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- The assignment is impossible: the owners of "Talking Tom" and "Peppa Pig" are covering up a loophole for withdrawing funds from the Russian Federation
The assignment is impossible: the owners of "Talking Tom" and "Peppa Pig" are covering up a loophole for withdrawing funds from the Russian Federation
The prosecutor's office is trying to cancel the transactions through the court, which allow the Russian company Quintiliana to recover compensation for infringement of the rights to the trademarks "Talking Tom" and "Peppa Pig". We are talking about assignment agreements with the British copyright holders Outfit7 Limited and Entertainment One UK Limited, Izvestia learned. The supervisory authority believes that the agreements allow circumventing the procedure established by presidential decree for settlements with foreign copyright holders through special accounts of the "O" type. The consequences of the case for foreign brands can be found in the Izvestia article.
How did companies get the right to collect compensation
In June 2026, the prosecutor's office filed lawsuits against Quintiliana and two British companies — Outfit7 Limited (the copyright holder of the Talking Tom and Friends game franchise) and Entertainment One UK Limited (owns or manages the rights of the Peppa Pig, Transformers and My Little Pony franchises), Izvestia found in the file. arbitration cases. Under the assignment agreements, foreign companies transferred to the Russian company the right to demand compensation from those who violate their exclusive copyrights.
According to a source familiar with the situation, the prosecutor's office considers such transactions an attempt to circumvent restrictions on settlements with foreign companies and is trying to invalidate them. Representatives of Outfit7, on the contrary, insist that the agreement falls under the exceptions provided for by Presidential Decree No. 322 "On the temporary procedure for fulfilling obligations to certain copyright holders" dated May 2022. It establishes a special procedure for settlements with certain foreign copyright holders. In particular, it stipulates that payments to companies from unfriendly countries subject to it must be credited to special ruble accounts of the "O" type. You can manage money with the permission of the government commission.
At the same time, the decree provides for exceptions. As explained by Vegas Lex lawyer Elizaveta Ivanova, in certain cases, foreign companies can receive payments without using a special account. For example, if the copyright holder continues to fulfill obligations under the agreement and has not terminated or significantly restricted the use of his intellectual property.
According to a source familiar with the situation, Outfit7 representatives believe that the company falls under such an exception. As arguments, they point out that its products remain available in Russia, and the rights are used through local licensees.
However, the prosecutor's office believes that the transfer of the right to collect compensation to a Russian company may circumvent a special settlement procedure. The court will have to determine whether such a scheme meets the requirements of the decree.
A shot from the game "Talking Tom and friends"
Outfit7 Limited is known as the developer of the Talking Tom and Friends series of mobile games. The company was founded in Slovenia in 2009, and moved its headquarters to London in 2010. It has no official subsidiaries or offices in Russia, but its games are available to our users in Russian. In 2017, the Chinese holding company Zhejiang Jinke Tomcat Cultural Industry Co acquired Outfit7.
Entertainment One UK Limited is affiliated with the Peppa Pig franchise, as well as the Transformers and My Little Pony brands. The history of the media company began in the 1970s, but it gained wide popularity due to the development of children's brands. In Russia, the animated series "Peppa Pig" has been shown since 2008, and in 2014, the company began licensing the brand in the country.
In 2022, Hasbro, which owned Entertainment One, announced the suspension of operations in Russia. In 2023, Lionsgate media corporation acquired part of eOne's assets in Canada and the United States, including the brand and the film studio. However, British Entertainment One UK Limited, which owns the rights to Peppa Pig, did not enter into the deal and remained with Hasbro.
If the court invalidates the deal, the consequences for the parties will be different, experts say. Foreign companies will still be able to apply to the court for protection of their rights, but on their own behalf. However, there may be difficulties with the enforcement of a court decision, since the copyright holder is a foreign person.
— For Quintiliana, this means that compensation cannot be collected. If the assignment agreement is declared invalid, then the claim is, in fact, legally considered non—transferable, and the company loses the basis for claims," the source explained.
Izvestia sent inquiries to the prosecutor's office of the Novosibirsk region, as well as to Outfit7 and eOne. It was not possible to get a comment from the CEO of Quintiliana LLC at the time of publication.
The court hearing on the invalidation of the transaction with eOne will be held on November 2, and with Outfit7 on November 5, 2026.
Why do we need an assignment if the copyright holder can go to court?
A foreign company has the right to independently protect its trademarks in Russia and demand compensation from violators. However, it can be more difficult to receive the awarded money in practice.
As explained by Ilya Lysov, a lawyer at Verba Legal, if the violator does not pay compensation voluntarily, the copyright holder has to enforce the court decision. At the same time, the legislation of the Russian Federation on enforcement proceedings provides for the indication of the recoverer's bank details opened in a Russian credit institution.
Therefore, one of the solutions is an assignment — the transfer of the right to demand money from a company in our country. In this case, she becomes the new creditor and can independently collect compensation.
At the same time, the conclusion of an assignment agreement is suspected of circumventing the presidential decree. According to Elizaveta Ivanova, it is important to distinguish between representation and assignment of the right of claim. In the first case, the Russian company acts on behalf of or in the interests of the copyright holder; in the second, it claims to be an independent creditor.
"It is in relation to the second case that the question arises as to whether assignment of rights (assignment) is used as a mechanism to circumvent a special settlement procedure," the lawyer explained.
At the same time, the mere presence of a Russian representative or the conclusion of an assignment agreement does not prove an intention to circumvent the restrictions. The court needs to examine the terms of the transactions and determine whether they comply with the requirements of Decree No. 322.
What will change if the deals are canceled
If the court finds the assignment agreements invalid, Quintiliana will lose the basis for collecting compensation for the claims transferred to it. At the same time, foreign copyright holders will not lose the right to protect their trademarks: they will be able to go to court on their own and demand compensation.
However, the process of receiving money may become more complicated, since the collection will have to be organized directly by a foreign company, taking into account the current settlement rules.
According to Elizaveta Ivanova from Vegas Lex, the copyright holder will also be able to transfer the right of claim to another Russian company. However, if the purpose of the new transaction is to circumvent the established settlement procedure, the risk of challenging it will remain.
Previously, both British companies have repeatedly appealed to the Russian courts to protect their trademarks. As a rule, the defendants were individual entrepreneurs and companies that sold toys, clothing, smartphones and other goods without the permission of the copyright holders.
In the file of court cases for 2025, there are several satisfied Outfit7 lawsuits against entrepreneurs and companies. The minimum compensation for trademark infringement is 10 thousand rubles, but when selling several types of products, the amount of the penalty may be higher — from 30 thousand to 60 thousand, not counting court costs.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
