PORTLAND, Ore. -- Following the denial of a motion by Hollywood Entertainment for partial summary judgment on certain of Rentrak Corp.'s claims against the video retailer, a jury trial has been set to begin Jan. 10, 2000. Rentrak distributes prerecorded tapes through a pay-per-transaction system. Both companies are based here.
SAN ANTONIO -- Two independent video retailers based here, Five Palms Video and Chayn Reaction Video, filed suit last month against Blockbuster Entertainment and six movie studios under Texas state and federal antitrust laws, accusing them of conspiring to monopolize the industry.
Under the name Fairness Alliance of Independent Retailers, or FAIR, the class-action litigation alleges that direct shared revenue programs are "exclusionary pricing agreements" that have forced many independent retailers to go out of business.
FAIR has filed two suits. One case, Loredo v. Blockbuster Inc., was brought against Blockbuster in state court here under the Texas antitrust statute.
The other case, Chayn Reaction Video Inc. v. Viacom Inc., et al, was filed against the studios and Blockbuster parent Viacom in the U.S. District Court here under federal antitrust laws. Paramount, Disney, Warner, Columbia, Universal and Fox were named in the second suit.