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Current and former subscribers of YouTube TV and DirecTV Stream have only until today, Sept. 8, to file a claim in a $50 million class action settlement with The Walt Disney Company, following allegations that the entertainment giant’s business practices helped drive up the price of live-streaming television services.

The settlement stems from Biddle v. The Walt Disney Company, an antitrust lawsuit filed on behalf of subscribers of YouTube TV, DirecTV Stream and FuboTV. The plaintiffs accused Disney, which also owns Hulu and ESPN, of “engaging in various forms of conduct to raise the prices of Streaming Live Pay Television,” alleging the company used its market size to “inflate prices marketwide by raising the prices of its own products.” The lawsuit specifically pointed to price increases the plaintiffs say began accelerating after Disney took control of Hulu in 2019.

Plaintiffs in the case sought both monetary damages and injunctive relief aimed at halting and unwinding what they characterized as Disney’s anticompetitive practices. Disney has denied any wrongdoing and did not admit to violating any laws, but the company agreed to a $50 million partial settlement covering subscribers of YouTube TV and DirecTV Stream specifically. No settlement has been reached in connection with the FuboTV portion of the case, meaning FuboTV subscribers do not qualify to file a claim as part of this particular settlement process.

To be eligible, a person must have purchased a subscription to YouTube TV or to DirecTV Stream, including its earlier iterations known as DirecTV Now or AT&T TV Now, at some point between April 1, 2019, and March 31, 2026. Consumers do not need to currently hold an active subscription to qualify, and eligible customers can submit a claim covering both services if they subscribed to each at different points during the covered period.

Alex Beene, a financial literacy instructor at the University of Tennessee at Martin, emphasized the importance of meeting today’s deadline for anyone who believes they may qualify.

“It’s important for those customers to understand you do have to submit a claim by September 8 and the amount you receive will depend on the length of your subscription,” Beene told Newsweek.

Payments under the settlement will be distributed on a pro rata basis, meaning the exact amount any individual claimant receives will depend both on how long they subscribed to the qualifying services during the covered period and on how many total valid claims are ultimately filed by the deadline. Settlement administrators have said a portion of the $50 million fund will first be used to cover administration costs and other associated fees, with the remaining funds then split between two separate categories of settlement members, those located in what the settlement refers to as “repealer jurisdictions” and those in “non-repealer jurisdictions,” a legal distinction tied to differences in state consumer protection laws that can affect how settlement funds are distributed.

Qualifying YouTube TV and DirecTV Stream subscribers were previously sent official notice of the settlement either by mail or email, according to settlement administrators, who have noted that some recipients may need to check their email spam or junk folders to locate the notification if they have not already seen it. That notice contains a unique identification number required to submit a claim online through the official settlement website. Consumers can also file a claim by mail if they prefer not to complete the process online.

According to Class Action Buddy, a website tracking the settlement’s claims process, no proof of purchase is required to file a claim, since the streaming providers involved in the case already maintain internal subscription records that will be used to verify eligibility. Importantly, the settlement operates on an opt-in basis, meaning eligible subscribers who take no action will not automatically receive a payment; a claim must be actively filed by today’s deadline in order to be eligible for any portion of the settlement fund.

Beene suggested the settlement could carry broader significance for how major media companies approach pricing decisions involving smaller streaming and distribution partners going forward.

“This case could serve as a warning that attempts to raise prices on partner providers could not just backfire with customers, but also result in legal backlash, as well,” Beene said.

It remains unclear exactly when eligible claimants can expect to receive payment, even after today’s filing deadline passes. The settlement still requires final approval from the court overseeing the case, a process that can be delayed if any objections to the settlement’s terms are raised during the review period. Today’s deadline also applies more broadly to anyone who wishes to formally request exclusion from the settlement or otherwise preserve certain legal rights related to the case, in addition to those simply seeking to file a claim for payment.

Given that today marks the final opportunity to submit a claim, eligible YouTube TV and DirecTV Stream subscribers who have not yet filed are encouraged to do so as soon as possible, either through the official settlement website or by submitting a claim form by mail, ensuring any mailed submission is postmarked or received by the settlement administrator before the close of the filing window. Once the deadline passes, no additional claims will be accepted, and any eligible subscribers who fail to file will not receive a portion of the $50 million settlement fund, regardless of how long they may have subscribed to either qualifying service during the covered period.

Mark Beyer speaks to Justin Fris about a long-term technology partnership that is considered to be key to Lotterywest’s business.

Plus: Rio strikes Ngarlawangga deal; Premier updates on defence bids; and WA providers respond to aged care funding decision.

CAIRO — Egyptian television presenter Sarah Khalifa and 11 other defendants have been sentenced to death by hanging after being convicted on drug trafficking charges tied to a criminal network accused of importing chemical ingredients used to manufacture illegal narcotics.

According to state-owned newspaper al-Ahram, the defendants were found to be part of a criminal gang that imported raw materials used to produce drugs with the intent to sell them. The group was also found to have possessed illegal firearms and munitions as part of the same operation.

Khalifa, 39, is best known in Egypt for hosting the television program “Mission Impossible,” a show that focused on crime-related issues. She has denied the charges against her throughout the legal proceedings. Nine additional co-defendants were sentenced to life imprisonment, while seven others were acquitted entirely.

The formal verdict was first announced last month but was only confirmed roughly a month later, after the court obtained a required religious opinion from the grand mufti of Egypt, a legal step mandated in all death sentence cases under Egyptian law.

Khalifa’s legal team has already signaled its intent to challenge the sentence. Her lawyer said she would appeal the death sentence following the court’s confirmation of the ruling.

During the trial, prosecutors presented evidence that authorities had seized more than 750 kilograms of narcotics, along with the imported raw materials used to manufacture them. According to al-Ahram, prosecutors also relied on statements from 20 witnesses, in addition to electronic evidence that included recorded conversations and video clips connected to the case.

Khalifa addressed her alleged role directly during a court appearance last September, according to the state-run newspaper Akhbar al-Yom. When questioned by the judge about her connection to the case, Khalifa said she had never seen any drugs prior to being photographed with them inside the offices of Egypt’s anti-narcotics authority, an account that formed part of her defense against the charges.

The case adds to Egypt’s continued use of capital punishment in drug-related prosecutions, a practice that has drawn scrutiny from international human rights organizations. According to a 2025 Amnesty International report, Egypt issued 492 death sentences over the course of that year, with 23 of those sentences actually carried out.

Amnesty International’s report specifically flagged concerns about the use of capital punishment in cases involving drug trafficking and rape convictions, noting that such offenses constitute “crimes that did not amount to ‘intentional killing’ to which the use of the death penalty must be restricted under international law and standards.” The organization’s broader position holds that international human rights law and standards generally call for capital punishment to be reserved specifically for the most serious crimes, typically defined as those involving intentional killing.

Egypt has continued to carry out executions and issue death sentences at a notable pace in recent years, positioning the country among a smaller group of nations that continue applying capital punishment to a relatively broad range of offenses, including drug-related crimes, despite ongoing international criticism of that approach from human rights monitoring organizations.

The case against Khalifa and her co-defendants unfolded amid a broader pattern of drug trafficking-related prosecutions and law enforcement actions reported across multiple countries in recent weeks. In Vietnam, 11 people were separately sentenced to death in a drug trafficking case involving more than 200 individuals convicted over a network accused of smuggling narcotics into the country concealed inside toothpaste tubes and other everyday consumer products. In Ireland, authorities in Dublin seized roughly €2.3 million worth of drugs, including 18 kilograms of suspected cocaine with an estimated street value of approximately €1.8 million, resulting in charges against two individuals. A separate cross-border drug bust led to charges after investigators uncovered 119 kilograms of cannabis in Dundalk, County Louth, along with an additional 45 kilograms of cannabis, cash and suspected cocaine recovered in Newtownabbey, County Antrim.

Elsewhere, Brussels has continued grappling with a significant surge in drug-related violence, with more than 65 shootings reported in the Belgian capital so far this year as rival drug gangs have escalated conflicts across the city, according to reporting on the broader trend. In a separate development tied to international efforts to address drug-related violence, Colombia’s president approved the extradition of rebel leaders to the United States, a move described as part of a broader effort to end violence tied to negotiations with rebel and criminal organizations operating within the country.

Khalifa’s case has drawn particular attention within Egypt given her public profile as a television host whose own program focused on crime coverage, a dynamic that has added to public interest in the proceedings beyond the underlying drug trafficking allegations themselves. Egyptian media coverage of the case has continued closely following developments, including detailed accounts of courtroom testimony and the specific evidence presented by prosecutors throughout the trial.

With Khalifa’s legal team now preparing to pursue an appeal against the death sentence, the case is expected to continue working its way through Egypt’s judicial system in the coming months. The nine co-defendants sentenced to life imprisonment, along with the broader circumstances surrounding the case’s evidentiary record, including the seized narcotics, raw materials and electronic communications presented at trial, are likely to remain central to any subsequent appellate proceedings as Khalifa and her legal representatives seek to challenge the death sentence handed down by the court.

Almost half of UK small business owners are now using artificial intelligence tools, according to research released on 8 September by the insurance provider Simply Business, which found adoption has more than doubled from 22 per cent in 2025 to 47 per cent.

A further 13 per cent of owners plan to start using AI within the next six to 12 months, meaning 61 per cent are either using the technology already or expect to be soon, according to the company’s 2026 SME Insights Report. The report draws on a survey of UK small business owners carried out between 30 July and 7 August 2026, alongside earlier studies conducted this year, Simply Business said.

Among businesses using AI, the most common applications are creating content, cited by 63 per cent, problem solving on 53 per cent and generating ideas on 50 per cent. Some 46 per cent say the technology is helping them save time on administration.

Research published in March by the Centre for Economics and Business Research for HSBC UK found that 55 per cent of mid-sized companies were using AI in some form by the end of 2025, up from about 35 per cent two years earlier.

Confidence gap

Confidence has not kept pace with adoption, the report found. Just 19 per cent of small business owners describe themselves as “very confident” using AI day to day, and 33 per cent say they use it only for routine administrative tasks.

Security and privacy concerns are the most commonly cited barrier, mentioned by 44 per cent of owners. Not seeing a clear use for AI is second on 39 per cent, ahead of concerns about accuracy on 36 per cent. Simply Business said the findings indicated that for many small businesses the obstacle was not access to the technology itself but a lack of clarity about its practical application.

Nearly one in three owners, 31 per cent, say they do not understand how to use AI or are wary of integrating it into their work, which the insurer said pointed to a wider skills gap. A Business Matters analysis published in June identified thin margins, scarce digital skills and a shortage of time to experiment among the reasons AI adoption is not spread evenly across the economy.

Calls for guidance

Julie Fisher, chief executive of Simply Business, said: “Adaptability and resilience are central to the DNA of small business owners and time and again they have proven they are drivers of innovation, finding new ways to grow even in the face of challenging trading conditions.”

She said the rise in AI adoption was one of the most significant shifts tracked in this year’s report, but that many owners remained wary of security and privacy around AI tools and unsure how the technology could be useful to them.

“To help unlock even greater levels of innovation and productivity, small businesses need tailored guidance on how AI can be used, accessible tools, and time to discover how it can work for them on their terms,” Fisher said.

Google launched its AI Works for Business programme of free workshops for small firms with the Department for Business & Trade and NatWest in 2025, after its research found UK small businesses lagging US counterparts on adoption.

Fay Phillips-Jones, founder and HR career coach at Coaching With Fay, said: “AI has played an important role in accelerating my business. As a sole founder, I use it to challenge my thinking, support business planning, organise information and develop more efficient systems. However, I treat AI as a thinking partner, not a substitute for thinking.”

She added: “I would welcome greater access to practical, funded education on responsible AI adoption. The opportunity for sole traders and microbusinesses is enormous, but the technology is evolving at an extraordinary pace.”

Ideja Bajra, founder of Edvance AI, said: “The biggest benefit to using AI is speed and efficiency; automating your processes means you can reach clients faster and more consistently. It’s also been a huge help in personal workload for me. There are already some encouraging government initiatives focusing on upskilling and AI integration, but from the perspective of a small specialist advisory firm, the support can sometimes feel fragmented.”

Jamie Young

Jamie Young is Senior Reporter at Business Matters, covering SME finance, employment law and Westminster policy since 2016. He has reported on every Budget and Autumn Statement since 2018, helped make sense of the ‘covid era’ and the bounce-back loan scheme from launch through the fraud investigations, and broke the magazine’s coverage of the 2024 late-payment reforms. He joined Business Matters straight from completing his BA in Administration from Exeter University and is NCTJ-qualified. Reach him at jyoung@cbmeg.co.uk