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Clear Channel Guilty of Interfering with Rival's Contract
"CHICAGO -- A federal jury yesterday found Clear Channel Communications illegally used its entertainment industry clout to block a Chicago competitor from promoting motorcycle races and awarded the smaller event firm more than $90 million in damages, including $73 million in punitive damages.The jury verdict upheld charges by JamSports and Entertainment LLC, that Clear Channel intimidated the American Motorcycle Association into reneging on a multi-year agreement under which JamSports was to promote Supercross motorcycle events nationwide beginning in 2003.Clear Channel, based in San Antonio, Texas, operates about 1,200 radio stations and 41 television stations in the United States -- including in the Mahoning Valley region -- and is the world's largest producer of concerts and other live-entertainment events."The jury's verdict sends a clear message that companies must act responsibly and ethically in their business dealings. Illegal corporate bullying simply will not be tolerated," said Jeffrey Singer, partner with the firm Segal McCambridge Singer & Mahoney, which represented JamSports. "We are proud that our partnership with JamSports enabled us to bring this case to a jury and that the members of the jury quickly recognized Clear Channel's business practices were unfair and heavy handed."This is the first time a competitor of Clear Channel has been able to present its case to a jury. Several previous suits against Clear Channel have been settled prior to trial, Singer said. A significant amount of JamSports' case involved the introduction of Clear Channel's internal e-mails into evidence. Those e-mails recommended that the company take extremely aggressive action to block JamSports and even suggested that disc jockeys at two Clear Channel radio stations should "badmouth" the company.Attorneys Singer, Mark Crane and Paul Wojcicki of Segal McCambridge Singer & Mahoney's Chicago office, became involved in 2003. The firm sorted through thousands of documents to uncover profanity-laced Clear Channel memoranda that demonstrated the company's intent to not only interfere with JamSports' deal, but to effectively punish the company for daring to compete.Jerry Mickelson, a JamSports principal, founded Chicago-based Jam Productions in 1972. Jam Productions is one of the country's largest independent concert and special-events promoter and competes with Clear Channel in the concert promotion business.Visit Segal McCambridge Singer & Mahoney: www.smsm.com"