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LeBron James issues big warning to top college athletics program

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LeBron James has a beef with University of Alabama football coach Nick Saban, but it has nothing to do with anything the coach has done on the football field.

It has to do with competing barbershops.

More specifically, it has to do with videos being shot in barbershops.

Last week, the Alabama football program’s Twitter account featured a tease for something called “Shop Talk.” It features Saban, alum Julio Jones and other Tide players having an unscripted discussion while in a barber shop.

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The problem with that concept, in the eyes of James and his multimedia platform known as Uniterrupted, is that it is very, very similar to something James has created called “The Shop,” which features James and friends having an unscripted discussion while in a barber shop.

There have been two episodes of “The Shop” released via Uniterrupted to date, and a third episode is in the post-production process.

James’ company sent a letter to the University of Alabama expressing concerns about the similarities of the two programs.

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“‘Shop Talk’ is clearly using the ideas, concepts, and format previously created and exploited by Uninterrupted in connection with its program ‘The Shop,’ and Uninterrupted believes ‘Shop Talk’ infringes the copyright in ‘The Shop,'” Josh Tarnow, head of Uninterrupted’s business and legal affairs, wrote in a letter obtained by Cleveland.com.

“In addition, your use of the name ‘Shop Talk’ and the related logo infringes Uninterrupted’s valuable trademark rights in ‘The Shop,’ and in the name and design associated therewith.

“Your continued exploitation of ‘Shop Talk’ infringes ‘Uninterrupted’s’ copyright, trademark rights and other valuable intellectual property rights in ‘The Shop’ and significantly damages Uninterrupted’s commercial prospects for ‘The Shop.’”

Instead of issuing a cease and desist letter, however, Tarnow asks the university to let the Uninterrupted view “Shop Talk” and then come up with a possible resolution.

“Rather than get into a ‘battle of legal letters,’ or rushing into legal proceedings, we think it would be beneficial for you to please provide Uninterrupted with a copy of the complete episode 1 of ‘Shop Talk’ to review and to then have a conversation about how to address Uninterrupted’s concerns amicably,” Tarnow wrote.

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Tarnow claims the first episode of James’ “The Shop” was viewed 4 million times and the show has drawn interest from networks looking to develop it into a TV series.

A university spokesman said he was still collecting information on the matter and did not release a statement when contacted Monday morning by AL.com.

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Scott Kelnhofer is a writer for The Western Journal and Conservative Tribune. A native of Milwaukee, he currently resides in Phoenix.
Scott Kelnhofer is a writer for The Western Journal and Conservative Tribune. He has more than 20 years of experience in print and broadcast journalism. A native of Milwaukee, he has resided in Phoenix since 2012.
Location
Phoenix, Arizona
Languages Spoken
English
Topics of Expertise
Media, Sports, Business Trends




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