Hours before a class-action lawsuit was set to begin between Major League Baseball and its fans, a settlement was reached Tuesday that will increase viewing options and reduce prices, reports Jacob Emert in today’s The Washington Post.
In 2012, lawyers representing the fans claimed teams and some television network entities had violated antitrust laws by colluding to enforce strict regional boundaries for airing games and in doing so limited or even eliminated competition in certain areas and allowed the price to be driven artificially high.
Major League Baseball has had an antitrust exemption for more than 100 years, but in 2013 U.S. District Judge Shira Scheindlin ruled that was not a suitable defense in this case.