CBS TV parent Paramount has been hit with a class action lawsuit, accusing the company of illegally sharing with Facebook the viewing habits of customers of its CBS.com service.
The lawsuit asks for a potentially big payday, requesting damages of $2,500 per violation, plus punitive damages and attorney fees, on behalf of an untold number of CBS.com subscribers across America.
The lawsuit was filed on July 14 in Chicago federal court by attorneys with the firms of Milberg Coleman Bryson Phillips Grossman, of Chicago and Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, and Bursor & Fisher, of New York.
Gary Klinger
| Milberg Coleman
The complaint was filed on behalf of named plaintiff Shannon Parcell, identified as a CBS.com subscriber who lives in suburban Des Plaines.
The complaint centers on an alleged practice by Paramount, by which the company allegedly shares user data with social media company Meta, through its primary platform, Facebook.
According to the complaint, Paramount allows CBS.com to host Facebook’s so-called Tracking Pixel. That technology allegedly automatically transmits data to Facebook concerning how particular CBS.com subscribers use the CBS.com content library.
Among other features, the Tracking Pixel allegedly discloses to Facebook which video content users may access, and when they click pause or play. The system allegedly also identifies and discloses CBS.com users’ Facebook IDs, as well as the identity of the browser from which they are accessing CBS.com.
According to the complaint, the alleged arrangement between Paramount and Facebook allows Facebook to accumulate data to better target advertising to users, while Paramount gains data that allows it to “better match visitors with their Facebook profiles” and “to better track analytics and target its advertisements,” as well.
According to the complaint, Parcell, the named plaintiff, has specifically learned Paramount has shared that information with Facebook. The complaint asserts such sharing is common, and has likely affected CBS.com users throughout the country.
Plaintiffs declined to attempt to estimate an actual number of CBS customers that might be included in their class action.
However, the complaint asserts Paramount, in sharing the data, violated the federal Video Privacy Protection Act.
They claim the law specifically forbids video service providers, like CBS.com, from sharing customers’ viewing history and habits with others.
Facebook and Meta are not named as defendants in the lawsuit.
The plaintiffs are represented by attorneys Gary M. Klinger and Nick Suciu III, of the Milberg Coleman firm, and Joshua D. Arisohn and Philip L. Fraietta, of Bursor & Fisher.