Legal File
Guard Yourself Before Moving Forward When Accepting or Engaging in Advertising or Promotions that Use FINAL FOUR or Other NCAA Trademarks: 2024 Update – Parts One & Two
Each year, as the NCAA basketball tournaments get underway, my colleague Mitch Stabbe highlights the trademark issues that can arise from uses of the well-known words and phrases associated with the games in advertising, promotions, and other media coverage.
Read MoreReinstating FCC Form 395-B Reporting on the Race and Gender of Broadcast Employees – What the Action Means for Broadcasters
On February 22, the FCC released an Order reinstating the requirement for radio and television broadcasters, commercial and noncommercial, to annually file an FCC Form 395-B. All station employment groups with 5 or more full-time employees would need to classify all station employees, both full-time and part-time, by race or ethnicity and gender, as well as by the type of job they perform at the station.
Read MoreSports Rights, the Super Bowl, and the Perception of Local Over-the-Air TV
Last week, when the NFL playoffs and upcoming Super Bowl had everyone thinking football, Congress held a hearing on how streaming media has affected sports and other video programming rights. We noted that hearing in our weekly update this weekend. As we said in our update, the hearing touched on all the video media issues of the day – sports rights, retransmission consent, the changing balance between pay TV (cable and satellite) versus streaming, and similar issues
Read More2024 Update on Super Bowl Advertising and Promotions
Given the value of the Super Bowl franchise, it is not surprising that the NFL is extremely aggressive in protecting its golden goose from anything it views as unauthorized efforts to trade off the goodwill associated with the mark or the game. Accordingly, with the coin toss almost upon us, advertisers should take special care before publishing or engaging in advertising or other promotional activities that refer to the Super Bowl.
Read MoreFCC Imposes $26,000 Fine on Broadcaster for One EEO Annual Public File Report that was Uploaded Late
The full Commission this week issued an Order fining Cumulus Media $26,000 for its failure to upload one EEO Annual Public File Report to its online public inspection file until about 9 months after the due date.
Read MoreCopyright Royalty Board Starts WEB VI Proceeding to Set Webcasting Royalties Paid to SoundExchange for 2026-2030: Petitions to Participate Due February 6
The Copyright Royalty Board on Friday published in the Federal Register a call for interested parties to file Petitions to Participate in the proceeding to set the royalty rates to be paid by webcasters (including broadcasters who simulcast their programming through internet-delivered channels) in the period 2026-2030.
Read MoreBroadcast Regulation Does Not Take a Vacation: FCC Resolves 2018 Quadrennial Review with No Significant Changes in Ownership Rules; Proposes a Reporting System for Retransmission Blackouts; and Advances New EEO Reporting Rules
Well, there has been news, including the resolution of the FCC’s long-delayed 2018 Quadrennial Review of the broadcast ownership rules.
Read MoreThe 2024 Broadcasters’ Calendar – Regulatory Dates for the Coming Year, with Special Attention to Lowest Unit Charge Political Windows
2024 is almost upon us. At this time of year, everyone seems to be making a list of the best (or worst) events of 2023, or predictions for what the new year will bring. After the first of the year, we will dust off our crystal ball and look at some of the legal and policy issues that may be addressed in the new year. Today we will look at the dates that are already set for 2024.
Read MoreMichigan Becomes the Fifth State to Require Disclosure of the Use of AI in Political Ads
Michigan’s Governor Whitmer just signed a bill that adds Michigan to 4 other states (Texas, California, Washington, and Minnesota) that have enacted laws requiring the clear identification of the use of AI in political ads.
Read MoreDecember Regulatory Dates for Broadcasters – Biennial Ownership Reports, Annual EEO Public File Reports, LPFM Filing Window, LUC Political Windows for 2024 Election, and More
Even with the holidays upon us, regulation never stops. There are numerous regulatory dates in December to which broadcasters need to keep in mind. Furthermore, as the 2024 presidential campaign is already underway, there are political advertising deadlines to watch out for.
Read More