Tri-Star Pictures, Inc. v. Unger

The Situation

Tri-Star Pictures, which owned the rights to the movie "The Bridge on the River Kwai," accused Unger of trademark infringement when it produced a movie entitled "Return from the River Kwai."

NERA's Role

NERA was retained by Tri-Star Pictures to develop two surveys. The first survey was designed to test whether "The Bridge on the River Kwai" had achieved secondary meaning, and the second was designed to test whether moviegoers were confused into thinking that "Return from the River Kwai" was a sequel or otherwise connected to "The Bridge on the River Kwai." NERA's experts conducted the surveys, analyzed the data, submitted a report, and testified at trial concerning their conclusion that "Bridge" had achieved secondary meaning and “Return” had confused moviegoers into believing that the two movies were related.

The Result

After a trial, the court credited both surveys and ruled in favor of Tri-Star Pictures.