NFL, Networks Hit With Antitrust Lawsuit

Five plaintiffs who have purchased Sunday Ticket from DirecTV have filed a class action lawsuit against the NFL and its teams, as well as DirecTV, CBS, ESPN, Fox and NBC, claiming that exclusive distribution agreements have driven up the cost of pro football telecasts in violation of antitrust law.

According to Variety, the lawsuit, filed on Friday in U.S. District Court in New York, takes aim at NFL Sunday Ticket, calling the distribution agreement “unique among American sports” and claiming that it has enabled the defendants to charge “exorbitant prices,” as much as $359 per season.

“Bars, restaurants, hotels and other commercial establishments have it even worse,” the lawsuit states. “Limited to only one source for the football programming that many of their customers demand, commercial establishments pay anywhere from $1,458 per year to more than $120,000 per year — as much as 10 times more than they pay for other sports packages.”

The plaintiffs in the case operate venues including Bounce Sporting Club in Manhattan, Pedal Haus Brewery in Arizona and Gringo Star Street Bar in Arizona. All purchased NFL Sunday Ticket, as did Oakland’s Jonathan Frantz, another plaintiff. Among other things, they challenge the bundling of games, noting that they must pay for access to all 32 teams games even if they are only interested in viewing one or two teams.

The suit claims that “tens of thousands if not hundreds of thousands” of class members were injured.

The lawsuit contends that the NFL agreements with DirecTV violate antitrust law and “allow the NFL to unlawfully monopolize the market for live video presentation of professional football games,” shutting out other potential distributors.