Television and Production Exponents Inc. executives insisted that they own even the ideas made by the former Eat Bulaga writers who left their company together with Tito Sotto, Vic Sotto and Joey de Leon on May 31, 2023.
In an interview, TAPE Inc. responded to former Eat Bulaga host Tito Sotto who claimed that their former Vice-President for Creatives and Production, Jenny Ferre, owned some of the segments in the noontime show.
Ferre was behind their popular segments of Eat Bulaga, including “Kalyeserye,” “Pinoy Henyo,” Bawal Judgmental,” and “Juan for All, All for Juan,.”
However, TAPE officials said that Ferre was being paid by their company to create segments for them.
“Wala ba siyang sweldo? Diba, it’s part of her job to create that?” Jalosjos said. “Huwag na natin pahirapan pa. Yung mga writers ng isang show, puwede ba nila i-claim na sa kanila na yun while they’re being paid salaries, allowances?”
“While you’re being paid to be [a] creative, and then what you created is yours? Is that right?” he added.
Despite their claims, TAPE Inc. didn’t use the said segments in the revamped version of Eat Bulaga for unknown reasons.
They also insisted they have documents, including contracts to prove their claims.
“Kaya nga, why are they claiming na sa kanila? Wala nga silang proof na sa kanila.” they said.
“Any creative idea within that span of period, that’s company-owned,” they added.
It can be recalled that Sotto said that the law stated that the copyright for the Eat Bulaga title and its segments were owned by its creators.
“For us, we follow, ika nga, the international rule. Even in the Supreme Court jurisprudence here in the Philippines and abroad, the creators are the owners,” Sotto explained.
“When you create something, at the moment of creation, you are the owner,” he added.