Wednesday, February 27, 2019

"Fox Rocked by $179M 'Bones' Ruling: Lying, Cheating and 'Reprehensible' Studio Fraud"

Hollywood Reporter:
In coming to a decision, [the arbitrator] describes how some of Fox’s top executives . . . “appear to have given false testimony in an attempt to conceal their wrongful acts.” According to the ruling, Fox has taken a “cavalier attitude toward its wrongdoing" and exhibits a "company-wide culture and an accepted climate that enveloped an aversion for the truth."

Slamming the company with a punishment that includes $128 million in punitive damages, or five times the amount of compensatory damages, [the arbitrator] points out that the award is 0.6 percent of 21st Century Fox’s stipulated net worth.

He muses whether it’s really enough.

“In fact, one could question whether a five to one ratio given Fox’s financial condition and lack of contrition serves to deter the wrongful conduct at issue here, or whether it will be considered part of the cost of doing business,” writes the arbitrator.

...


The nearly $200 million award amounts to the second-largest in television industry history, after a 2011 jury verdict punishing Disney to the tune of $319 million over profit-sharing for Who Wants to Be a Millionaire. It will not only put Murdoch’s Fox sale in a whole new light, but may also raise questions about the future viability of Hulu, plus any platform enjoying what’s pejoratively known as “Hollywood accounting.”