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Judge orders Comcast trial in antitrust complaint

PhillyDeals: Cable subscribers will get a jury trial on whether Comcast overcharged up to $875 million.

    by Joseph N. DiStefano
    Published 
e Third Amended Complaint alleges that Comcast entered into
agreements with its competitors to allocate the nation’s regional cable markets amongst themselves
through swaps of their respective cable assets.  The Class alleges that, as a result of all the swap
agreements, Comcast unreasonablyrestrained trade and willfullyobtained and maintained monopoly
power in the relevant geographic market, the Philadelphia direct marketing area (“DMA”).  The
Class contends that Comcast has used its monopoly power to raise cable prices to artificially high,
supra-competitive levels.  For the following reasons, we grant Comcast’s motion for summary
judgment on the Class’s section 1 claim, insofar as it charges that Comcast’s conduct was a per se
violation of the antitrust laws.  We also grant the motion in part on the Class’s section 2 claims.