Carter Bryant

After nearly three months of courtroom testimony, the bitter dispute between toy giant Mattel Inc. and rival MGA Entertainment Inc. over ownership of the sassy Bratz doll line was sent to a jury for deliberations. A verdict could come as soon as next week. The jury heard final arguments in the copyright infringement case in federal court in Santa Ana on Friday in front of a packed courtroom that included the chief executives of both companies. A major point of contention centers on when and where Bratz creator and former Barbie designer Carter Bryant came up with the idea for the wildly popular multi-ethnic dolls known for their oversized heads, pouty lips and risque clothing.

Toy maker Mattel Inc. reported positive fourth-quarter and full-year results Tuesday after healthy holiday sales of core brands and doll lines, including Hot Wheels, American Girl and Barbie. For the three months that ended Dec. 31, the El Segundo company reported a profit of $370.6 million, or $1.07 a share, a 14% jump from $325.2 million, or 89 cents a share, in the same quarter of 2010. Fourth-quarter sales totaled $2.15 billion, a 1% increase from the year-earlier period.

A federal judge ordered toy giant Mattel Inc. to pay bitter rival MGA Entertainment Inc. more than $309 million in damages, fees and other costs in the long-running dispute over the billion-dollar Bratz doll line and rejected Mattel's bid for a new trial. Isaac Larian, the outspoken chief executive of Van Nuys-based MGA, said he was thrilled by the decision by U.S. District Judge David O. Carter, which he called a "step in the right direction. " "I feel vindicated and I'm very excited," he said in an interview.

A federal judge ordered toy giant Mattel Inc. to pay bitter rival MGA Entertainment Inc. more than $309 million in damages, fees and other costs in the long-running dispute over the billion-dollar Bratz doll line and rejected Mattel's bid for a new trial. Isaac Larian, the outspoken chief executive of Van Nuys-based MGA, said he was thrilled by the decision by U.S. District Judge David O. Carter, which he called a "step in the right direction. " "I feel vindicated and I'm very excited," he said in an interview.

Score one for the little guy. In siding with MGA Entertainment Inc. over rival Mattel Inc. in the retrial over who owns the rights to the billion-dollar Bratz doll franchise, a federal jury said the toy giant had not proved its allegations of copyright infringement. What's more, some jurors said they sympathized with MGA's plight as a small company trying to compete with the industry behemoth. "I don't think anyone should be able to bully someone and own everything," said juror Nadine Done, 22. The eight-person jury unanimously rejected Mattel's copyright infringement claims; said Mattel did not own the rights to the dolls, early models or sketches; and said MGA did not steal trade secrets.

The mother of Bratz designer Carter Bryant said her son showed her the original sketches for MGA Entertainment Inc.'s pouty, multiethnic fashion dolls in 1998, when he was living in Missouri and not working for Mattel Inc. Janet Bryant's videotaped testimony was shown in federal court in Riverside, where a jury will be asked to decide when Carter Bryant, a former Mattel Barbie designer, made the original Bratz drawings. If Mattel can prove he made the drawings while he worked there, the toy maker can seek hundreds of millions of dollars in damages from MGA.

Toy maker Mattel Inc. reported positive fourth-quarter and full-year results Tuesday after healthy holiday sales of core brands and doll lines, including Hot Wheels, American Girl and Barbie. For the three months that ended Dec. 31, the El Segundo company reported a profit of $370.6 million, or $1.07 a share, a 14% jump from $325.2 million, or 89 cents a share, in the same quarter of 2010. Fourth-quarter sales totaled $2.15 billion, a 1% increase from the year-earlier period.

Mattel Inc. said it filed suit against a former employee, accusing him of working for a rival and violating his employment contract with Mattel. The suit charges that Carter Bryant secretly worked for a competitor while still employed by the El Segundo-based toy maker and that he misappropriated intellectual property, Mattel said. Mattel declined to comment on which competitor Bryant worked for.

Mattel won the big battles in the Barbie vs. Bratz trial, but it may have lost the financial war. A jury in federal court Tuesday awarded Mattel Inc. as much as $100 million in a copyright infringement case against MGA Entertainment Inc., which brought out the hugely popular Bratz dolls in 2001. But that's about 5.5% of the $1.8 billion that Mattel asked of the jury. "MGA wins on this one, big time," said Margaret Whitfield, an analyst with Sterne Agee & Leach. "That amount maybe just covers Mattel's legal expenses, with a little left over."

The bitter battle over ownership of the Bratz dolls has grown more acrimonious, with toy giant Mattel Inc. seeking a mistrial following scathing remarks made on the stand by the chief executive of rival MGA Entertainment Inc. In his testimony this week, Isaac Larian, the colorful and outspoken head of MGA, contended that the stress from the years-long dispute with Mattel killed his father, destroyed his family and caused Bratz creator Carter Bryant...

Score one for the little guy. In siding with MGA Entertainment Inc. over rival Mattel Inc. in the retrial over who owns the rights to the billion-dollar Bratz doll franchise, a federal jury said the toy giant had not proved its allegations of copyright infringement. What's more, some jurors said they sympathized with MGA's plight as a small company trying to compete with the industry behemoth. "I don't think anyone should be able to bully someone and own everything," said juror Nadine Done, 22. The eight-person jury unanimously rejected Mattel's copyright infringement claims; said Mattel did not own the rights to the dolls, early models or sketches; and said MGA did not steal trade secrets.

Robust sales of dolls helped Mattel Inc. report an 8% sales increase for the first quarter, but higher costs at the world's No. 1 toy maker — including increased legal fees for the prolonged Bratz trial — led to a significant drop in profit. For the three months that ended March 31, sales totaled $951.9 million, compared with $880.1 million for the same quarter a year earlier, the company said Friday. Profit fell 33% to $16.6 million, or 5 cents a share, from $24.8 million, or 7 cents.

After nearly three months of courtroom testimony, the bitter dispute between toy giant Mattel Inc. and rival MGA Entertainment Inc. over ownership of the sassy Bratz doll line was sent to a jury for deliberations. A verdict could come as soon as next week. The jury heard final arguments in the copyright infringement case in federal court in Santa Ana on Friday in front of a packed courtroom that included the chief executives of both companies. A major point of contention centers on when and where Bratz creator and former Barbie designer Carter Bryant came up with the idea for the wildly popular multi-ethnic dolls known for their oversized heads, pouty lips and risque clothing.

The bitter battle over ownership of the Bratz dolls has grown more acrimonious, with toy giant Mattel Inc. seeking a mistrial following scathing remarks made on the stand by the chief executive of rival MGA Entertainment Inc. In his testimony this week, Isaac Larian, the colorful and outspoken head of MGA, contended that the stress from the years-long dispute with Mattel killed his father, destroyed his family and caused Bratz creator Carter Bryant...

Mattel Inc., the world's largest toy maker, reported strong fourth-quarter and full-year results Wednesday thanks to healthy sales of core brands and doll lines including Barbie, American Girl and Monster High. For the three months ended Dec. 31, the El Segundo company reported profit of $325.2 million, or 89 cents a share, compared with $328.4 million, or 89 cents, in the same quarter a year earlier. Fourth-quarter sales totaled $2.12 billion, a 9% increase from the year-earlier quarter; sales in the U.S. were up 11%. The fourth quarter is the most important time of the year for toy makers, with many seeing nearly 40% of their sales come during the holiday rush.

It's the Battle of the Bratz, the sequel. Bitter toy rivals Mattel Inc. and MGA Entertainment Inc. were back in court Tuesday to renew their years-long battle over who owns the billion-dollar Bratz, the sexy-with-an-attitude dolls that debuted a decade ago and deeply cut into Mattel's Barbie empire. During the first trial in 2008, a jury in Riverside found that Bratz inventor and former Barbie designer Carter Bryant was in Mattel's employ when he developed the concept for the immensely popular dolls.

Never has the birth date of a doll been so important -- worth possibly billions of dollars. At the Barbie vs. Bratz face-off in federal court Thursday, the battle in the dueling copyright infringement lawsuits was largely over the date the phenomenally successful Bratz dolls were created. Mattel Inc. -- home of the Barbie empire -- alleges in its suit that the dolls were secretly created by one of its employees and then taken to rival MGA Entertainment Corp., which makes the Bratz line.

Mattel Inc. on Friday won a judge's permission to proceed with copyright-infringement claims against MGA Entertainment Inc. and Carter Bryant, the designer of MGA's Bratz dolls. U.S. District Judge Stephen Larson, in an order filed in Riverside, agreed that Mattel's 1999 agreement with Bryant, a former employee, wasn't ambiguous and that the company could claim rights to work he did while at Mattel. "The inventions agreement explicitly conveys to Mattel an employee's interest in any copyrights or copyright applications," Larson said in his ruling.

Mattel won the big battles in the Barbie vs. Bratz trial, but it may have lost the financial war. A jury in federal court Tuesday awarded Mattel Inc. as much as $100 million in a copyright infringement case against MGA Entertainment Inc., which brought out the hugely popular Bratz dolls in 2001. But that's about 5.5% of the $1.8 billion that Mattel asked of the jury. "MGA wins on this one, big time," said Margaret Whitfield, an analyst with Sterne Agee & Leach. "That amount maybe just covers Mattel's legal expenses, with a little left over."

The maker of pouty-lipped Bratz dolls owes toy giant Mattel Inc. nearly $2 billion for stealing its conceptual drawings for the urban-themed toys, a Mattel attorney said Wednesday during closing arguments in the damages phase of a copyright infringement lawsuit. The jury ruled last month in the first phase of the federal trial that the designer of MGA Entertainment Inc.'s Bratz dolls, Carter Bryant, came up with the concept while working for Mattel. The jury also found that Los Angeles-based MGA aided in the breach of contract, and its chief executive, Isaac Larian, played a role in the deal.