LOS ANGELES (Reuters) -
A California appeals court has
upheld a 2006 settlement of a consumer lawsuit against online
movie rental company Netflix Inc over the objections of four
Netflix subscribers who challenged the terms.
In a ruling issued on Monday, the appellate court rejected
the four subscribers' claims that attorneys fees awarded by the
trial court were "excessive," the way that subscribers were
notified of the terms was "deficient," and that the settlement
should have consisted of a cash award rather than a free month
of Netflix rentals.
The original lawsuit, filed in San Francisco state court by
Netflix subscriber Frank Chavez, accused the Los Gatos,
California-based company of delaying delivery of DVDs by mail
to heavier users who are less profitable, a practice that came
to be known as "throttling."
Under the settlement, Netflix provided a free month of
rental or a service upgrade to 5.5 million current and former
subscribers and paid the plaintiffs' attorneys fees and costs.
Plaintiffs attorney Seth Safier said class members were
"very pleased with the court's opinion upholding Judge Mellon's
order."
(Reporting by Gina Keating; Editing by Brian Moss and
Braden Reddall)
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