Judge Grants Preliminary OK of 4 Settlements in Local TV Advertising Case
Plaintiffs in Local TV Advertising Antitrust Litigation entered into four separate proposed settlements, said a Wednesday order (docket 1:18-cv-06785) in U.S. District Court for Northern Illinois in Chicago. U.S. District Judge Virginia Kendall approved preliminary settlements with CBS, Fox, Cox…
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Media and ShareBuilders. Defendants CBS, Fox, the Cox Entities and data-tracking firm ShareBuilders agreed last month (see 2305300073) to a $48 million settlement with advertisers in the long-running antitrust lawsuit stemming from a 2018 DOJ investigation of ad price collusion that arose during inquiries into the failed Sinclair/Tribune deal (see 2306120057). In the settlement, Cox, CBS and Fox agreed to provide information and testimony that could help the advertisers as the litigation continues against broadcasters that aren’t part of the settlement, including Nexstar, Sinclair and Gray. The agreements were arrived at by “arm’s-length negotiations by highly experienced counsel,” meet all factors under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23(a), 23(b)(3), and 23(e), and will likely be granted final approval by the court, Kendall said. The court appointed attorney Megan Jones of Hausfeld as settlement class counsel. Plaintiffs One Source Heating & Cooling, ThoughtWorx, Hunt Adkins and Fish Furniture will be class representatives for the settlement classes.