• by Wayne Friedman , April 1, 2009

The "Project Runway" winner goes to... Lifetime. The long-running, public-legal tussle of the now-former Bravo cable network reality show will go where The Weinstein Company, the show's producer, had originally intended: the Lifetime cable network.

But this did not come without some compensation. According to a press release, Weinstein will pay NBC Universal, which owns Bravo, an undisclosed amount to give up the successful, high-profile cable series.

Harvey Weinstein, co-chairman of The Weinstein Co., said in a release: "I want to personally congratulate Jeff Zucker [president/ CEO of NBC Universal] and NBC Universal on their success in the litigation and thank Jeff for resolving this in a professional manner. We look forward to working together on our ongoing projects."

Andrea Wong, president/CEO of Lifetime Networks, said in a release: "I couldn't be more excited that Lifetime will bring its viewers an amazing, all-new season of "Project Runway" this summer."

According to court documents, Weinstein Co. last year agreed to a $200 million five-year deal with Lifetime that included the airing of "Project Runway," two TV spinoffs and a slate of theatrical movies. At the time of the signing, Weinstein was given a $20 million advance from Lifetime.

NBC Universal sued The Weinstein Company last year, claiming it had the right of first refusal on any new deal. "Runway" ran for five seasons on Bravo.

A court-ordered injunction prevented the Weinstein Co. and Lifetime from promoting or airing the show, originally scheduled to air in its sixth season in November 2008, then scheduled for this past January.

The delay also caused Lifetime some snafus with national advertisers. After the court instituted the injunction, media executives say the network made a rare move in giving cash back to marketers.

--David Goetzl contributed to this story.