Monster HDMI Cable Class Action Settlement Gets Preliminary Approval

On Tuesday, an Illinois state judge preliminarily approved a proposed class action settlement accusing Monster Inc. and Best Buy of selling high definition multimedia interface (HDMI) cables in deceptive packaging.

The proposed HDMI cable settlement would resolve allegations Monster and Best Buy sold various HDMI cables in packaging that dupes consumers into believing they need to purchase more powerful and expensive cables than is necessary to transmit a signal to their high-definition television sets.

According to the Monster HDMI cable class action lawsuit, Monster sells HDMI cables with a bandwidth of 10.2 Gbps and greater and categorizes the high speed cables as Advanced High Speed, Ultra High Speed and Ultimate High Speed.

The Monster HDMI cable packaging reportedly includes a chart instructing consumers to choose the appropriate cable based on the speed necessary to transmit digital signals.

Plaintiff Amy Joseph says she purchased a Monster HDMI cable from an Illinois Best Buy store after carefully reviewing the packaging, which allegedly misrepresented that it was necessary to transmit HDMI signals to her television. She says she purchased a more expensive cable even though a cheaper HDMI cable would have been sufficient.

Joseph initially filed the Monster HDMI cable class action lawsuit on Sept. 22, 2015, claiming that Monster induced consumers to buy cables with a higher bandwidth than they actually need to make their televisions work.

Joseph’s attorneys asked to coordinate efforts with attorneys representing plaintiff Benjamin Perez in a similar Monster HDMI cable class action lawsuit that was filed in California, but they declined. Monster and Best Buy agreed to mediate their dispute with Joseph and the parties eventually reached a proposed class action settlement in the summer of 2016.

Perez and others sought to intervene in the HDMI cable settlement because they allegedly believed they could achieve a higher payout, but Judge Franklin U. Valderrama decided preliminary approval of the proposed Monster HDMI cable class action settlement was appropriate.

Under the terms of the proposed Monster HDMI cable settlement, Class Members will be able to choose between a cash payment or an online store credit. Class Members with proof of purchase may elect to receive a cash payment of $10 to $35 per cable purchased. The amount depends on the type of cable purchased and whether the Class Member elects to return their existing HDMI cable to the Settlement Administrator.

Class Members who do not have proof of purchase may elect to receive a credit worth $20 to $30 to use on MonsterProducts.com. The amount depends on the type of cable purchased. Proof of purchase is required for the online credit option only if the Class Member files more than one claim under the option.

Monster has also agreed to modify the language on its HDMI cable packages.

Top Class Actions will post updates to this class action settlement as they become available. For the latest updates, keep checking TopClassActions.com or sign up for our free newsletter. You can also receive notifications when this article is updated by using your free Top Class Actions account and clicking the “Follow Article” button at the top of the post.

Class Members are represented by Thomas Zimmerman, Sharon Harris and Maebettey Kirby of Zimmerman Law Offices, and by Robert Clifford and Shannon McNulty of Clifford Law Offices.

The Monster HDMI Cable Packaging Class Action Lawsuit is Amy Joseph, et al. v. Monster Inc., et al., Case No. 15 CH 13991, in the Circuit Court of Cook County.

UPDATE: May 2018, the Best Buy, Monster HDMI Cable class action settlement is now open. Click here to file a claim. 

UPDATE 2: On June 5, 2019, a state court judge granted final approval to a class action settlement deal that will benefit around 1.4 million customers who purchased Monster’s HDMI cables.