The Los Angeles Business Journal published an article yesterday about the city’s billboard ban, which exempts itself and a few large billboard companies.

The article focuses on two lawsuits filed by two smaller billboard companies that are suing the city of Los Angeles for – among other things – granting exemptions to its 2002 billboard ban to “favored” companies. The lawsuits also challenge the city’s “unfettered right to erect new outdoor ads on its property while prohibiting competition from doing the same.”

LA Outdoor Advertising Inc. and Summit Media LLC filed lawsuits against the city last summer. LA Outdoor attacked the city’s 2002 ban, alleging that: “the city has exempted certain individuals from the ban on signage where the city finds it economically advantageous to do so.”

Summit challenged the city’s 2007 sweetheart settlement with CBS Outdoor and Clear Channel Outdoor.

The newspaper interviewed an advertising agency executive who said that billboard prices have increased about 10 percent annually in the last five years due to increasing demand and lower supply. The advertising exec also said that prices have dropped recently because of cancelled contracts by banks, auto and mortgage companies.

Advertising disclosure: We may receive compensation for some of the links in our stories. Thank you for supporting LA Weekly and our advertisers.