DOJ Says No Reason to Modify AT&T RSN Proposed Final Judgment

The proposed final judgment on DirecTV's coordinating with Charter Communications, Cox Communications and AT&T in those MVPDs' negotiations with SportsNet LA is effective and an appropriate remedy for the antitrust claims, the DOJ said in a comment published Friday in the Federal Register. DOJ also said it will ask U.S. District Court in Los Angeles for entry of the proposed final judgment. It said it received one comment on the proposed final judgment by the June 13 deadline, with the commenter urging a separate lawsuit against Time Warner Cable, owner of the Dodgers Channel and now part of Charter. DOJ said the comment sought relief beyond that included in the proposed final judgment, such as requiring DirecTV carry Dodgers games, but the agency said no additional relief is needed to prevent DirecTV from information-sharing agreements like the one alleged in the 2016 antitrust suit (see 1611040035). Under the proposed settlement, AT&T won't directly or indirectly communicate or seek competitively sensitive information from any MVPD, except for a lawful purpose (see 1703240005). DirecTV's now-owner AT&T didn't comment.