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\u201cAs the complaint explains, Dodgers fans were denied a fair competitive process when DIRECTV orchestrated a series of information exchanges with direct competitors that ultimately made consumers less likely to be able to watch their hometown team,\u201d said Deputy Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Sallet of the Justice Department\u2019s Antitrust Division. \u00a0\u201cCompetition, not collusion, best serves consumers and that is especially true when, as with pay-television providers, consumers have only a handful of choices in the marketplace.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n The Department of Justice in its lawsuit filed Wednesday also sued DIRECTV’s corporate successor, AT&T, for acting as the ringleader of a series of unlawful information exchanges.<\/span><\/p>\n These exchanges occurred among DIRECTV and\u00a0three of its competitors \u2013 Cox Communications Inc., Charter Communications Inc. and AT&T \u2013 during the companies\u2019 negotiations to carry SportsNet LA.<\/span><\/p>\n SportsNet holds the exclusive rights to telecast almost all live Dodgers games in the Los Angeles area, according to authorities.<\/span><\/p>\n![\"criminal_justice_jurisprudence](\"https:\/\/cjnotebook.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/criminal_justice_jurisprudence-2.jpg\")
The federal government sued DIRECTV for contributing to a blackout that deprived many fans of opportunity to watch the Los Angeles Dodgers on TV for the last three seasons, according to officials.<\/span><\/p>\n