U.S. sues DirecTV for illegal information trading during Dodgers talks

Reuters.com reports that the U.S. Justice Department filed a lawsuit on Wednesday against AT&T’s (T.N) DirecTV, alleging it acted as a ringleader to illegally swap information with rival pay-TV providers about negotiations over showing Dodgers baseball games in the Los Angeles area.

The department said DirecTV, before its 2015 acquisition by AT&T, exchanged confidential information with Cox Communications, Charter Communications (CHTR.O) and AT&T, to get leverage against Time Warner Cable, which distributes a channel showing Dodgers games in Los Angeles.

These companies have refused to carry the SportsNet LA channel, a partnership between the Dodgers baseball team and Time Warner Cable, contending that carriage fees sought by Time Warner Cable were too high.

Read more at http://www.reuters.com/article/us-att-justice-antitrust-idUSKBN12X21K