DirecTV is suing cable giant Comcast over a national ad campaign claiming satellite customers think its HDTV picture quality is better than satellite's. The suit, filed in federal court in Chicago, charges Comcast with false advertising and deceptive trade practices for the print, radio and Internet effort that began early this month. Further, it asks that Comcast be barred from "any further false advertising and promotion," that it retract and correct its claims -- and pay damages. Comcast's claim is based on a survey it commissioned that found "two-thirds of satellite customers expressing a preference between Comcast and DirecTV …

The Chicago Tribune tapped a new ad sales head, naming Jack Whisler vice-president of advertising form a previous post of director of advertising sales. The previous ad veep, Ken DePaola, keeps his title as president of parent company Tribune Co.'s national ad sales group, Tribune Media Net. DePaola will push to centralize business from 15 top national retailers to a new group in Chicago called TMN Retail. The company previously sold major retail accounts in each of its local markets, but talks with clients have altered the focus, says DePaola. "They told us how they prefer to buy …

NBC Sports is defending a decision to cut off Saturday's airing of the Buffalo Sabres-Ottawa Senators playoff game in favor of the Preakness Stakes. While the net got some flak for the call, a spokesman says there was no other choice, as it is obligated under contract to run the Preakness. NBC carried the final minutes of regulation, but cut out when the hockey game went into overtime, handing it off to Versus. The only affiliate to stick with it, not surprisingly, was the one in Buffalo. NBC says the Preakness contract supersedes the NHL, and Versus had to …

After being left off NBC's prime-time schedule, Donald Trump has departed the network in a snit -- likely not long before he heard the phrase that defined his show, i.e. "You're fired." With its ratings swirling the bowl, the host of "The Apprentice" says he is moving on to "a major new TV venture," although he declines to say what it is. While there was no immediate comment from NBC, the announcement put paid to any hopes that the show would survive another season. A hit after its 2004 debut, with nearly 21 million viewers, the …

A new ad campaign from Qwest claims that 72% of Web surfers in a recent "Broadband Challenge" found its premium service as fast or faster than rival Comcast's. But like most ad campaigns, this one is an example of a company putting its product in the best light possible as the figure cited begs the question of how many thought Qwest DSL actually was faster. Here's the answer: 38%. In addition, 34% said the two were the same, and 28% thought Comcast had better speed. Also, the test had a margin of error of plus or minus 9.8% points …

The Federal Communications Commission has extended a deadline for TV stations that haven't finished building digital facilities to complete a mandated transition to the spectrum. Among the 145 given reprieves were WABC and WNBC in New York, both affected by 9/11. The original deadlines for stations affiliated with the top-four networks (ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC) was July 1, 2005 in the top 100 markets, while everyone else got an extra year. The FCC granted six-month extensions to 107 stations, and gave until Feb. 17, 2009 for 33 others. Twenty-nine will be broadcasting after the DTV transition on …

Defying the newspaper industry's down trend, The New York Times Magazine 's spring T travel issue has 98 ad pages, a 6% increase over last year. The news comes after the travel publication was named No. 1 in advertising pages for 2006, according to Publishers Information Bureau. Not surprisingly, the top category was hotels, with 40 pages and new advertisers, including Ultimate Resort and Waldorf-Astoria. "The New York Times' May issue of T travel magazine has a strong appeal to the luxury segment marketers in travel as well as fashion," says Lou Fabrizio, vice president of advertising at …

While much of the attention paid to Condé Nast's Portfolio ponders its impact on old-guard business books, like Forbes, Fortune and BusinessWeek, market trends suggest a shakeout could be coming and the smaller, scrappier players may feel it worse than the established mags. For instance, Business 2.0 already saw its ad pages drop 7.7% in 2005 and 5.1% last year. And this year, it is off more than 30% through the May issue. And it isn't just Portfolio that some established business titles must contend with, but legions of young digital outlets drilling into all kinds of business subjects. …

While Rupert Murdoch's $5 billion offer for Dow Jones is seen as audacious, News Corp.'s plans to launch Fox Business Channel are far more cautious. And that may not be such a surprise: The company took the cheap route when it set up Fox News in 1996, and the network now routinely beats far better-financed rival CNN. News Corp. plans to spend just $100 million in initial capital on the channel, set to air in October, according to insiders. For a company the size of News Corp, such a sum is merely a rounding error, and the outlay suggests …

After over 50 years, American Heritage is suspending publishing as it waits for a buyer. Owned by Forbes, the book was put on the block in January. Its June-July issue is on hold, although it will continue to maintain a Web site. And that has left publisher and staff of four -- down from a dozen -- in limbo. With a circulation of 350,000 -- a high as it has ever been -- hundreds of readers still write in arguing about the true causes of the Civil War or pointing out errors. The magazine was founded in 1954 by …