Television Azteca, S.A. de C.V.("TV Azteca" or the Company) is a multimedia company in Mexico that operates national television networks.
The suit alleges that during the Class Period, Defendants failed to disclose certain related-party transactions between a privately held company jointly owned by the Company's Chairman, Ricardo Salinas Pliego ("Salinas") and the Company's President, M. Saba Masri ("Saba") and one of the Company's affiliates -- Unefon Corporacion RBS ("Unefon") a wireless telecommunications provider in Mexico. Specifically, Defendants denied any affiliation with a "white-knight" group of investors that had saved Unefon from bankruptcy back in June of 2002. Defendants stonewalled disclosure of the true facts, including ignoring advice from their securities lawyers in the U.S., until a spin-off of Unefon was completed in December 2002. The spin-off anticipated that Unefon's shares would be registered to trade in the U.S. markets, facilitating a merger with Salinas' other telecommunications holdings. Then, on January 9, 2004, Defendants stunned the markets by admitting that the "white-knight" investors were in fact Salinas and Saba who made a profit of $218 million when their privately held company bought Unefon's debt for $107 million and then sold it back for $325 million. Market reaction to Defendants' belated disclosures was severe. By January 12, 2003, the first day of trading following the Company's admission the price of TV Azteca securities fell more than 14.9 percent in value to close at $7.76 per share in heavy trading volume.
On April 16, 2004, the Court issued an Order appointing Lead Plaintiff and Counsel. On November 3, 2004, Lead Plaintiff filed a Consolidated Amended Complaint.
According to a press release dated May 25, 2007, the action was certified as a class action for certain purposes with a proposed settlement for One Million Two Hundred Thousand Dollars ($1,200,000). The Court issued an Order approving the Settlement and entering Final Judgment on July 23, 2007.
On October 23, 2008, the Court issued an Order authorizing distribution of the Settlement Fund.
