Comcast Urged To Settle With Byron Allen

A major shareholder is pressuring Comcast to back down from its thorny legal battle with comedian-turned-TV producer Byron Allen.

According to The NY Post, New York City Comptroller Scott Stringer — who oversees $208 billion in city pension money — is urging the cable giant to end its racial discrimination dispute with Allen by arguing that a win could cast Comcast as a civil-rights opponent.

“There is significant potential for enduring damage to Comcast’s brand and reputation, as well as its relationships with shareholders, customers, suppliers, and federal, state and local governments, if the company’s name becomes synonymous with a court decision that impedes civil rights,” Stringer wrote to Comcast’s billionaire chairman and CEO, Brian Roberts, in a letter Tuesday.

Allen, an African-American businessman who owns The Weather Channel and media company Entertainment Studios, told The Post he would “love” it if Comcast heeded Stringer’s advice and settled the case. He agrees there will be backlash if Comcast prevails in its case, which is currently being reviewed by the US Supreme Court.

“Brian Roberts can call me up, and we can resolve this in less than an hour,” Allen said. “But maybe he needs to see his stock go down 50 percent before he gets going.”

Allen sued Comcast in 2015, saying race was a factor in the cable giant’s refusal to air channels from his Entertainment Studios Network, citing Comcast’s decision to carry white-owned channels with similar sized audiences.

Comcast says it rejected Allen’s channels because of their low viewership and has argued that Allen needs to show that race was not just a motivating factor, but also the only factor, to win.

That has watchers worried that a Supreme Court ruling for Comcast will throw cold water on the Civil Rights Act of 1866, which is the basis for Allen’s suit and a bedrock of equal rights statutes. The Reconstruction-era law gives all citizens the right to “make and enforce contracts … as is enjoyed by white citizens.”

Stringer pointed to “deep concern” from civil-rights advocates that the case could have broader implications. For instance, 11 groups led by the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund argued in a September brief that Comcast’s arguments would put an “impossible” burden on victims of discrimination pursuing claims in the courts.

Reached by The Post on Tuesday, Comcast indicated no willingness to let the case go.