August 2013 Pillsbury’s communications lawyers have published FCC Enforcement Monitor monthly since 1999 to inform our clients of notable FCC enforcement actions against FCC license holders and others. This month’s issue includes: FCC Catches GPS Jammer at Airport $75,000 Consent Decree Adopted for Class A TV Violations Jamming Device in…
Articles Posted by Scott R. Flick
FCC Grants More Time for 2013 Commercial Station Ownership Reports
A few moments ago, on its own motion, the FCC released an Order extending the 2013 deadline for commercial radio and television stations (including Class A and LPTV stations) to file their biennial ownership reports with the FCC. The reports, which are normally due on November 1 of odd-numbered years,…
Today’s Aereo Decision: Technology Takes a Backseat
In a decision that disappointed but didn’t entirely surprise broadcasters, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit today declined to rehear in banc its earlier decision rejecting a request by broadcasters to terminate with extreme prejudice Aereo’s broadcast subscription service in New York. Today’s announcement was not a…
FCC Enforcement Monitor
June 2013 Pillsbury’s communications lawyers have published FCC Enforcement Monitor monthly since 1999 to inform our clients of notable FCC enforcement actions against FCC license holders and others. This month’s issue includes: FCC Issues Heavy Fines for Late-Filed Children’s Television Programming Reports Motel with Multichannel Video Programming Distribution System Is…
What’s the Cost of Not Having a Retrans Agreement? $2.25 Million
We now know what the per-subscriber fee for cable systems lacking retransmission agreements with local broadcast stations is, and it isn’t “free”. Section 76.64 of the FCC’s Rules requires cable systems to have a written retransmission agreement in place before retransmitting the signal of a station that elected retransmission consent…
Stations Find Out When Airing a Fake EAS Tone Is Okay
In what has been a recurring theme at CommLawCenter, I’ve written about the FCC rule prohibiting the airing of Emergency Alert System codes and tones unless there is an actual emergency or EAS test. Despite the rule, the draw of using an EAS tone is apparently irresistible, and we’ve seen…
FCC Enforcement Monitor
May 2013 Pillsbury’s communications lawyers have published FCC Enforcement Monitor monthly since 1999 to inform our clients of notable FCC enforcement actions against FCC license holders and others. This month’s issue includes: FCC Establishes New Enforcement Policy for Student-Run Noncommercial Radio Stations CB Radio Owner Receives Fine for Harmful Interference…
FCC Enforcement Monitor
April 2013 Pillsbury’s communications lawyers have published FCC Enforcement Monitor monthly since 1999 to inform our clients of notable FCC enforcement actions against FCC license holders and others. This month’s issue includes: Assignment of Paired AM Stations Denied by the FCC Use of Illegal Cell Phone Jammers Leads to Fines…
FCC Announces Immediate Freeze on TV Modification Applications
This morning, the FCC released a Public Notice announcing that, commencing immediately and until further notice, it will no longer accept modification applications (or amendments to modification applications) from full power and Class A television stations if the modification would increase the station’s coverage in any direction beyond its current…
FCC Hits Reset Button on Indecency
After nine months of rumors and uncertainty as to where the FCC is headed after last summer’s indecency decision by the Supreme Court in FCC v. Fox Television Stations, Inc. (which we discussed in this post), the FCC today released a very brief public notice that: Announces the FCC staff…