A courtroom win for Cumulus Media has not yet translated into relief on the ground. Even after the Second Circuit upheld a preliminary injunction against Nielsen in the companies’ antitrust dispute, enforcement is being held up, sending both sides back before the judge who granted it.
In December, Southern District of New York Judge Jeannette Vargas granted Cumulus a preliminary injunction in its antitrust complaint against Nielsen, and the Second Circuit upheld that injunction in full on July 13, rejecting the ratings company’s request for a stay in the process.
Earlier this month, Cumulus said Nielsen had yet to comply with the injunction. Winning the appeal, however, does not automatically put the injunction back into effect.
From a legal standpoint, the Second Circuit’s ruling is not final until it issues a mandate, a formal closing document, and a rehearing petition from Nielsen remains pending, holding that mandate up. Until it arrives, Nielsen contends the stay that froze the injunction back in February technically remains in place, raising the question of whether Vargas can enforce her own order right now.
Vargas ordered both parties to file supplemental letter briefs addressing whether she retains jurisdiction to enforce the injunction before the appeals court’s mandate has formally issued. The same order granted Cumulus’s request to seal one pricing proposal referenced in the underlying motion.
Nielsen argues the stay imposed in February remains technically in force until the circuit court issues its mandate, a formal step that follows the July 13 ruling and the pending rehearing petition. The company separately argues the underlying enforcement motion is moot, pointing to a standalone Nationwide pricing offer it says it sent Cumulus on July 31.
Cumulus disagrees on both points, arguing compliance with an injunction is a separate question from the merits under appeal, meaning the district court keeps jurisdiction to enforce its own order regardless of the mandate’s status. Cumulus also maintains the case is not moot, telling the court that Nielsen’s July 31 offer does not meet the commercially reasonable pricing standard set out in the injunction.
Nielsen told the court Cumulus indicated it would respond to the pricing offer by August 10. What Cumulus’s answer is remains unknown as of press time.
