Judge dismisses subscription lawsuit against WSJ, Barron’s parent

A New York federal judge has dismissed allegations of fraud against Dow Jones & Co., the parent of The Wall Street Journal and Barron’s, ending a proposed class action that accused the company of allowing a subscription business to defraud their customers by overcharging for renewals and pocketing the difference.

Lisa Hoffman of the National Law Journal writes, “The case had centered on actions by CBS, which handled billing for renewals to the Times and Wall Street Journal newspapers, Forbes magazine and Barron’s magazine, owned by Dow Jones. Rabin alleged the publishing companies were aware of the alleged scam because they had received complaints from subscribers. Consumer watchdog organizations had also issued alerts about the company and its affiliates.

“The complaint contended the publishers benefitted from the arrangement by sustaining their subscriber base at a low cost and profiting by sales of their customer information. Rabin also alleged that the companies had a duty to alert their subscribers to the scam.

“The publishers companies denied all the allegations.”