Re: $300,000,000 Lawsuit Against MJ?????
detailed post from TSCM about the contract and lawsuit posted on May 11, 2009
A dispute has arisen between New Jersey based entertainment firm, AllGood Entertainment, Inc. ("AGE"), and Frank Dileo in conjunction with AEG regarding Michael Jackson's planned summer concerts at London's O2. MJJR.net has reviewed several comprehensive documents and proposals from the firm regarding this matter and will now explain the circumstances as they stand.
The plan of AllGood Entertainment was to host a "one-time event" tentatively titled "The Jackson Family Reunion: A Concert for the World" in the summer of 2009. The concert would star Michael and Janet Jackson while also including his siblings: LaToya, Rebbie, and all of his brothers. Billed as "The Most Anticipated Concert Event in Music History" the concert was anticipated to gross more than $93 million through a variety of means including ticket sales (at $135 each), sponsoring, Pay-Per-View access, DVD and CD sales, merchandising, digital downloads, broadcasting, and licensing. Using such a figure as a selling point, the company sought out a sponsorship to help fund the endeavor which included around $30 million of expenses.
The concert was anticipated to be held in one of several stadiums--either in New Orleans, San Diego, New Jersey, or Atlanta. The event would be day long and recorded professionally for Pay-Per-View and DVD releases with a projected first-showing audience of 100 million. The Pay-Per-View would fetch and estimated 3 to 7 million purchasers at $30 each, and there would be a worldwide market campaign building up to the event.
In addition to the proposal (which was drafted in attempts of locating a sponsor to fund the project), MJJR.net has reviewed several contractual documents between AllGood Entertainment and Frank Dileo. On November 26, 2008, a four page confidentiality and non-disclosure agreement was signed with regards to the reunion concert; the document is signed by roughly half a dozen parties including Frank Dileo. The term of the agreement was for 18 months following November 2008. The other signed agreement, drafted on November 21, 2008 and signed on November 25, 2008, was again four pages and signed by Frank Dileo and affiliated parties of AllGood Entertainment. This agreement called for at least a 90 minute performance by Michael Jackson and 150 minute performance overall by all parties of the Jackson family. The agreement also called for a press conference in which all Jackson family members were present to announce the concert. The Jackson family members would receive $24 million in profit for their involvement with the remaining money being distributed to the affiliated parties.
It should be noted that nowhere in any contract does the signature or authorization of ANY Jackson family member exist, it appears these contracts and proposals were drafted explicitly by Frank Dileo and AllGood Entertainment with no signed confirmation by any of the Jackson family members; it is unclear to what degree the Jackson family members are even aware of the whole situation.
Back on March 27, 2009, AllGood Entertainment sent a cease and desist letter via e-mail to Randy Phillips of AEG, which MJJR.net has also reviewed. This was in regards to an article that appeared online questioning who Michael Jackson's spokesperson really was, which stated: "A spokesman for Dileo told CelebrityAccess that they would release a statement along with AEG to address Rowe's claims next week and suggested that legal action may be in the offing." The letter threatened AEG with legal action if Frank Dileo continued any alleged partnership with AEG during the period of time he was meant to be with AllGood Entertainment.
On April 11, 2009 Randy Phillips responded to the cease and desist notice in stating that "Mr. Dileo and does not involve AEG Live in any manner whatsoever," and advised AllGood Entertainment that any legal issues were between that company and Frank Dileo and it has no involvement with AEG or their Jackson-related endeavors what-so-ever. In fact, this claim was reiterated in two separate e-mails from Mr. Phillips, and it has been stated that he worked directly with Michael Jackson and Dr. Tohme Tohme to negotiate the AEG contracts and procedures. In rebuttal of these claims, AllGood Entertainment sent a second notice again citing the CelebrityAccess article published on the Internet which referenced Frank Dileo as acting on behalf of Michael Jackson and AEG. However, the notice by AllGood Entertainment also seems to erroneously quote the published article using quotes which do not actually appear in the article itself. As a final follow-up, AllGood Entertainment wrote: "While Frank Dileo's actions were reprehensible, AEG's very public support of Dileo and continued association with him despite our efforts to Cease and Desist them, is tantamount to anti-trust and anti-competitive practices."
In summary, two contracts and agreements were signed by December 1, 2008 by Frank Dileo and parties relating to Dileo's agency and AllGood Entertainment's agency. None of these contracts bare any signature of the Jacksons, nor has there been any confirmation that the Jackson siblings are aware of these concert-related plans. Even within the proposal that detailed at length the expenses, profits, and plans of each artist, there are no direct quotes from any of the Jacksons themselves to bring credence to the proposal. After reviewing many documents and communications regarding this conflict, MJJR.net does not believe that the dispute between Frank Dileo and AllGood Entertainment will have any negative impact on AEG and the O2 concerts.
With no signatures or authorization by Michael Jackson within the contracts between Frank Dileo and AllGood Entertainment, and seemingly just one online Web site referencing that Frank Dileo had any involvement with AEG, there does not appear to be much legal cause for concern over the O2 concerts. Again, the cease and desist letter did not occur until the night that CelebrityAccess published an article proclaiming that Frank Dileo and AEG would release a statement the following week with regards to Leonard Rowe's questionable involvement. No such statement was ever released, Randy Phillips insisted that he only worked through Michael Jackson and Dr. Tohme Tohme in the matter, and the article in question only cites a "spokesperson of Frank Dileo" as the source and does not include any direct quotes from Frank Dileo himself.
Finally, on October 30, 2008 (one month before any such contracts, proposals, or agreements were drafted and signed), Michael Jackson issued the following statement: "My brothers and sisters have my full love and support, and we’ve certainly shared many great experiences, but at this time I have no plans to record or tour with them. I am now in the studio developing new and exciting projects that I look forward to sharing with my fans in concert soon." Stay tuned...
Source: MJJR.net
