It couldn’t happen to a nicer bunch of guys. Al Gore used his contacts to get a sweetheart deal for a lefty news network no one wanted that he then sold out to the state sponsor of ISIS, Qatar’s Al Jazeera, which then used it to get even less viewers.
Then Qatar screwed Al Gore. And Al Gore is suing Al Jazeera. If only they would agree to end this with an ankle-biting contest.
A trial will be needed to resolve a dispute between former Vice President Al Gore and Al Jazeera America over tens of millions of dollars held in escrow as part of the news network’s $500 million acquisition of Current TV, a Delaware judge ruled Tuesday.
“It can be interpreted in two different ways,” said Glasscock, who also said factual determinations will be needed on Al Jazeera’s claims to the escrow money and whether its actions have prejudiced Gore and Hyatt.
The escrow money was set aside to indemnify Al Jazeera for possible claims against Current TV by distributors including DirecTV, Dish Network and AT&T. Such claims
But Varallo said the escrow period expired July 2, 2014, 18 months after the deal closed, and that Al Jazeera is not entitled to hold the escrow money based on claims that might be brought in the future.
“It doesn’t permit claims that are purely in the imagination of Al Jazeera. … This is not a warranty that goes on forever,” Varallo said.
The Qatar-owned news channel took over Current TV’s signal in August 2013 and hired U.S. TV news veterans including Soledad O’Brien and John Seigenthaler. It is available in more than 60 million U.S. homes.
It is also watched by a few thousand people and has achieved wide availability only through cutting special deals with distributors, which is probably one reason why it wants to retain some of that escrow money.
