Sports & Entertainment

Sports:

• Though antitrust charges are in play in the U.S. Department of Justice's investigation into the NFL's deals with services like Amazon Prime and Netflix, experts say they don't see a strong federal case against the league's broadcasting practices, as focus may shift to updating a decades-old law governing how sports leagues negotiate television deals. What the DOJ's NFL investigation could mean for networks, fans - ESPN
• A federal judge threw out most of a former Pennsylvania State University trustee's lawsuit against the university and its board Friday but let his First Amendment claims continue so that the court could consider whether he was acting as a public employee, a private citizen or an elected official. Ex Penn State Trustee Lawsuit Update - ABC23
• A California federal jury has awarded $11.8 million to a Los Angeles Dodgers fan who was shot with a police projectile, which permanently damaged his vision, during a downtown celebration of the baseball team's World Series victory in 2020. LA to pay $11.8M to man blinded by projectile during Dodgers celebration | AP News
• Fanatics Inc., the NBA, the NFL and MLB told a New York federal judge her dismissal of an antitrust suit brought by consumers who bought trading cards from Fanatics should also sink a class action lodged by indirect purchasers. Lawsuit alleging Fanatics, leagues monopolizing sports card industry dismissed - The Athletic

Entertainment:

MUSIC

• Live Nation and its Ticketmaster subsidiary harmed competition in the live entertainment sector by willfully monopolizing ticketing services to major concert venues and unlawfully tying artists' use of large amphitheaters to Live Nation's promotional services, a Manhattan federal jury found. What concertgoers should know about the Live Nation and Ticketmaster verdict | AP News
• A NJ federal judge has granted concert merchandise company Merch Traffic LLC a preliminary injunction and seizure order authorizing law enforcement officers to confiscate allegedly counterfeit Bruce Springsteen merchandise ahead of upcoming performances, including an April 20 show in the Prudential Center in Newark. Federal Judge Grants Injunction Against Counterfeit Bruce Springsteen Merchandise Ahead of Newark Concert – Legal News Feed
• Spotify USA Inc. and various music publishers won a collective $322 million from Anna’s Archive—along with its effective shuttering—after the online shadow library didn’t appear in the case, payments the platforms are unlikely to ever receive. Spotify and Major Labels Win $322M in Music Piracy Lawsuit

FILM & TELEVISION

• More than 1,000 Hollywood actors, directors and screenwriters have penned a letter opposing the $110 billion takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. by Paramount Skydance Corp., citing concerns about job losses and higher costs with fewer choices for consumers. Hundreds in Hollywood declare opposition to Paramount-Warner deal | AP News Meanwhile, on the other side of the pond, the deal is set to face a UK antitrust probe in coming weeks after the Competition and Markets Authority sought views on the merger’s impact on British consumers. Paramount-Warner Bros: UK Competition Watchdog Seeks Views On Deal
• Chinese AI companies have urged a CA federal court to throw out allegations from Disney, Warner Bros. Discovery and Universal that their service has been stealing the studios' intellectual property, calling it "ironic" that the case about artificial intelligence is "entirely artificial." Chinese AI Companies Challenge Disney, WB, Universal's Allegations in California Federal Court - IIPLA

LAWSUITS OF THE RICH & FAMOUS

• Rapper Cardi B has urged a FL bankruptcy judge to sanction Tasha K, alleging the bankrupt YouTuber has been defying the terms of her own Chapter 11 Subchapter V plan by continuing a pattern of disparaging comments that had led to a nearly $4 million defamation judgment. Cardi B Seeks Sanctions Against Tasha K For Talking Offset & Stefon Diggs
• A lawsuit filed in L.A. Superior Court alleges the rapper Ye attacked a man at the Chateau Marmont for no reason, with the "cowardly" assault leaving him unconscious and injured. Kanye West sued for battery over Chateau Marmont altercation - Los Angeles Times
• Larry King's estate sued operators of a prostate health supplement company in CA state court, alleging they continued using his name and likeness to advertise their product even after striking a legal settlement agreeing to stop. Larry King’s estate sues prostate pill maker over featuring late TV legend in ads