Showtime Sued For Failed Mayweather-McGregor Streams

Showtime is the target of a class action lawsuit from customers angry over streaming issues with the Floyd Mayweather vs. Conor McGregor pay-per-view bout on Aug. 26 Portland boxing fan Zack Bartel paid to stream the fight in high-definition through the Showtime app, but says all he saw was “grainy video, error screens, buffer events, and stalls.” Bartel is suing Showtime for unlawful trade practices and unjust enrichment, alleging the network rushed its pay-per-view streaming service to the market without securing the bandwidth necessary to support the scores of cable-cutting fans. “Instead of being upfront with consumers about its new, untested, underpowered service, defendant caused likelihood of confusion and misunderstanding as to the source and quality of the HD video consumers would see on fight night,” writes attorney Michael Fuller in the complaint filed Saturday in Oregon federal court. The complaint, which is largely composed of screenshots and tweets, is seeking for each member of the class actual damages or $200 in statutory damages, whichever is greater, via The Hollywood Reporter.