The estate said that the licensing of the “The Lord of the Rings”-themed gambling products had tarnished Tolkien's legacy.
– UA’s distributor – and its subsidiaries had asserted rights to a variety of products not covered by the agreement, including hotel, restaurant and gaming merchandise. Tolkien's estate granted merchandising rights to United Artists back in 1969 as part of a film deal for the fantasy novels but said that Warner Bros. released “The Lord of the Rings” and “The Hobbit” movie trilogies through its subsidiary New Line Cinema. had unlawfully exploited its limited merchandising rights to release downloadable video games as well as gambling slot machines that were sold to casinos all over the world. In November 2012, Tolkien's estate claimed that Warner Bros. over merchandising rights to the author’s most famous works, “The Lord of the Rings” and “The Hobbit.” Tolkien’s estate has settled copyright-infringement claims against Warner Bros.
