DirecTV to Pay $9.4 Million to Settle Small Business Class Action Lawsuit
DirecTV has agreed to establish a fund of $9.4 million to settle a class action lawsuit that claimed the company intentionally set up minority-owned small businesses with residential accounts so the company could later fine them for using those accounts for their businesses.
The settlement class is made up of all businesses and business owners in the United States who had DirecTV services installed in their commercial establishment, who were subsequently audited by Defendant Signal Auditing Inc. and who at any time from Aug. 4, 2012, through Aug. 23, 2022, received communications from the Lonstein Law Offices PC or Wayne Lonstein or Julie Cohen Lonstein on behalf of DIRECTV seeking money for allegedly unauthorized use of DirecTV licensed programming, including NFL Sunday Ticket or any other DirecTV-related programming.
The lead plaintiffs in the lawsuit were owners of a barber salon, a lounge, a cafe, a smog test center and a restaurant, respectively. The business owners alleged they purchased television programming from DirecTV, then were contacted by the Lonstein Law, claiming they were displaying DirecTV programming in a commercial setting without a license to do so.
Read the source article at topclassactions.com