A North Texas-based company that owns local television stations across the country is being sued by satellite provider DirecTV.
The lawsuit accuses Irving-based Nexstar Broadcasting and two other companies identified as Mission Broadcasting Inc and White Knight Broadcasting Inc, of improperly working together to set prices that local tv stations charge satellite companies to carry those stations.
DirecTV's lawsuit claims that has lead to some of those stations being blocked from their service including stations in Amarillo, Tyler, Lubbock, Abilene, Midland-Odessa and Wichita Falls.
DirecTV's lawsuit said the defendants deprived it "of a fair competitive process that has resulted in higher prices being demanded of it and lost profits," according to reports.
DirecTV is 70% owned by AT&T.
Michael Hartman, DirecTV's general counsel, said it decided to sue in order to "bring some transparency" to what it calls anticompetitive conduct, according to a report from Reuters.
A statement from Nexstar says the lawsuit is "without merit".
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