SPIKE LEE - SPIKE LEE'S MOVE TO COST NETWORK 'MILLIONS'

LATEST: SPIKE LEE's so-far successful bid to keep a network from changing its name to SPIKE TV will lose parent company VIACOM $16.8 million (GBP10.5 million) - in its first week.

25TH HOUR director Lee, who claims the name change is a deliberate attempt to hijack his image and prestige, won a preliminary injunction last week (ends13JUN03) barring TNN from calling itself Spike TV from Monday (16JUN03).

In papers filed at the APPELLATE DIVISION Viacom says it stopped displaying the Spike TV logo on television screens at12:01 am on Monday, when the name change was supposed to occur, because of the ruling.

Court papers say, "We have already obtained commitments from advertisers for 2003 and 2004 in excess of $100 million (GBP62.5 million) - specifically predicated on use of the Spike TV name. Should we not be able to use the name, the commitments would be in severe jeopardy."