The television network, which has spent $100 million on lawyers and witnesses, on top of about 60 per cent of costs incurred by its successful opponents including Telstra and News Limited, now says it will consider the Court's 340-page judgment.

Seven said the appeal had been justified by the importance of the issues to the business and that costs in appeals are more contained because they center on legal analysis. 

The justices of the full court of the Federal Court, including Justices Mansfield, Dowsett and Lander, said yesterday the Court upholds Justice Sackville's original decision in 2007, although its reasons for doing so differed. 

However, the justices agreed with Justice Sackville's describing the case as "mega litigation" (see related story, click here). 

Seven's case was against parties including News Ltd, Publishing and Broadcasting Ltd, Optus, Telstra, the NRL, the AFL and Channel Ten over the 2002 demise of the network's pay-tv sports channel C7. 

Seven had launched a suit against the companies, claiming they colluded to put its pay television arm about of business. The network had claimed more than $1 billion in damages, but this was reduced to $212 million. 

See the summary here: http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/cases/cth/FCAFC/2009/166.html#_Ref215623981