Right-wing US media network Newsmax is suing Fox News over what it claims are anticompetitive tactics to supress competition, teeing up a legal battle in the American conservative news space.
The lawsuit, filed in a Florida federal court, accuses Fox News of using its market power to coerce TV providers to restrict competing right-leaning channels.
“Newsmax cannot sue their way out of their own competitive failures in the marketplace to chase headlines simply because they can’t attract viewers,” a Fox News spokesperson said.
The company, owned by billionaire Rupert Murdoch, is consistently ranked the most popular conservative news outlet in the US with a market value of nearly $26bn (£19bn).
Fox News “has long engaged in an exclusionary scheme to increase and maintain its dominance in the market for US right-leaning pay TV news,” lawyers for Newsmax wrote in its antitrust complaint.
It’s alleged Fox News uses exclusive content deals to block other right-wing channels, and imposes financial penalties on providers that do carry other conservative networks, among other exclusionary tactics.
The suit also accuses Fox News of using intimidation including pressuring its guests to not appear on rival networks, and hiring private investigators to target Newsmax executives
“Fox may have profited from exclusionary contracts and intimidation tactics for years, but those days are over,” Newsmax CEO Christopher Ruddy said.
It’s asking a judge to declare Fox News’ conduct unlawful, and block it from entering into what it says are exclusionary contracts, in addition to monetary damages.
Newsmax, founded in 1998 with a market value of $1.8bn, has gained traction in recent years, buoyed by support from President Donald Trump.
The company had its own legal woes in the wake of Joe Biden’s 2020 election victory over Trump.
Newsmax agreed to pay $67m (£50m) to settle a defamation lawsuit filed by a voting machine company over false claims it rigged the election.
Dominion, which filed the case in 2021, had accused Newsmax of broadcasting “verifiably false lies”.
Fox News was also embroiled in litigation with Dominion, agreeing to settle a $787.5m (£634m) lawsuit following the election.
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