Broadcasters’ Suit Against DISH’s Ad-Skipping Feature to Continue in CA

NEW YORK: A New York federal judge has sided with the broadcasters in the legal spat over DISH’s AutoHop feature, ruling that the case should be tried in California, as requested by FOX, CBS and NBC.

DISH had asked a federal judge in New York to stop broadcasters from pursuing lawsuits in California over its ad-skipping service, which allows subscribers to automatically skip advertisements. The judged ruled that the copyright-infringement lawsuits should be tried in Los Angeles, where FOX, CBS and NBC filed suit.

"We are pleased that the court has determined that FOX, as the true victim and plaintiff here, should have the right to proceed in its chosen forum in the 9th Circuit," FOX said in a statement. "Now we move on to the real issue at hand—demonstrating that Dish Network has created and marketed a product with the clear goal of breaching its license with FOX, violating copyrights and destroying the fundamental underpinnings of the broadcast television business, which damages not only FOX and the other major networks, but also the hundreds of local stations around the country. We look forward to trying and winning the case on its merits."