Comcast Corp.'s Comcast Cablevision of Indianapolis did not deceive its
customers when it allowed some expanded-basic channels to run 'in the open,' an
Indianapolis judge ruled.
His opinion nullified a planned class-action suit filed by consumers in
Marion County Superior Court.
While Comcast was upgrading its system in the area in the mid-1990s,
temporary security systems were inactive, according to the operator's law firm,
Bienstock Law Firm of Miami. During that time, customers who only paid for
limited basic could get the channels offered in the more expensive
expanded-basic tier.
Customers who paid the expanded-basic rates sued, arguing that Comcast had a
duty to notify them that they could pay less and get the larger programming
package.
But Judge Gerald Zore, in a ruling June 22, said that the incident did not
rise to the level of fraud and deceptive sales practices, as alleged by the
plaintiffs. Comcast did not have an obligation to tell customers about the
disparity, Zore said.
