Comcast Proposes $50 Million Settlement in Philadelphia-Area Class-Action Suit
Comcast filed a proposed $50 million settlement in U.S. District Court in Philadelphia Tuesday in a bid to end an almost 11-year-long class-action lawsuit involving current and former subscribers in Philadelphia and the surrounding counties of Bucks, Chester, Delaware and…
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Montgomery. The proposed settlement, agreed to by the plaintiffs, would include $16.67 million in cash and $33.33 million in services credits. Each current subscriber to video programming services other than solely basic cable would be eligible for a one-time $15 bill credit or up to $43.90 worth of Comcast services, such as a six pay-per-view movies or a two-month subscription to The Movie Channel. Comcast subscribers who don’t seek the $15 rebate or one of the offered services packages will automatically receive the free two-month subscription to The Movie Channel without needing to file a claim, Comcast said in the settlement papers. Former subscribers who file a claim will receive a one-time payment of $15 cash, Comcast said. If the U.S. District Court accepts the settlement, Comcast will be required to post notices in print media and on TV stations, and via a website. Plaintiffs sued Comcast in December 2003, claiming the cable company was overcharging subscribers because it had a monopoly in the Philadelphia-area cable market. More than 2 million current and former Comcast subscribers were part of an earlier plaintiff class seeking $875 million, but the pool narrowed after the Supreme Court overturned the larger class certification in March 2013 (see 1303280052). A Comcast spokeswoman said the company had no comment beyond the settlement filing.