ESPN Files Breach of Contract Suit Against Verizon

ESPN filed a breach of contract complaint against Verizon in New York State Civil Court Monday over its offering of "skinny bundles" that don’t include all of ESPN’s offerings. ESPN wants the court to enjoin Verizon from offering the bundles and seeks damages, the complaint said. “Consumers have spoken loud and clear that they want choice, and the industry should be focused on giving consumers what they want,” responded a Verizon spokesman via email: “We are well within our rights under our agreements to offer our customers these choices.” "ESPN is at the forefront of embracing innovative ways to deliver high-quality content and value to consumers on multiple platforms, but that must be done in compliance with our agreements," ESPN said. "We simply ask that Verizon abide by the terms of our contracts.” The American Cable Association issued a news release in support of Verizon Monday. “Verizon deserves credit for putting this programming cost issue in the national spotlight by offering a small-sized service that programmers say their contracts do not permit,” ACA said. “Responses by the large programmers to the Verizon’s Custom TV plan only underscore what everyone already knew -- programming contracts prohibit cable operators from giving their customers more of the choice that they want.”