According to the Associated Press, New York State Supreme Court Justice Walter Tolub has granted a petition by filmmaker Spike Lee which, temporarily at least, will keep Viacom from rebranding its TNN cable network as SPIKE TV.  Lee's attorney Johnny Cochran argued that the network was deliberately attempting to cash in on Spike Lee's name and image.  The Judge agreed, noting that there were numerous celebrities who were known only by their first name or a surname including Sting, Cher, Madonna, and Liza.  While Lee ostensibly won this first round he was required to post a $500,000 bond to cover Viacom's costs if it wins the suit.

Viacom's TNN network, formerly known as The Nashville Network, has been searching for an identity.  With a masculine-oriented lineup that includes Baywatch, Star Trek, and WWE wrestling, the network decided to position itself as the antipode of women's networks like Oxygen and settled on SPIKE TV as a suitably masculine appellation.  The network has also added an 'adult animation block' known as 'The Strip' (see 'Spike TV Adds Animation Block'), which includes Stan Lee's Stripperella and the Kelsey Grammar-voiced Gary the Rat.  The network also just announced a Consumer Products Division, which has already licensed Palisades Marketing to create a new line of Ren & Stimpy action figures and resins (see 'SPIKE TV Launches Consumer Products Division').  The switchover from TNN to SPIKE TV was supposed to take place today, but Judge Tolub's decision has made that impossible.