Some lawsuits can be spotted coming a mile away but this one appeared out of nowhere: Bob Gutkowski, who once ran Madison Square Garden and the MSG network, is suing George Steinbrenner over the idea for the Yankees’ YES Network. Keep in mind the network launched in 2002 with Leo Hindery Jr. at the helm and was in the works for years; MSG’s current owner Cablevision (NYSE: CVC) was one of the biggest stumbling blocks to what is now a network valued at roughly $3 billion. Gutkowski claims the idea dates back to 1996 and that Steinbrenner at one point wanted to use the threat of a network to get a $1 billion contract extension from MSG. He wants damages of at least $23 million.
Steinbrenner’s rep Howard Rubinstein told the NYT:

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