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Noncommercial Stations’ Biennial Ownership Reports: Due October 1, 2009

September 2009 As we recently reported, the FCC has altered the schedule for the filing of Biennial Ownership Reports by commercial broadcast stations. Those Reports must now be filed by November 1, 2009 and by the same date every two years thereafter. However, the schedule for the filing of Biennial…

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2009 Third Quarter Children’s Television Programming Documentation

September 2009 The next Children’s Television Programming Report must be filed with the FCC and placed in stations’ local Public Inspection Files by October 10, 2009, reflecting programming aired during the months of July, August and September 2009. Statutory and Regulatory Requirements As a result of the Children’s Television Act…

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Broadcast Station EEO Advisory

September 2009 This Broadcast Station EEO Advisory is directed to radio and television stations licensed to communities in: Iowa, Missouri, Alaska, Hawaii, Oregon, Washington, Guam, American Samoa, Marianas Islands, Florida, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, and highlights the upcoming deadlines for compliance with the FCC’s EEO Rule. Introduction October…

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FY 2009 Regulatory Fees Payment Deadline: September 22, 2009

September 2009 Federal Communications Commission has announced that full payment of all applicable Regulatory Fees for Fiscal Year 2009 must be received no later than September 22, 2009. The price of missing the deadline is a 25% up-charge. On August 21, 2009, the Federal Communications Commission released a Public Notice…

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Commercial Stations’ Biennial Ownership Reports: File by November 1, 2009

September 2009 As previously reported, the FCC released an Order on May 29, 2009, suspending the biennial ownership reporting requirement for commercial radio and television broadcast stations that would otherwise have been required to file their reports by June 1, August 1 or October 1, 2009. Accordingly, commercial radio stations…

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Changes to Cuba Embargo Will Give Telecom and Satellite Providers More Opportunities

9/10/2009 On September 8, 2009, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) of the Department Treasury and the Bureau of Industry and Security (“BIS”) of the Department of Commerce issued final rules in the Federal Register amending the Cuba Sanctions program and the Export Administration Regulations (“EAR”) to increase the…

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Paying the Piper: Avoiding Payola/Plugola Violations and Minimizing Liability

August 2009 The volatile combination of broadcast employees concerned about their income and job security, and cash-strapped businesses looking for cheap and effective ways to promote themselves in difficult economic times, creates an unusually fertile ground for payola and plugola violations. Complicating matters are state efforts to prohibit “payola” activities…

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FY 2009 Annual Regulatory Fees’ Current Payment Deadline: September 22, 2009

August 2009 In its assessment letters to regulatees, the Commission has announced that full payment of all applicable Regulatory Fees for Fiscal Year 2009 must be received no later than September 22, 2009. On August 11, 2009, the final FY 2009 Annual Regulatory Fee Schedule was published in the Federal…

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Internet Radio Royalty Dispute Reaching End–For Now

Recent Settlements and Court Rulings Bring Clarity to Royalty Landscape 8/18/2009 The long-running battle over royalties owed by webcasters–companies that broadcast music over the Internet–took several significant leaps towards conclusion last month with important developments both inside and outside of the courtroom. Spurred by the Webcaster Settlement Act of 2009,…

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FCC Sets Annual Regulatory Fees for 2009; Payment Deadline Expected in September

August 2009 The FCC has released its final schedule of Annual Regulatory Fees for FY 2009. It is expected that those fees will become due and payable sometime in September. We will issue a further Client Advisory as soon as the Commission issues a Public Notice announcing the applicable deadline.…