The historical comedy There is no one living here, one of the great television phenomena of recent Spanish fiction, has ended up becoming the center of a legal clash between its creators and AtresmediaTwo decades after its premiere on Antena 3, the scriptwriters believe that the audiovisual group has gone far beyond what was agreed upon at the time in terms of economic exploitation.
The brothers Alberto and Laura Caballero, together with Iñaki Ariztimuño, have initiated proceedings before the Commercial Court No. 18 of Madrid, understanding that the series has been marketed in a way thatundue, non-consensual and excessive"regarding what was stipulated in the contracts signed with the production company Miramón Mendi, now defunct. The authors seek to obtain a complete picture of how fiction has been exploited in recent years in order to assess more far-reaching actions.
According to information reported by various specialized media outlets, the screenwriters have managed to get the court to admit the practice of preliminary proceedingsa mechanism that allows for the collection of detailed data before filing an intellectual property lawsuit. With this, they intend to clarify whether Atresmedia has extended the exploitation of There is no one living here beyond the time, territorial or format limits contemplated in the original agreement.
The origin of the conflict lies in the contracts signed around 2003 with Miramón MendiThe production company linked to José Luis Moreno, which was dissolved in 2009. The creators maintain that at that time the transfer was intended for the broadcast on free-to-air television on Antena 3 The television market was very different from today's, and it didn't take into account realities like these. streaming platforms nor intensive exploitation on thematic channels or international licenses.
What exactly has the court ordered?
The Commercial Court No. 18 has given the green light to the authors' request for Atresmedia to hand over detailed information about the operation of the series. However, it has set a clear time limit: the group is only required to report from the November 4th 2021, effective date of the Article 75 of Royal Decree-Law 24/2021, which reinforces the duties of transparency towards creators.
This means that Atresmedia will have to break down what uses it has made of There is no one living here from that moment on, including the known or yet-to-be-discovered exploitation methodsThe ruling excludes the channels on which it has been broadcast and any type of license or transfer to third parties. It also omits the broad period between 2003 and 2021, which the plaintiffs also wanted covered.
This documentation must reflect the revenue generated through any commercial channelas well as other remuneration derived from the series and the identity of all companies or platforms to which rights have been assigned. The court order emphasizes that this duty to inform is linked to the possibility that the authors may claim a “adequate and proportionate remuneration” to the benefits obtained by the rights holders.
The judge, however, clarifies that for now has not been accredited that Atresmedia has indeed exceeded the exploitation rights that were granted to it. In other words, the acceptance of these proceedings does not imply that there has already been a ruling on whether or not there has been irregular exploitation, but rather opens the door for the creators to access data that would allow them, if they deem it appropriate, to file a substantive lawsuit.
The Caballero and Ariztimuño brothers base their request on the aforementioned 2021 regulationswhich obliges the assignees of rights to provide updated information on the exploitation of the works. In his opinion, the material supplied so far by the company is partial and insufficientThis prevents them from accurately knowing the economic performance of the series in the current television and video-on-demand environment.
Atresmedia's position: collective work and full transfer
Atresmedia has firmly responded to the screenwriters' demands and has opposed requiring them to provide excessive detail about their accounts. The media group maintains that is the holder of all exploitation rights de There is no one living here in all forms and without territorial limits, by virtue of the transfer it received from Miramón Mendi.
The company argues that the series should be considered a collective worka legal structure in which the exploitation rights belong entirely to the entity that promotes and coordinates the work—in this case, the media group itself. From this perspective, it understands that the applicants would not have sufficient legitimate interest to demand such a thorough level of transparency as they claim.
In its writings, Atresmedia also alleges that the original assignment was not limited Neither the timing nor the type of broadcast windows are affected, so broadcasts on the network's channels, such as Antena 3, Neox, and Atreseries, as well as its presence on digital platforms, would fall within the agreed license. In their view, retroactively applying reporting obligations arising from the 2021 legal reform to contracts signed in a different context would lack legal basis.
The group evaluates the screenwriters' request “excessive and disproportionate”, to the point of demanding that the bail above 290.000 eurosThey argued that the measure could impose an unjustified burden and be used instrumentally to prepare for a larger legal battle. Their arguments also included the statute of limitations on potential actions, the lack of just cause, and even bad faith in the request.
Despite these objections, the court has ruled that the authors can indeed rely on the new legal framework to claim data starting in 2021, although limiting the period and without yet endorsing any of the interpretations regarding the actual scope of the transfer. Any discussion about whether the contracts permitted certain forms of exploitation remains, for now, for a [unclear - possibly "legal" or "legal" context]. subsequent procedure.
What the creators of Aquí no hay quien viva are asking for
From the screenwriters' perspective, the position is clear: they understand that, given the relevance and prolonged success of the series, They need access to complete information regarding its exploitation to verify if the remuneration they have received is in line with the actual economic performance of the work. Based on this data, they do not rule out filing a lawsuit. infringement of intellectual property rights.
The Caballero brothers and Iñaki Ariztimuño are claiming a detailed breakdown of all emissions, sales, licenses and commercial agreements that have had as their object There is no one living here Since 2021: from programming on Atresmedia's DTT channels to its distribution through various platforms streaming and sublicenses to third parties, both in Spain and abroad.
Along those lines, they also request that all the details be provided. income derived from each modalityas well as any additional payments, royalties, or other charges associated with the reuse of the material, whether in the form of compilations, catalog packages, or agreements with platforms. They consider the information provided to date to be incomplete or fragmentary and it doesn't allow them to have a global vision.
One of the points the authors emphasize most is that, when the original contracts were signed, There were no basic modalities today. in the sector, such as mass distribution through on-demand services, licensing for international platforms, or continuous exploitation on thematic channels. In his opinion, it is reasonable to review the exploitation framework and update it to the current audiovisual ecosystem.
The creators of the also successful La que se avecina They argue that the spirit of the 2021 legal reform lies precisely in to strengthen the authors' position against those who exploit their works. From this perspective, they see the proceedings as an essential first step in assessing whether they can claim a additional compensation due to years of continuous exploitation of the series across multiple platforms.
A series that continues to generate audience and revenue
There is no one living here premiered in 2003 September and said goodbye to the grill in julio de 2006, after becoming one of the biggest television fiction hits in SpainSome of his seasons came close to 40% screen shareFigures that are practically unattainable today for a sitcom on free-to-air television.
Despite the time that has passed, the series continues fully present in the audiovisual offeringIts episodes have been broadcast numerous times on channels such as Antena 3, Neox or Atreseries, and have been part of the catalog of various platforms. streamingincluding popular services like Prime Video or Netflix at different stages, and even on the platform AtresplayerThis has allowed new generations to discover the most famous community of neighbors in recent television history.
This prolonged output is precisely the core of the creators' unease: they believe that, while fiction continues to generate audience and revenue In different ways, they haven't had access to the information needed to know if their compensation is commensurate with the sustained success of the work. Hence their interest in scrutinizing all the channels through which the series has been marketed.
The phenomenon is not limited to reruns. The creative universe that was born with There is no one living here He then moved on to other productions, such as La que se avecinaconsolidating a recognizable style of comedy that still works today in linear platforms and channelsIn that context, the current dispute can also be seen as an attempt by the authors of recalibrate your position in a franchise that has demonstrated an enormous capacity for adaptation.
Meanwhile, the Commercial Court's ruling emphasizes that the information obligation imposed on Atresmedia is intended to allow authors, if they detect imbalances, to claim compensation. “adequate and proportionate remuneration”without implying at this time whether the exploitation carried out by the group conforms to the original contractual framework or not.
A case that could shape the future of copyright in Spanish television
The struggle between the creators of There is no one living here And Atresmedia arrives at a time when the European audiovisual industry is experiencing a process of reviewing operating models and income sharing. The emergence of streamingThe proliferation of sales channels and the sale of catalogs to global platforms have raised the question of whether contracts signed two decades ago are still adequate.
For screenwriters, this procedure could open the door for other creators in similar situations to demand greater [benefits/benefits]. transparency and economic participation in works that continue to be broadcast or marketed long after their premiere. There are many examples of series, programs, or formats that were designed in the era of analog television and continue to generate revenue today thanks to new technologies.
Atresmedia, for its part, fears that it will feel like a awkward precedent which forces networks and production companies to systematically review agreements signed years ago and to provide sensitive data about their revenue. Hence the harshness of their response, in which they emphasize that the obligations arising from Royal Decree-Law 24/2021 should not be applied to old contracts nor used as leverage to reopen negotiations already concluded.
In this context, the role of Commercial Court No. 18 of Madrid This will be key to defining the practical scope of the new transparency rules. For now, the court has opted for an intermediate solution: it recognizes the authors' right to receive information from 2021 onwards, but avoids ruling on the substance of the contractual dispute and rejects, from the outset, extending the obligation to the entire lifespan of the series.
What happens from now on will depend largely on the data that Atresmedia presents and how it is interpreted by both the creators and their lawyers. If they believe that the exploitation of the fiction has been more intense and lucrative Based on what the contracts reflect, they could file a formal lawsuit for infringement of intellectual property rights or for economic imbalance, which would open a long-term litigation with potential impact on the entire sector.
For now, the legal battle surrounding There is no one living here It reflects the clash between two visions regarding the exploitation of a work in the 21st century: that of authors who claim greater control and transparency The story revolves around a show whose success shows no signs of fading, and a major media group that argues its contracts allow it to maximize the value of its catalog. It remains to be seen whether this dispute will mark the beginning of a new era in copyright management on Spanish television, or simply become another episode in the long commercial life of one of the most influential comedies on our small screen.
