Comcast, DirecTV Settle HDTV Lawsuit
It seems the HDTV battle is raging.
Comcast and DirecTV have settled a lawsuit regarding Comcast HDTV advertisements that DirecTV considered to be misleading.
I would be curious to know what the terms where. How was this settled?
Though terms of the deal will remain private, Comcast will be allowed to continue citing a study it commissioned from Frank N. Magid Associates that said most viewers preferred Comcast HDTV to DirecTV.
At least Comcast was pleased with the outcome. Where was the DIRECTV spokesman, er, spokeswoman?
“We’re pleased to have settled the outstanding litigation on a basis that’s mutually satisfactory,” a Comcast spokeswoman said in a statement.
65 percent eh? It doesn’t sound that overwhelming. Seems more like, uh, that one looks best I guess…
The Magid study, which Comcast released in May, found that 65 percent of those polled favored Comcast picture quality over DirecTV. Participants were asked to look at HDTV content on three identical TV sets, and select which one had the highest quality. One set displayed a picture from Comcast, while the others had content from DirecTV and Dish Network.
So I wonder where Dish Networked ranked. No lawsuit from them?
Following the study’s release, Comcast took out full-page newspaper ads in 15 markets that touted its HD picture quality as superior to DirecTV and Dish. DirecTV subsequently filed suit, claiming the ad campaign was false and misleading.
Oh, here’s the DIRECTV spokesman. Sure they are pleased…
“The parties are pleased that they have settled the outstanding litigation on a basis mutually satisfactory,” a DirecTV spokesman said in a statement. “The specific terms are confidential.”
Wow, HDTV is hot right now.
The announcement follows several HDTV-related lawsuits for DirecTV of late. In August, the satellite provider settled a lawsuit with Time Warner Cable over DirecTV ads that said DirecTV was superior to cable offerings. DirecTV also reportedly settled a case with Cox Communications over Cox ads that cited the Comcast study.
