A lawsuit against a high-priced season ticket has resulted in a heavy fine against the NFL, the American football league.
The American football league NFL was convicted on Thursday, June 27, for colluding with several broadcasters to set high prices for subscriptions to one of its flagship programs. Found guilty of abuse of a dominant position by a jury following a federal trial, the NFL will have to pay some $4.7 billion in damages, according to several American media outlets.
In 2015, the owners of a San Francisco pub, the Mucky Duck, sued the NFL for its management of the “Sunday Ticket” program, which allows, for a subscription, to watch all matches not involving the local team(s). They accused the American football league of having used its monopoly to establish unjustified rates, with the agreement of the CBS and Fox channels, which broadcast the matches on terrestrial television, and the DirecTV satellite package, which holds the rights to the “Sunday Ticket”.
Class action on behalf of 2.4 million subscribers
The procedure had been reclassified as a class action, on behalf of 2.4 million subscribers and 48,000 commercial establishments.
Thursday’s ruling could threaten the NFL’s seven-year, $14 billion contract with the current “Sunday Ticket” broadcaster, YouTube, which took over from DirecTV last year. The league has said it plans to challenge the ruling in court.
The parties can file appeals, which will be heard by U.S. District Judge Philip Gutierrez in late July. The judge will then decide whether to uphold, vacate or modify the verdict. If upheld, federal law provides for triple damages, which would bring the NFL’s total to $14 billion.
