Byron Allen’s Entertainment Studios Networks said it has “resolved and withdrawn” its lawsuit against Charter Communications.
The one-sentence joint statement from Entertainment Studios and Charter did not elaborate on whether Allen’s TV channels would now be carried by Charter or if any money changed hands.
Allen sued Charter in 2016 claiming that the cable company’s refusal to carry Entertainment Studio’s channels was racially motivated. Allen was seeking $10 billion in damages.
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A Federal District court ruled against a motion by Charter to dismiss the suit last August.
The judge, George Wu, said that Allen had met the requirements for filing discrimination suits and said that pre-trial disclosures should proceed and discovery could begin.
“Charter once again tried to claim in a court of law that the First Amendment gives them the right to discriminate against Black people. This is a despicable, racist legal position, and I’m highly-confident Charter CEO Tom Rutledge and the Charter Board of Directors will be held fully accountable,” Allen, the founder and CEO of Entertainment Studios, said at the time.
In June of 2020, Allen resolved a suit against Comcast that reached the U.S. Supreme Court.
Comcast wound up carrying The Weather Channel, other Entertainment Studios Channels, including Comedy.TV and JusticeCentral.tv, and 14 broadcast television stations owned by Allen.
“We’re excited to begin a new phase of partnership with Comcast and Xfinity, including the distribution of our cable channels for the first time on Xfinity platforms,” Allen said in a statement at the time.
