Court expedites Comcast, DirecTV false advertising case

While Comcast (Nasdaq: CMCSA) lost its attempt to get a court order stop DirecTV (Nasdaq: DTV) from running an ad campaign that it claims is misleading consumers, the MSO did get a judge to expedite a hearing for the case.

On Tuesday, a federal judge in Illinois denied Comcast's request to slap DirecTV with a temporary restraining order that would block it from running ads for its NFL Sunday Ticket subscription package. In a complaint filed Aug. 3, Comcast claims DirecTV is misleading consumers by advertising that they can receive Sunday Ticket for free.

"We're pleased the judge recognized Comcast's veiled attempt to limit our ability to compete in the marketplace and denied the TRO," DirecTV senior VP of marketing and direct sales Jon Gieselman said in a statement the company released Tuesday. "We're happy to go head-to-head with Comcast any day on whose service is superior, so we look forward to competing in the marketplace rather than the courtroom."

Comcast downplayed Tuesday's decision, noting that the court agreed to expedite its request for a preliminary injunction hearing. The court is expected to hear arguments from Comcast and DirecTV attorneys later this month.

"We are proceeding with our lawsuit against DirecTV to force them to advertise fairly to consumers," Comcast said in a statement released Wednesday morning. "It is misleading to advertise the NFL Sunday Ticket as 'free' or 'no additional cost' when it, in fact, costs hundreds of dollars."

For more:
- see Bloomberg's story about Tuesday's decision

Related article:
Comcast accuses DirecTV of false advertising