U.S. sues DIRECTV for illegal information trading during Dodgers talks

The U.S. Justice Department filed a lawsuit on Wednesday against DIRECTV alleging the company acted as a ringleader to unlawfully swap information between it and three competitors regarding negotiations aimed at showing Dodgers baseball games in the Los Angeles area. The department said DIRECTV exchanged information with rivals Cox Communications, Charter Communications and AT&T, which now owns DIRECTV, to win bargaining leverage and to reduce the risk they would lose customers if they decided not to carry the pricey cable station. Much of Los Angeles was unable to watch the Dodgers play for the past three seasons, the Justice Department said.

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