Seven’s Stokes Expected to Appeal Court Decision

SYDNEY, July 30: According to Australian press reports,
Kerry Stokes, the executive chairman of Seven Network, is expected to appeal
the broadcaster’s dismissed lawsuit over its defunct pay-TV channel C7,
reportedly igniting the ire of shareholders who are already concerned about the
legal action’s A$200 million ($170 million) bill.

Seven lodged the controversial suit in 2002, alleging that
News Corporation, PBL, Telstra and others colluded to win out AFL and NRL
sports rights in order to drive the pay-TV sports channel C7 out of business
(the channel was shuttered in 2002). On Friday, the Federal Court dismissed the
case, with Justice Ronald Sackville calling the estimated A$200 million spent
on the legal action “not only extraordinarily wasteful, but borders on the
scandalous.”