Middle-earth Enterprises, formerly known as Tolkien Enterprises, is a subdivision of the Embracer Freemode division of Embracer Group

In 2022, Embracer Group purchased Middle-earth Enterprises from The Saul Zaentz Company.

Background and history

J. R. R. Tolkien, the author of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, sold the film, stage and merchandising rights of those works to United Artists in 1969. They in turn sold them to The Saul Zaentz Company in 1976, which in turn formed Tolkien Enterprises, now named Middle-earth Enterprises, in 1977. United Artists retained distribution rights.

In 1977, Rankin/Bass licensed the rights to produce an animated version of The Hobbit, which was broadcast on NBC. In 1978, Tolkien Enterprises and the distributor United Artists funded and released an animated version of The Lord of the Rings directed by Ralph Bakshi, which covered approximately the first half of The Lord of the Rings. producing further titles up to the release of The Lord of the Rings: Conquest in 2009, when the licensing agreement expired. Video game rights then passed to Warner Brothers.

In 2010, the name was changed to Middle-earth Enterprises. In 2020, Cubicle 7 lost the rights, which were then relicensed to Free League Publishing, which published the second edition of The One Ring in 2021 and later a D&D-compatible version in late 2022.

In 2022, Middle-earth Enterprises was purchased by Embracer Group, the parent company of THQ Nordic.

In March 2012, The Hobbit, a pub in Southampton, England, received documents from Middle-earth Enterprises alleging copyright infringement of its name. The Hobbit pub continues to trade under that name as of October 2020. The Hungry Hobbit café in Birmingham, near where J. R. R. Tolkien grew up, was also threatened with legal action in 2011. These actions incurred backlash from many

British public figures such as Stephen Fry, who described at as "senseless" bullying.

In November 2012, the Tolkien Estate, trustee and publishers sued Middle-earth Enterprises, Warner Bros., and New Line Cinema for infringing Tolkien's copyrights by producing casino and video games using his characters. The original license to Tolkien's works was limited to the right to sell "tangible" products such as "figurines, tableware, stationery items, clothing, and the like", but did not cover "electronic or digital rights, rights in media yet to be devised or other intangibles such as rights in services". Tolkien's estate claimed that the defendants' actions had caused "irreparable harm to Tolkien's legacy". The lawsuit spent five years in discovery and was settled "amicably" out of court in July 2017, before a trial was held.

In March 2025, Middle-earth Enterprises failed in its attempt to oppose a request by vegan fast food chain Lord of the Fries to protect the three key words "Lord of the", which the company had used in its name for over 15 years.

Licenses

the company's current licensees are as follows:

  • Adaptations:
  • New Line Cinema/Warner Bros. – film rights.
  • Kevin Wallace Ltd for stage productions of The Lord of the Rings.
  • Video games:
  • 2000-2004: Sierra Entertainment - for an adaption of both of the books The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings.
  • 2004-2009: Electronic Arts – for games based on both books in addition to the official The Lord of the Rings film trilogy license from New Line Cinema.
  • Post 2009: Warner Bros. Games – for games based on both books in addition to the official Peter Jackson's film series.
  • Daybreak Game Company – for an online role-playing game, The Lord of the Rings Online, originally developed by Turbine for Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment.
  • 2019: Daedalic Entertainment/Nacon – for the video game The Lord of the Rings: Gollum (2023).
  • 2022: North Beach Games – for the video game The Lord of the Rings: Return to Moria (2023).
  • 2022: Electronic Arts – for the mobile game The Lord of the Rings: Heroes of Middle-earth.
  • Other games:
  • Games Workshop PLC for a range of miniatures games (Middle-earth Strategy Battle Game) and Battle Games in Middle-earth magazine.
  • Game Systems International Ltd. (Games Systems Inc.) for Middle-Earth Play-By-Mail released by Game Systems Inc. and the One Ring module of Legends (PBM) released by Harlequin Games.
  • Card games:
  • Wizards of the Coast's Magic: The Gathering's The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth (2023-)
  • Fantasy Flight Games' The Lord of the Rings: The Card Game (2011-2022)
  • Decipher's The Lord of the Rings Trading Card Game (2001-2007)
  • Iron Crown Enterprises' Middle-earth Collectible Card Game (1982-2000)
  • Roleplaying games:
  • Free League Publishing The One Ring and The Lord of the Rings Roleplaying (since 2020)
  • Cubicle 7's The One Ring Roleplaying Game and Adventures in Middle-earth (2011-2020)
  • Decipher's The Lord of the Rings Roleplaying Game (2001-2006)
  • Iron Crown Enterprises' Middle-earth Role Playing (1982-2000)
  • Mithril Miniatures for ranges of 32 mm and 54 mm scale metal miniatures.
  • US Games Systems Inc. – a Lord of the Rings based tarot card deck and game.
  • Collectibles:
  • Danbury Mint for a variety of related merchandise such as film cells, watches and goblets.
  • Lladró Comercial, S.A.
  • Royal Selangor International for a range of pewter goblets, tankards and chess pieces.

See also

  • Tolkien Estate, hereditary owners of the copyrights to Tolkien's works
  • :Category:Works based on Middle-earth, containing adaptions of Tolkien's works on Middle-earth
  • Middle-earth in video games, a history of video and computer game adaptions, both licensed and unlicensed

References

  • Middle-earth Enterprises website