Herring's complaint against DirecTV and AT&T said the lawsuit is an attempt "to redress the unchecked influence and power that Defendants have wielded in an attempt to unlawfully destroy an independent, family-run business and impede the right of American television viewers to watch the news media channels and programs of their choice."ĭirecTV announced the decision to drop OAN in January 2022 amid pressure from advocacy groups. While Herring Networks "has fended off an effort to kill its breach-of-contract suit" entirely, the ruling means it "might be out of luck claiming a loss 'exceeding $1 billion,'" the Times of San Diego wrote. The ruling's conclusion said, "The court strikes all claims, with the exception of the breach of contract claim to the extent that claim is premised on DirecTV disclosing the expiration date of the current Affiliation Agreement." Herring "adequately alleged a breach of the confidentiality provision" and "would at a minimum be entitled to nominal damages" if it wins on that claim at trial, the judge wrote. The one Herring Networks claim that survived the ruling is an allegation that DirecTV violated a confidentiality agreement by publicly disclosing the expiration date of the OAN carriage contract. (AT&T completed a spinoff of DirecTV in 2021 but still owns 70 percent of the satellite provider.) Advertisement "While we've anticipated this positive outcome, we're pleased the judge has ruled in our favor and stricken OAN's central claims regarding our decision to not renew a commercial agreement with the programmer," DirecTV said in a statement provided to Ars. We contacted Herring Networks about the ruling and will update this article if we get a response.ĭirecTV said it expected the ruling in its favor. A Times of San Diego report said that at the hearing, "three Herring lawyers and five representing the defendants went along with a tentative ruling issued Thursday night." Meyer issued the opinion on Thursday as a "tentative ruling," then held a five-minute hearing on Friday. DirecTV: “We’ve anticipated this positive outcome” "As to the breach of the implied covenant claim, to the extent it is based on the non-renewal of the Affiliation Agreement, the claim fails because the agreement contains a fixed expiration date and no provision entitling Herring to a renewal," the ruling said. DirecTV had filed an anti-SLAPP (strategic lawsuits against public participation) motion to strike the Herring Networks complaint DirecTV's motion was granted in part and denied in part. Most of OAN's claims were thrown out in a ruling issued last week by Judge John Meyer of California Superior Court in San Diego County. Instead, DirecTV waited until the carriage agreement expired and chose not to renew it. The lawsuit always seemed like an uphill battle for Herring Networks because DirecTV didn't take OAN off the air while they still had a carriage agreement. OAN-owner Herring Networks had sued DirecTV and its owner AT&T in March 2022, claiming breach of contract. One America News Network's owner lost a key ruling in a lawsuit against DirecTV over the TV provider's decision to drop OAN from its channel lineup.
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