. Benzies' oversight, management and skill..."

"For example, Sam and Dan Houser took the lead on the development of Rockstar's game Red Dead Redemption. Mr. Benzies had no assigned position on the game. As the game's delivery date grew near, Sam Houser urgently reached out to Mr. Benzies in an October 22, 2009 e-mail, writing, 'The ups and downs are VERY extreme. We have to fix this. Quickly. Help! I'm freaking!'

"As Sam Houser reviewed more of the game that he had overseen for many years, he became more desperate writing to Mr. Benzies the very next day, 'This [RDR] is a (recurring) nightmare. But one i/we need to get out of. I have problems with the camera all over the place. So much so, that I can't be rational or specific about it. The darkness!!!' As reflected in his October 24, 2009 e-mail to Mr. Benzies, Sam Houser's desperation was escalating, 'PLEASE help me/us get rdr [Read Dead Redemption] into shape. I am a jabbering wreck right now. I need The Benz!'

"Once Mr. Benzies intervened, the game was finished within a few months, complete and ready for presentation to external publishers such as Sony and Microsoft."

As of this writing, Take-Two had not responded to a request for comment on the suit."

 

[ORDER_66]

Press X for money...

 

[MrPentatonic]

art imitating life lol

 

[SalamiAttack]

The timeline of Grand Theft Auto director Leslie Benzies vs. Rockstar Games

TIMELINE

"The Grand Theft Auto games are some of the most popular pop-culture products in history, and that kind of success can often lead to “deception” and betrayal.

Leslie Benzies, who produced the Grand Theft Auto games as president of developer Rockstar North, is suing publisher Take-Two Interactive for what he claims is $150 million in royalties that the company never paid to him, according to a press release from the law firm Locke Lord that is representing Benzies. In response, Rockstar and Take-Two have filed a countersuit that claims Benzies was in breach of contract. In that filing, which you can read here (via Polygon), Take-Two claims it has “no further financial obligations to Benzies.” Grand Theft Auto V, which is the pertinent game to the royalty dispute, has surpassed 60 million copies shipped to retailers, and it has generated well over $2 billion in revenues. It is not only one of the most successful games ever released, but Take-Two has repeatedly referred to it as “the fastest-selling entertainment product ever.”

Clearly, both Benzies and Take-Two were ready to lawyer up, and that’s because this dispute has a long history that dates back years before either party filed their legal complaints. To help illuminate the details of this case, we’re going to build out the timeline of events based on public records as well as the filings of both Benzies and Take-Two. We’ll note where the two disagree on the details.

The timeline

• September 17, 2013: Rockstar North, the studio Leslie Benzies was president of, launches Grand Theft Auto V for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.
• Late 2013: Rockstar vice president Jennifer Kolbe allegedly told Benzies that Rockstar president Sam Houser was worried that Benzies “wanted to take over the company.” This stemmed from Benzies placing his name last in the credits for GTA Online, which denotes the person most significant to a game’s production. Benzies also claims that Houser did not notice his name was not last until only after the game was released. “If true, this would mean that [Houser] had not played or even viewed the game pre-release,” reads Benzies complaint.
• July 29, 2014: Benzies flew to New York for a meeting with Sam Houser. Kolbe picks up Houser from the airport, and Benzies alleges that she suggested he take some time off. Benzies liked this idea because he had finished a several-year stretch building GTA V and GTA Online.
• August 15, 2014: Benzies signs agreement to take a paid sabbatical from September 1, 2014 through March 1, 2015. The agreement includes the following: “[Rockstar North] greatly appreciates your dedication to its business and products, and this sabbatical is meant to provide you with an opportunity to refocus those energies away from the company and to yourself for the period described below.”Benzies alleges the agreement claimed he would lose “no pay or benefits while on sabbatical.”Take-Two and Rockstar’s countersuit claims that the letter said Benzies would “continue to be eligible for any bonus, incentive compensation, other discretionary payments.” Take-Two’s lawyers added the emphasis in the preceding quote to suggest that the agreement did not guarantee Benzies any payments but only maintained his eligibility for discretionary payments that the company could decide not to award him.
• September 2014: Benzies claims that Rockstar shut off his company Blackberry and locked him out of his email. When he requested access to his Rockstar email, the company rejected him. The producer also claims that Sam Houser stopped communicating with him at this time.
• September 2014 through March 2015: Benzies alleges that Sam Houser and Rockstar took steps to isolate him by terminating his key staff and refusing his access to any other colleagues besides Kolbe.
• December 2014: Rockstar’s “allocation committee” — a group that comprises Sam Houser, Dan Houser, and a Take-Two representative — decided not to award any profits to Benzies. The Housers did give themselves a share of the profits. This is the first time since enacting the royalty plan in 2009 that Benzies did not get an equal share of the profits, according to Benzies.
  
• February 2015: Benzies begins discussion over email with Kolbe to figure out how to handle his return from sabbatical. It is here that Benzies alleges Kolbe first informed him that Rockstar and the Housers did not want Benzies to return. Instead, Rockstar legal counsel proposed a severance package worth $1.7 million.
• March 2015: Benzies prepared to return to work on April 1 because Rockstar and Take-Two had not formally terminated him. Instead, Benzies claims that Sam Houser and Kolbe visited Rockstar North with the purpose of poisoning the studio for any possible return.
• March 23, 2015: Take-Two says it received a letter from Benzies demanding royalty payments equal to Sam Houser and Dan Houser. Benzies characterizes this letter as him indicating his excitement about returning to Rockstar North while also asking that Rockstar reinstate his email access and comply with his other requests.
• March 24, 2015: Benzies claims that Take-Two’s counsel told him not to return to work, and that this effectively terminated his employment. Take-Two does not acknowledge this correspondence in its countersuit.
• March 26, 2015: Benzies claims that Take-Two then reversed that termination. Take-Two also does not acknowledge this in its countersuit.
• March 27 through March 31, 2015: Benzies’ claims it attempted to get clarification from Take-Two about whether the director should return to work on April 1. The attorneys claim that Take-Two never adequately provided a “yes” or “no” response. Instead, Kolbe requested to meet Benzies at a hotel. Take-Two does not acknowledge any of these correspondences.
• April 1, 2015: Benzies returned to Rockstar North’s offices. The office manager ordered Benzies to leave, and Benzies complied. Take-Two does not acknowledge this happening in its countersuit.
• April 2, 2015: Benzies’ counsel sent a notice of termination that cited Take-Two’s violation of his employee agreement and breach of the royalty agreement. This letter claims that Benzies had both good reason to terminate his employment and that Take-Two had essentially discharged him. Take-Two denies both of those claims.
• April 2015: Benzies claims that Rockstar, and Sam Houser in particular, threatened to justify ousting Benzies by holding him responsible for delays of GTA V and GTA: Online because he did not adequately perform his duties. In response to this, Benzies provided emails where Houser continually praised Benzies from 2013 through 2014.
• April 13, 2015: Take-Two claims it received a letter from Benzies demanding royalty payments.
• August 2015: Take-Two and Rockstar again decided not to award royalty payments to Benzies.
• January 2016: News reports begin claiming that Benzies had left Rockstar, Take-Two chief executive Strauss Zelnick then confirmed that in a statement.
• April 12, 2016: Benzies files lawsuit against Take-Two, Rockstar, Dan Houser, and Sam Houser. Take-Two and Rockstar file countersuit against Benzies.
• April 12, 2016: Benzies’ attorney tells GamesBeat that Take-Two’s claim is ‘sparse.’

We’ll continue following this case as it moves forward."