the series) that controls the Macross intellectual property. However, a 2003 ruling in the Tokyo District Court ruled that Tatsunoko Productions had the authorship rights to the franchise. This was against an October 2002 ruling where the design of the Valkyrie was awarded to Studio Nue. The license Tatsunoko was given was for international distribution outside Japan only, and does not allow them to control the intellectual property. In November 2016, Harmony Gold initiated arbitration against Tatsunoko, to which Tatsunoko responded with counterclaims. With the exception of the original visual depictions of 41 characters, which are owned by Big West Advertising not Tatsunoko, the arbitrator found that Harmony Gold had the rights to Super Dimension Fortress Macross, Super Dimension Cavalry Southern Cross, and Genesis Climber MOSPEADA until their expiry on March 14, 2021, as per the licensing agreement. Harmony Gold also holds several trademarks related to Macross and its trademark for the Macross series was renewed on December 26, 2012. The expiration date for these was set to take place ten years from that date, on December 26, 2022. On April 14, 2018, Harmony Gold's case against Harebrained Schemes was dismissed with prejudice, being in a long line of legal battles that Harmony Gold has withdrawn from, regarding "Mech" imagery, of which they had previously claimed ownership and invention of. On July 5, 2019, Harmony Gold confirmed that their license with Tatsunoko had been renewed again, extending their ownership of the Macross franchise's co-copyright past the original 2021 expiration date. While a specific number of years was not given for the length of this extension, Harmony Gold chairman Frank Agrama stated that the company will "look forward to the next 35 years of working with Tatsunoko and world class business partners on Robotech." On April 8, 2021, Harmony Gold and Big West announced that the two companies have reached an agreement which was signed on March 1, 2021, regarding to the Macross and Robotech franchise, officially allowing international distribution on the Macross franchise while also recognizing Harmony Gold's license with Tatsunoko on using characters and mecha from Macross in Robotech globally except Japan and affirming that Big West will not to take any opposition on Harmony Gold's upcoming live action adaptation of Robotech. Both Harmony Gold and Big West will cooperate on future projects for the foreseeable future. Titles Films Abe & Bruno (2005) American Strays (1996) Ball & Chain