Losing Partners Appeal Ruling on FNN Sale : Court: Dow Jones & Co. and Group W Satellite Communications are fighting a judgment that disqualified their bid for the cable channel.

Dow Jones & Co. and Group W Satellite Communications filed an appeal of last week’s disqualification by a U.S. Bankruptcy Court judge of their $115-million joint bid to acquire Financial News Network Inc.

The appeal was expected.

Separately, the Federal Trade Commission filed an appeal of a U.S. Bankruptcy Court judge’s ruling that any litigation, including a possible antitrust suit involving the pending FNN acquisition, must go through the bankruptcy court.

On April 3, NBC’s Consumer News & Business Channel emerged as the apparent winner in the battle to acquire FNN, a 24-hour all-business cable channel and CNBC’s only competition. U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Francis G. Conrad disqualified the Dow Jones-Group W partnership bid of $115 million after the companies refused to keep their bid open until May 31, the deadline for CNBC’s $105-million bid.

CNBC raised its bid by $10 million after an attorney for FNN’s unsecured creditors protested to Judge Conrad that an auction for FNN, which filed for bankruptcy-law protection March 3, should be held.

The 20-page appeal by the Dow Jones-Group W partnership’s attorney, antitrust specialist David Boies, asked the U.S. District Court for a decision of its “emergency motion.” A hearing is expected on or before April 16. Group W Satellite Communications is a unit of Westinghouse Electric Corp.

The FTC is conducting an antitrust investigation into the acquisition of FNN by CNBC, a unit of General Electric Co.’s National Broadcasting Co. subsidiary. Ron Rowe, director of litigation for the FTC’s Bureau of Competition, said the commission wouldn’t comment beyond the appeal. FNN has agreed not to complete the deal until April 19, the previously announced completion date of the FTC investigation.

In the FTC motion, the agency noted Judge Conrad’s comments that the FTC could appeal his ruling “if you don’t like it.” The motion said that Conrad’s ruling on jurisdiction will “unless reversed, severely restrict the ability of the FTC to carry out its congressional mandate to enforce the federal antitrust laws in both this case and future cases.”

A spokesman for NBC declined comment. A spokeswoman for FNN decline comment.

A Dow Jones spokesman said the company doesn’t comment on its own appeals.