ABC, CBS, FOX & NBC Sue Free Streaming App Locast

ABC, FOX, CBS and NBC have filed a lawsuit in a New York District Court against Locast, which streams local broadcast TV stations over the internet in select U.S. cities for free.

“Locast is a public service to Americans,” the company says on its website. It is available in cities such as New York, Boston, Los Angeles and San Francisco, among others.

The suit by the networks has been filed against David R. Goodfriend, a former DISH Network executive who founded the service, and Sports Fans Coalition NY, alleging copyright infringement by Locast. “Locast is not a public service devoted to viewers whose reception is affected by tall buildings,” the plaintiffs allege in the suit. “Nor is Locast acting for the benefit of consumers who, according to Locast when promoting its purportedly free service, ‘pay too much.’ Locast is not the Robin Hood of television; instead, Locast’s founding, funding and operations reveal its decidedly commercial purposes.”

The suit maintains that Goodfriend, as a lobbyist for DISH, has pushed for reform of retransmission fees. “Locast serves as the direct action complement to DISH’s and Mr. Goodfriend’s lobbying efforts, providing them with self-help if they cannot persuade Congress or the FCC to eliminate or devalue broadcasters’ right to compensation for retransmission consent.” The suit also states that AT&T “recently disclosed a ‘donation’ of $500,000 to Locast.”

“These two for-profit businesses provide Locast with valuable nationwide distribution of the Locast app on the internet-connected set-top boxes of their subscribers. At the same time, Locast provides these two major distributors with commercial benefits that include the ability (a) to avoid obtaining retransmission consent from local stations to include local stations in their pay-TV offerings by integrating the Locast app into their customers’ set-top boxes; (b) to gain leverage in negotiations with broadcast stations over retransmission consent rights to offer their subscribers access to broadcast channels; and (c) for DISH, to promote a version of its Sling TV internet television service that does not carry local broadcast channels by telling potential customers that they can ‘supplement’ Sling TV by getting the broadcast channels via Locast. Locast is not the noncommercial, community public service it purports to be. It is a strategic play funded by and functioning for the benefit of decidedly commercial interests.”

The suit adds, “Through its unauthorized streaming of plaintiffs’ copyrighted programming, Locast is diverting users from legitimate streaming services offered by plaintiffs or plaintiffs’ legitimate licensees.”

The plaintiffs are seeking damages and a permanent injunction.

Responding to the suit, David Hosp, counsel to Locast, issued a statement noting, “Locast is an independent, non-profit organization that provides a public service retransmitting free over-the-air broadcasts. Its activities are expressly permitted under the Copyright Act. The fact that no broadcasters have previously filed suit for more than a year and a half suggests that they recognize this. We look forward to defending the claims—and the public’s right to receive transmissions broadcaster over the airwaves—in the litigation.”