Indianapolis Sues Netflix, Hulu, Disney Plus to Collect 5% Cable Franchise Fee

Four Indiana cities, including Indianapolis, have jointly filed suit in a local state court, seeking to collect “franchise fees” usually charged to cable operators from Netflix and several other video operators, none of which are cable providers. Defendants also include Disney Plus and Hulu, as well as satellite TV companies DirecTV and Dish Network. The cities of Fishers, Evansville and Valparaiso joined Indianapolis in filing the complaint in Marion Superior Court. The suit calls on the defendants to pay 5% of revenue collected in their cities as part of the Video Service Franchise Act of 2012.