By Khalida Sarwari
The Monterey County District Attorney’s Office brought a consumer protection action against several television manufacturers over screen size measurements.
The action, filed in Alameda County, stipulates that television manufacturers must disclose the accurate size of screens, the DA’s office announced on Thursday.
Five manufacturers — Sony, Panasonic, LG, Sharp and Samsung — entered into settlements, but without admitting liability, DA officials said.
The manufacturers agreed to contribute $1.1 million worth of televisions to schools and other public institutions in California and to cover $1.25 million in costs and other relief.
Prosecutors said the manufacturers have changed their practices and that, for the past four years, they have been posting the viewable diagonal picture sizes of the television sets to the nearest 10th of an inch.
Previously, manufacturers described the viewable screen sizes by rounding the number of inches, measured diagonally to the nearest whole number.
Prosecutors believed the traditional industry-wide practice of rounding to the nearest integer was not compatible with existing law.