Comcast claims that the US Supreme Court should step in and shut down a monopolization lawsuit over the TV ad placement market, arguing a federal appeals court improperly gave a green light to claims it illegally refused to do business with rival Viamedia, reported Bloomberg.
“Compelled cooperation between rivals contradicts antitrust law’s goal of encouraging competition, and courts are ill-suited to policing the rare exceptions to the general rule,” the company says. “The Seventh Circuit’s expansive approach to refusal-to-deal liability upends this court’s intentional limits on such claims.”
The suit accuses Comcast of leveraging its control over its “interconnect,” a regional clearinghouse for TV advertising availabilities, to force a boycott of Viamedia, its sole competitor in the market for ad placement services in Chicago, Detroit, and Hartford, Conn.
Comcast also refused to let Viamedia use the interconnect at all, the suit states. The “tying” tactic and outright refusal to deal allegedly combined to drive Viamedia out of the three regional markets.
After a federal judge in Chicago threw out the case in 2018, a divided US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit revived it in February.
Featured News
Google ExecAdmitted Firm’s Goal Was to “Crush” Digital Ad Rivals, According to Court Docs
Sep 11, 2024 by
CPI
Former Michigan Football Stars File $50 Million Antitrust Lawsuit Against NCAA
Sep 11, 2024 by
CPI
Oasis Fans Could Be in Line for Ticket Refunds Amid Antitrust Concerns
Sep 11, 2024 by
CPI
FCC Chair Calls for More Competition to SpaceX’s Starlink Network
Sep 11, 2024 by
CPI
Singapore Salon Director Jailed for Contempt in Consumer Protection Case
Sep 11, 2024 by
CPI
Antitrust Mix by CPI
Antitrust Chronicle® – Canada & Mexico
Sep 3, 2024 by
CPI
Competitive Convergence: Mexico’s 30-Year Quest for Antitrust Parity with its Northern Neighbor
Sep 3, 2024 by
CPI
Competition and Digital Markets in North America: A Comparative Study of Antitrust Investigations in Mexico and the United States
Sep 3, 2024 by
CPI
Recent Antitrust Development in Mexico: COFECE’s Preliminary Report on Amazon and Mercado Libre
Sep 3, 2024 by
CPI
The Cost of Making COFECE Disappear
Sep 3, 2024 by
CPI