Paparazzi agency goes bankrupt over coronavirus and Meghan Markle

Los Angeles (USA), March 24 (EFE) .- The agency specializing in paparazzi photographs Splash News has declared bankruptcy after being unable to bear the costs to defend itself against a complaint for invasion of privacy filed by Meghan Markle.

The company, which formalized its request on Tuesday in a court in Nevada (USA), cited “financial problems derived from three sources”: The first due to the current pandemic, which has reduced the work of the paparazzi; and the others for two legal battles, one labor-related and the other against Markle.

“As a result of the global pandemic, the ability to take photos of celebrities has decreased and the budgets of media companies have also been reduced,” explains Splash president Emma Curzon in the bankruptcy filing.

As noted by The Hollywood Reporter newspaper, the paparazzi profession has been particularly affected by the coronavirus, since photographers cannot find famous people on the streets.

“The situation has been exacerbated by two ongoing litigation and the costs of defending these cases,” adds Curzon.

The first lawsuit is a lawsuit for a labor matter, while the second stems from a complaint filed by Markle when one of the company’s photographers photographed the family and their newborn son, Archie, in a private garden in Canada without their consent.

Although the Duke and Duchess of Sussex agreed with the company that their paparazzi would no longer take unauthorized photos of the family, the case went to court as an alleged “invasion of privacy” offense.

“The case involves issues related to freedom of expression under UK law and, unfortunately, it has turned out to be too costly for Splash to continue his defense,” the president said.

However, this paparazzi agency, whose full name is Splash News & Picture Agency, became popular for suing celebrities, such as Jennifer López and Liam Hemsworth, who published photographs in which they appeared on their social networks that were taken by their photographers, claiming proprietary rights. EFE

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