MSG Sues Mets



The Daily News' Bob Raissman reports that Madison Square Garden/Fox Sports have filed a lawsuit against the New York Mets, claiming a breach of their current pact.

The lawsuit, filed in New York State Supreme Court, focuses on one central issue. MSG contends Mets executives prematurely moved their TV rights to a new network they are forming with Time Warner and Comcast that is scheduled to launch in 2006.

MSG contends that, according to its current Mets TV contract, the Mets had to wait until the official expiration date of Nov.1, 2005 to make the move to start the new network.

Wilpon and Co. announced the new Mets Network on Oct.12. MSG says the Nov.1, 2005 date was put in place so it could have an exclusive window to negotiate a new TV deal with the Mets.

In June, Fred Wilpon paid Cablevision, which owns MSG Networks, $54million to get out of the Mets TV contract a year early.

The current contract began in 1996. Despite Wilpon's buyout, the suit contends the Nov.1, 2005 date is still valid.

MSG is asking the court to rescind the Mets' agreement with Time Warner and Comcast to start the new network.

In the lawsuit, MSG says the announcement of the new Mets Network also has hurt its efforts to sign deals with cable affiliates and sell advertising on Mets cablecasts for the 2005 season.

In a statement, MSG says: "By agreeing to form another network more than a year before the termination of that agreement, the Mets have flagrantly violated our rights under the agreement."

If difficulty selling advertising in 2005 based on prior performance is an issue, perhaps MSG can add David Weathers as a defendant?

Posted: Thu - October 28, 2004 at 12:02 PM      

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