One of the great things about being a communications lawyer is the wide array of issues you deal with over the course of a day. Contract lawyers negotiate contracts, and litigators litigate, but communications lawyers negotiate contracts, litigate, argue government policy, and generally are thrown into the breach whenever a…
Anyone who has enjoyed March Madness knows that Lady Luck often intervenes in a team’s journey to the NCAA Final Four. But is getting to the game a literal roll of the dice for spectators too? The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago has recently ruled that a lawsuit…
You may have noticed that more and more television shows these days seem to be including “product placement,” a form of advertising in which a product, corporate logo, or brand name is positioned as a “prop” in a program or is used as an integral part of the story line.…
As we reported in a previous Client Alert, full payment of all applicable Regulatory Fees for Fiscal Year 2010 must be received no later than today, August 31, 2010, at the Commission’s St. Louis, Missouri address by 11:59 PM, Eastern Daylight Time. As in previous years, failure of a licensee…
Having spent a good portion of last week on the road and on conference calls talking about the latest Performance Tax developments, I heard a lot from broadcasters on the subject. For those blissfully unaware of this legislative battle, the recording industry has been seeking a financial parachute from broadcasters…
The FCC has opened a rulemaking proposing reforms to its broadband health care initiatives for rural and tribal areas. The FCC’s Notice of Proposed Rulemaking originally released in July was published in the Federal Register today, which establishes the deadline for submitting Comments and Reply Comments in the proceeding. Comments…
The FCC is moving quickly to implement the Satellite Television Extension and Localism Act of 2010 (STELA). STELA is the latest law to extend and update the original Satellite Home Viewer Act of 1998, allowing direct to home satellite carriers to deliver the signals of local television stations to subscribers.…
The FCC has announced that full payment of all applicable Regulatory Fees for Fiscal Year 2010 must be received no later than August 31, 2010. As mentioned in a July 9, 2010 Report and Order, the Commission will mail assessment notices to licensees/permittees reflecting payment obligations for FY 2010, but…
July 2010 FCC Eliminates Earlier Proposed Fee Reductions for Radio and Sets Hefty Increases for UHF Television Stations Last week, just as broadcasters were finishing up with their new Biennial Ownership Report filings, the FCC released its final order setting the annual regulatory fee amounts stations must pay for Fiscal…
In my recent commentary on the Senate version of the DISCLOSE Act (Senate Disclose Act Bill Raises Serious Concerns For Broadcasters), I highlighted provisions related to the Lowest Unit Charge which had the potential to cause a very significant adverse impact on broadcast station revenues from federal election advertising. Senator…