SECURITIES
AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON,
D.C. 20549
_____
FORM
8-K
Current
Report
Pursuant
to Section 13 or 15(d)
of
the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Date
of
Report (Date of earliest event reported):
October
19, 2006 (October 18, 2006)
JAKKS
PACIFIC, INC.
(Exact
Name of registrant as specified in its charter)
|
Delaware
(State
or other jurisdiction of incorporation)
|
0-28104
(Commission
File Number)
|
95-4527222
(I.R.S.
Employer
Identification
No.)
|
|
22619
Pacific Coast Highway
Malibu,
California
(Address
of principal
executive
offices)
|
90265
(Zip
Code)
|
Registrant's
telephone number, including area code: (310) 456-7799
Check
the
appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously
satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following
provisions (see General Instruction A.2. below):
oWritten
communications
pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)
oSoliciting
material
pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)
oPre-commencement
communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR
240.14d-2(b))
oPre-commencement
communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR
240.13e-4(c))
JAKKS
PACIFIC, INC.
INDEX
TO FORM 8-K
FILED
WITH THE SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
OCTOBER
19, 2006
ITEMS
IN FORM 8-K
| Page | |||
| Facing Page | 1 | ||
| Item 8.01 | Other Events | 3 | |
| Signatures | 4 |
2
Item
8.01 Other
Events
THQ,
Inc.
(“THQ”) and THQ/JAKKS PACIFIC LLC (the “LLC”) yesterday announced that a lawsuit
by World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. against THQ and the LLC, involving a
claim previously reported by us in our periodic filings concerning allegedly
improper sales of WWE video games in Japan and other countries in Asia, was
filed on October 12, 2006 in the Connecticut state court.
A
copy of
such release is annexed hereto as an exhibit.
3
SIGNATURES
Pursuant
to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Registrant
has
duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto
duly authorized.
| JAKKS PACIFIC, INC. | ||
| |
|
|
| Dated: October 19, 2006 | By: | /s/ Joel Bennett |
| Joel Bennett | ||
|
Executive
Vice President and Chief Financial
Officer
|
||
4
FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Liz
Pieri
THQ/Media
Relations
818/871-5061
lpieri@thq.com
Julie
MacMedan
THQ/Investor
Relations
818/871-5125
jmacmedan@thq.com
Genna
Rosenberg
JAKKS
Pacific/Media Relations
310/455-6235
gennar@jakks.net
THQ
AND THQ/JAKKS PACIFIC LLC
ISSUE
STATEMENT
AGOURA
HILLS, Calif. - October
18, 2006 - THQ Inc. (NASDAQ: THQI) and THQ/JAKKS Pacific LLC (the “LLC”) today
announced that a lawsuit was filed on October 12, 2006 in Connecticut state
court by World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. against THQ and the LLC, involving
a claim previously reported in Securities and Exchange Commission filings
concerning allegedly improper sales of WWE video games in Japan and other
countries in Asia. The lawsuit seeks, among other things, a declaration that
the
WWE is entitled to terminate the video game license and monetary damages. THQ
and the LLC believe the lawsuit is without merit and we intend to defend
ourselves vigorously.
About
THQ Inc.
THQ
Inc.
(NASDAQ: THQI) is a leading worldwide developer and publisher of interactive
entertainment software. The company develops its products for all popular game
systems, personal computers and wireless devices. Headquartered in Los Angeles
County, California, THQ sells product through its global network of offices
located throughout North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. More information
about THQ and its products may be found at www.thq.com
and
www.thqwireless.com.
THQ,
THQ Wireless and their respective logos are trademarks and/or registered
trademarks of THQ Inc.
About
JAKKS Pacific, Inc.
JAKKS
Pacific, Inc. is a multi-brand company that designs and markets a broad range
of
toys and consumer products. The product categories include: Action Figures,
Art
Activity Kits, Stationery, Writing Instruments, Performance Kites, Water Toys,
Sports Activity Toys, Vehicles, Infant/Pre-School, Plush, Construction Toys,
Electronics, Dolls, Dress-Up, Role Play, and Pet Toys and Accessories. The
products are sold under various brand names including JAKKS Pacific®, Play
Along®, Flying Colors®, Creative Designs International™, Road Champs®, Child
Guidance®, Pentech®, Trendmasters®, Toymax®, Funnoodle®, Go Fly a Kite®, Color
Workshop®, JPI™ and Plug It In & Play TV Games™. JAKKS
and
THQ Inc. participate in a joint venture that has worldwide rights to publish
and
market World Wrestling Entertainment video games. For further information,
visit
www.jakkspacific.com.
The
statements contained in this press release that are not historical facts may
be
“forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are based on
current expectations, estimates and projections about the business of THQ Inc.
and its subsidiaries (collectively referred to as “THQ”), including, but not
limited to, expectations and projections related to the WWE lawsuit, and are
based upon management’s current beliefs and certain assumptions made by
management. Such forward-looking statements are subject to risks and
uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those
expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, including, but not
limited to, business, competitive, economic, legal, political and technological
factors affecting our industry, operations, markets, products or pricing.
Readers should carefully review the risk factors and the information that could
materially affect THQ’s financial results, described in other documents that THQ
files from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including
its Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal
period ended March 31, 2006, and particularly the discussion of risk factors
set
forth therein. Unless otherwise required by law, THQ disclaims any obligation
to
update its view on any such risks or uncertainties or to revise or publicly
release the results of any revision to these forward-looking statements. Readers
are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements,
which speak only as of the date of this press release.
This
press release may contain forward-looking statements (within the meaning of
the
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995) that are based on current
expectations, estimates and projections about JAKKS Pacific's business based
partly on assumptions made by its management. These statements are not
guarantees of future performance and involve risks, uncertainties and
assumptions that are difficult to predict. Therefore, actual outcomes and
results may differ materially from what is expressed or forecasted in such
statements due to numerous factors, including, but not limited to, those
described above, changes in demand for JAKKS' products, product mix, the timing
of customer orders and deliveries, the impact of competitive products and
pricing, and difficulties with integrating acquired businesses. The
forward-looking statements contained herein speak only as of the date on which
they are made, and JAKKS undertakes no obligation to update any of them to
reflect events or circumstances after the date of this
release.
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