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‘The Glass House’ Premieres Live Feeds – A Yak’s Thoughts

ABC’s newest reality television show premiered it’s online component Tuesday afternoon on the show’s official website. If you missed the action, you can get a full-fledged recap in our very first Live Feed Update and Discussion thread right in our forums and get an idea of what the show’s producers had in mind for our first look inside the house and at the contestants. While Twitter and our forums were abuzz with mixed reviews of the hour’s glimpse at the show under fire for being Big Brother-esque, we wanted to take a step back and analyze the good, bad and the ugly from today’s live feeds and suggest ways the viewer experience can be enhanced. You can also let the production team at ABC know how you want them to tackle the show by tweeting your suggestions with #GHTellMeWhatToDo or #PeopleInGlassHouses. Production claims to be reading that timeline very closely. So let’s get right into it.

The Good

BedroomAn Early Look Into The House | While we don’t want to draw comparisons between The Glass House and Big Brother, we do have to point out this simple fact. Giving fans a glimpse of the new houseguests in the house through a live feed almost a week before the television premiere is a stroke of genius. Fans of Big Brother have always complained that a lot of the “good stuff” is missed when we go 7-10 days some seasons before we get any peek inside the house. A lot of the introductions, initial impressions, alliance formations, secret chats are missed when more than a week is squeezed into an hour premiere. Introducing America to the cast before the television premiere was a smart move on ABC’s part to keep itself distinct from the show many are comparing it to.

Getting America Involved | Enhancing the viewer experience is also a noticeable strength of the show. Inspired through instant polls located on the website, America can “vote and view” all at the same time. Watching your votes and thoughts get incorporated into the game is a plus. If ABC’s lucky, this enhancement in the viewer’s experience can make a difference in the show’s reception this summer.

Watching Competitions on Live Feeds | Based on the initial live feed broadcast, those interested in the new ABC show got a glimpse at what might have been the show’s first “competition” of the season. While not much production was involved in this competition, watching the houseguests interact and form opinions without any editing was a plus. Granted, they all followed a group mentality mostly, but we’re focusing on the good, so we won’t go into that.

Video on Demand | ABC’s official Glass House site has uploaded VOD clips containing footage of the houseguests since the move into the house. While we might not receive a 24/7 feed, it’s nice to get clips of the houseguests upon first moving into the house before we get a peek at them during the television premiere. Cool feature. Hopefully we’ll get some game play clips coming on soon.

The Bad

Involving Production on Day 1 | Today was our first peek at the new cast and the new house. They had just moved in. In order for us to get to see their personalities without any kind of production tinkering, it would have been really nice to get a glimpse at their conversations. We can see who is chatting it up with who, what they are talking about, etc. It’s clear that they are probably unaware of what they can and cannot say on feeds, who signed released, what is copyrighted information and such, but production could mute out or switch feeds if those instances arose. Seeing the cast as their normal selves first would have given America more desire to vote in the instant polls later this week.

Live Feed Timing | In all honesty, whoever was in charge of the decision making process of when to air the live feeds online wasn’t thinking clearly. No matter which way you look at it, the majority of America is either outdoors or working during the summertime. 3-4pm EST or Noon – 1pm PST is not an hour of the day where you can pick up social interaction from people you’re trying to target to become fans of your show. Choosing an hour in the evening when people are gathered around, ready to watch television or spend time online might prove to be more effective. The show is supposedly centered around the social interaction from fans, so one would think that choosing a time to garner and build interest would follow. We won’t even go into the fact that fans can access the live feeds during select times each day. It minimizes the viewer experience, no?

A Plethora of Misinformation (Or No Information At All) | Did you even know The Glass House live feeds kicked off today? If not, you weren’t alone. It seemed that fan-made sites, twitter and facebook accounts were better at spreading the word around than the network itself. We know there is an ongoing lawsuit lingering over the show’s future, but until word has been declared, this show is still on. Under that mindset, there should have been more information given through entertainment and media outlets that the feeds kicked off today and that America’s involvement was going to play a huge role. It took up until a half-hour before the feeds kicked off for confirmation from the network to arise on ABC’s twitter account. Those interested even had no idea if the feeds would come through the network’s official site or some other platform or media player. While that is now cleared up, it did not help the kick off event earlier today.

All in all, there were a few pros and cons about today’s The Glass House live feed kick off. Straying from comparisons to Big Brother, what did you all think about the concept? Anything else you’d like to add to the list? Will you be tuning in tomorrow to see if the feeds event is similar? More importantly, will you be tuning in Monday June 18 when The Glass House premieres at 10/9c on ABC! Don’t forget to join us in our FORUMS for on going discussion about everything reality TV this summer and beyond.

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Inside ‘The Glass House’ – Photos Revealed

With The Glass House houseguests (is that term also copyrighted, CBS?) moving in today as schedule, ABC has revealed photos of the new house where the game will take place this summer. Time is winding down, but CBS is still trying to put an end to the show before it even starts. As of now, Glass House is slated to premiere on the ABC Network Monday June 18 at 10/9c! The live feeds will kick off TOMORROW June 12 (as opposed to originally scheduled June 11) at 3pm EST. Fans will be able to peek at the hamsters in the house made of glass on Monday from 11pm – 3am EST and on Tuesdays – Thursdays from just 3pm – 4pm EST.

Self Proclaimed Yak in the Glass House

ABC has kicked off the live voting on their official website. Head on over HERE to cast your votes! In the meantime, check out the pics below. What do you think of the house? Will you be watching the feeds? Will you catch the show? Let us know below! We’ll also be doing live feed updates for The Glass House in our FORUMS, so be sure to join us!

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‘The Glass House’ Producer Grilled 7 Hours in ‘Big Brother’ Deposition

If you thought CBS would take a step back and leave ABC to their wits in airing The Glass House, well you thought wrong. ABC announced the cast of their inaugural season yesterday and CBS is STILL trying to put a stop to this show. Touted as a Big Brother rip-off, CBS has left threatening letters for ABC, while ABC has not stayed quiet and fired back. Less than 2 weeks before The Glass House is set to premiere, CBS has taken the aggressive route in putting an end to these shenanigans.

As we previously reported, CBS is suing ABC, arguing that the show violates trade secrets and threatens to leak production secrets, as at least 19 former Big Brother employees now work under the ABC show. ABC is vehemently denying the claims, stating that Glass House is not a rip-off and is far from the CBS summer hit. On May 31, CBS filed a motion to expedite the court’s process in preparation for a preliminary injunction. In turn, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter, ABC has fired its own complaint.

Read ABC’s Court Filing Here

Per reports, a hearing took place on Friday where ABC was demanded to turn in a number of up-to-date documents outlining their plans for the upcoming season of Glass House. According to legal papers, Kenny Rosen, Glass House producer and former Big Brother producer, was deposed for 7 hours on Sunday. During the deposition, he was grilled about Glass House and whether any Big Brother trade secrets were used in the upcoming ABC production. As CBS struggles to find out what Glass House really is (join the club), it’s been difficult for their lawyers to effectively put an end to this competing program.

Late Monday, CBS filed papers proposing an expedited schedule for the court to gather more papers from Glass House production. U.S. Discrict Court Judge Gary Fees is ironically the third judge to preside over this case, as the previous two have recused their responsibility.

According to THR, the proposed schedule argues that “CBS undeniably has an interest in stopping the irreparable harm caused by Defendants’ ongoing misappropriation of trade secrets, infringement of Big Brother’s copyright, and other unlawful activity (including spoilaiton of evidence)…For these reasons, CBS intends to seek a TRO [temporary restraining order] preventing the ongoing production and imminent airing of Glass House on June 18.”

ABC has already fired back claiming that CBS’s claims are preposterous. “…it is misleading—and frankly irrelevant to the legal claims—that Mr. Rosen said he hired more than twenty people with prior experience on Big Brother…What CBS does not tell this Court is that Mr. Rosen also testified that the vast majority of these people worked with Mr. Rosen more recently on a different reality show, Hell’s Kitchen, that has nothing to do with Big Brother. It is true that Mr. Rosen hires people with whom he has experience working on reality shows; there is nothing improper about that.” The argument stresses that “It is preposterous for CBS to argue that a one-page outdated master control room schedule from an old season of Big Brother is a trade secret.”

Now, please allow this writer a moment to editorially comment regarding the story above. This back and forth battle is becoming a little bit ridiculous. Glass House, while arguably a Big Brother knockoff, is not the first show to be spun into creation inspired by a rival network’s show. Why is NBC not firing at Fox for their upcoming dating mockery, The Choice, which clearly mimics The Voice’s format to a “T”? Would CBS be working this hard if there weren’t so many former producers working on ABC’s new show? Does this determination hint at some underlying work environment issue with Big Brother than just merely exposing “trade secrets?”

At this point, CBS needs to give it a rest. Glass House will likely air, in its entirety, no matter what. The fans will decide and the ratings will speak for themselves. At this rate, CBS is helping ABC immensely with the free publicity, since Glass House is strategically premiering almost 4 weeks before Big Brother 14. Fans will be able to peek at the hamsters in the house made of glass on Monday from 11pm – 3am EST and on Tuesdays – Thursdays from just 3pm – 4pm EST. ABC will permit LIVE voting starting June 9, while the live streaming will kick off June 11. The show will premiere on the ABC network on Monday June 18 at 10/9c! Big Brother 14 premieres on CBS on Thursday July 12 at 9/8c!

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‘The Glass House’ ~ Just How Will It Work?

Ever since ABC unveiled plans for their new summer reality TV program, The Glass House, questions arose as to what the show’s format will be. How many weeks? How will America be involved? How will the Live Feeds work? Is this a Big Brother wannabe? And those are just some of the questions.

CBS Threatens ABC with Lawsuit over Reality Show

Well, we hope to clear up some of the lingering questions with the info we’ve gathered. As we previously announced, live streaming will be available during predetermined times. Fans will be able to peek at the hamsters in the house on Monday from 11pm – 3am EST and on Tuesdays – Thursdays from just 3pm – 4pm EST. ABC will permit LIVE voting starting June 9, while the live streaming will kick off June 11.

So what will we be voting on? Well, 14 houseguests will enter the house and participate in challenges, while America dips their finger in on the fun. Each week, someone will be eliminated with the sole survivor being deemed winner. The catch? The winner will be voted by America! Besides deciding who should stay and leave, America will also have a hand in affecting everything from what the houseguests wear, eat, where they sleep, and who can even re-enter the game for another chance!

ABC v. CBS: The Saga Continues

Each week, America will have a hand in choosing team captains. The two houseguests with the fewest votes from the public will be the team captains for the challenge of the week. This is where a new feature, “Limbo,” comes in. Once a team loses a challenge, the losing team’s captain enters this purgatory like stage with another member from his/her team that the house decides on. Limbo is equivalent to, if you will, Big Brother’s jury house. The difference? Someone from limbo will be allowed to re-enter the game for a second chance. From there, America will eventually decide who deserves a second chance.

Now, as for the voting, ABC notes that there will be both “daily voting” and “live stream voting.” Daily voting will likely affect the things in the house that we previously mentioned – things that will affect on-air episodes. However, America will get a shot at immediately affecting the outcome of the game during special live-stream votes. The show’s first season will air 10 episodes.

So, what do you think? Now that we know a little bit more, is this a Big Brother rip-off that fans and CBS claim? Are you now more or less likely to watch?

The Glass House premieres June 18 at 10/9c on ABC!

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Big Brother v. Glass House: The Saga Continues…

ABC is not taking the threats from CBS over their upcoming show ‘Glass House’ lying down. ABC, in response to the eye network claims it’s new reality show is NOT stealing any trade secrets from ‘Big Brother’ stating that nothing about ‘Big Brother’ is a secret.

ABC’s responses is official, filed in the court in response to CBS’ lawsuit, asking the judge to throw out the absurd and “over-the-top” lawsuit immediately. According to court documents, ABC calls the stealing of Big Brother “outrageous” because “there is nothing secret about editing a program with multiple feeds together or developing a narrative structure for it. That is reality TV.” They go on to say that using hidden cameras, having contestants in isolation etc. is not new and should not be considered a “trade secret” as CBS is claiming.

ABC made note in the court filing that there are many differences between the two shows. For one, ‘Glass House’ will be a team oriented game rather than a single individual game. They also say the reason so many old Big Brother employees came on board with ‘Glass House’ leaving CBS and Big Brother behind is that it is “common knowledge in the industry that low pay and the 24 hours a day/7 days a week filming schedule makes life on the Big Brother set difficult,” going on to say that “employees prefer a different show with benefits and better hours is hardly evidence of a trade secret violation.”

ABC is asking the judge to deny all demands and accusations filed from CBS so it can begin production on it’s show. No ruling has yet been made.

Who do you believe? Is ‘Glass House’ just a rip off of ‘Big Brother’ or is CBS just trying to quell any competition? Will you be watching?

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CBS Lawyers Threaten ABC Over New Big Brotheresqe Show ‘Glass House’

Update: CBS has followed through on their bluff. Reports have surfaced of CBS taking it one step further with their threat on ABC’s Glass House and suing the network for their alleged Big Brother rip-off. CBS reportedly wants a judge to put an end to production on the ABC summer reality TV show, after ABC refused to back down to CBS’s cease and desist letter found below. Noted in the suit filed earlier today, “If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery,” the suit begins, “then CBS should take pride in ABC’s latest reality TV project. Glass House, which remarkably employs at least 19 former producers and staff from CBS’ hit reality TV series Big Brother, is a carbon copy of Big Brother and an obvious attempt by Defendants to capitalize on its unique success. CBS therefore brings this action to halt and recover its damages from Defendants’ ongoing infringement of its rights in Big Brother.” It went on to say that Glass House “replicates every key aspect of Big Brother, including, among other things, its plot, themes, mood, setting, pace, characters, sequence of events, and other concrete elements.”

Read the full lawsuit thanks to The Hollywood Reporter.

According to the Hollywood Reporter, CBS lawyers are threatening ABC over a recently announced reality show called Life in a Glass House, which CBS is alleging is a rip off of their long time running Reality Show Big Brother, currently going into it’s 14th season this summer.

CBS Executives sent a cease-and-desist letter today to ABC executives Anne Sweeney and Alan Braverman. According to CBS lawyer Scott Edelman of the Gibson Dunn firm, Glass House is “strikingly” similar to Big Brother. “In the strongest possible terms, we must admonish ABC and anyone involved in the development or production of Glass House that they will be acting at their own peril if they continue to proceed in this manner,” Edelman writes, “and that CBS has instructed us to pursue all available remedies if this course of conduct continues.”

Read the Letter Here (Courtesy of The Hollywood Reporter)

According to THR, “CBS also claims that the new ABC series is being produced by Big Brother veterans who might reveal private information about the inner workings of the show. Specifically, ABC alternative development executive Corie Henson is a Big Brother alum, and both Kenny Rosen and Mike O’Sullivan worked on the show. Those individuals also received similar cease and desist letters.”

“Even worse, CBS is informed that Glass House is being produced by a team of at least 18 former members of CBS’ Big Brother production staff — all of whom were privy to trade secrets and other confidential, proprietary information and signed broad and binding non-disclosure agreements in connection with Big Brother,” the letter reads.

The Hollywood Reporter has contacted ABC for comment but has not yet heard back. We will update you if they get a response.

What do you think? Too much like Big Brother? Will CBS win this one? Leave us a comment below!