Sony fake-critic suit proceeds

Sony Corp. must face a false-advertising suit filed by moviegoers who saw films endorsed by a fake critic concocted by a studio employee, a court ruled.

The California Court of Appeal for Los Angeles upheld a trial court ruling that the ads are commercial speech and not fully protected by the First Amendment.

Omar Rezec and Ann Belknap, who purchased tickets to see “A Knight’s Tale,” filed the lawsuit seeking class-action status on behalf of “millions” of people who paid to see films that Sony’s bogus critic, David Manning, praised in advertisements.

The appeals court rejected Sony’s argument that its ads were protected speech because the films themselves are noncommercial speech.

“Sony’s position would shield all sorts of mischief,” Judge Robert Mallano wrote in a 2-1 decision dated Tuesday. “For example, a film could be advertised as having garnered ‘Three Golden Globe Nominations’ when it had received none.”