April, 2012

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Court of Appeals Strikes Down Communications Act Ban on Political and Issue Advertising on Noncommercial Broadcasting Stations - Analyzing the Issues

Broadcast Law Blog

The Communications Act's ban on noncommercial broadcast stations running political and issue advertising was struck down as unconstitutional by the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. While the Court upheld the prohibition on commercial advertising for products and services, the majority of the Court felt that the ban on political advertising could not be justified.

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Effectively Preserving Electronically Stored Information Can Serve Companies Across the Country

The Paralegal Resource

Electronically Stored Information (ESI) can be difficult to preserve if an employee suddenly leaves a company, but you can follow these steps to ensure you maintain this data regardless of the situation.

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Librarian of Congress Appoints New Chief Judge of Copyright Royalty Board

Broadcast Law Blog

The Librarian of Congress today announced the appointment of a new Chief Judge for the Copyright Royalty Board. The new Chief Judge will be Suzanne Barnett, a superior court judge of King County in Seattle, Washington. This is the first new judge on the three-judge CRB since the judges were first appointed in January 2006, soon after Congress first created the CRB.

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Monitor Required Tower Lighting - FCC Proposes $17,000 Fine for Violations

Broadcast Law Blog

Communications towers that are not lit as required often bring big fines from the FCC. In two decisions released today, the Commission followed that precedent. In one case, the FCC proposed a fine of $17,000 to a tower owner after repeated promises to fix lights that were out did not result in any resolution of the issue after 2 years (problems which, according to the FCC decision, were first brought to the tower owner's attention by the FCC).

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Recipe for a Failed CLM Implementation

Selecting and implementing CLM technology can be daunting, leading to underutilization or abandonment. Factors like provider differentiation, inadequate planning, and lack of user training contribute to these failures. Recognizing these pitfalls is crucial for successful adoption, ensuring organizations harness the full potential of CLM for streamlined contract management.

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FCC and Public Interest Groups Demand Copies of TV Stations' Public Inspection Files, As FCC Nears Decision About Requiring That The Complete File Be Posted Online

Broadcast Law Blog

While rumors are flying that the FCC is rushing to adopt its proposals to require that TV stations put their public inspection files online (see our summary of the proposals here ), both the FCC and public interest groups are targeting the public files of television stations - looking to copy some or all of those files. Rumors are that the FCC inspected the public files of all television stations in Baltimore - and asked for copies of the complete files to be produced at the FCC within a day or

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Effective Dates for FCC Rules Requiring Captioning of Online Video Announced

Broadcast Law Blog

We recently wrote about the FCC's new rules requiring the captioning of television video retransmitted on the Internet. Those rules have now been published in the Federal Register, which sets the effective dates for the implementation of those rules. The rules become effective on April 30, which means that any video that is broadcast on TV on or after that date, that has captions when broadcast, must also have such captions when transmitted online at any time after September 30 (giving parties s

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Is $10,000 the New Normal for FCC Fines for Public File Violations for Missing Quarterly Issues Programs Lists?

Broadcast Law Blog

In three proposed fines issued in the last few weeks, the FCC proposed $10,000 fines for the failure of stations to have all of their required Quarterly Issues Programs Lists in their public files. In one case , the deficiency was discovered by an FCC inspector, filing random reports missing from 2007-2009. In two others ( here involving a noncommercial station and here ), the missing reports were reported by the stations in their renewal applications, and the missing reports also just covered p

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FCC Proposes to Liberalize Rules Against Noncommercial Stations Fundraising For Third-Party Non-Profit Groups

Broadcast Law Blog

The FCC has adopted a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking suggesting, with significant limitations, a liberalization of its rules that prohibit noncommercial broadcasters from raising funds for an entity other than the station itself if the fundraising suspends or alters normal programming of the station. As we've written before , the FCC prohibits noncommercial broadcasters from raising funds for charities and other non-profit organizations through telethons or other special programming.

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Extension of Time for Comments on Whether an Internet Delivered Video Service Is an MVPD Under the Communications Act

Broadcast Law Blog

As we wrote last month , the Commission has asked for public comment on whether an Internet delivered video programming service can qualify under the FCC rules and the Communications Act to be treated as a multichannel video programming distributor (an "MVPD"). While the FCC has in the past determined that an MVPD needs to have facilities associated with its programming service (like a cable or satellite delivered system), it asks if that is indeed required under the definitions in the

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Contract Lifecycle Management: A Business Enabler Exploring On-Ground Challenges

CLM tools have always strived to push contract management into the digital age for almost 30 years. But the complexities of digitising a legal document are numerous. The current scenarios in business development have shown that having a fully automated CLM has become a mandate for every law firm and in-house legal department. To determine if you need a CLM system, it's essential to clearly identify the on-ground business challenges you aim to solve.

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All the Legal Issues Facing Broadcasters - Presentation to the Oklahoma Broadcasters and Summary in TV NewsCheck

Broadcast Law Blog

In the last few weeks, I've twice had the occasion to summarize the legal issues facing broadcasters , and it amazes me at how many issue there are and, how quickly the issues are changing. On April 12, I did an update on these issue to the Oklahoma Association of Broadcasters at their annual convention - the PowerPoint slides for which are available here.

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FCC Retracts Text-to-Speech Prohibition from New EAS Rules

Broadcast Law Blog

The conversion of EAS alerts from text to speech by broadcast stations and cable systems, through systems contained in the stations and systems EAS equipment, was prohibited in the FCC's Fifth Report and Order (summarized here ) implementing the rules for the technology for the Common Alerting Protocol - the Internet-based alert system that must be activated by stations and systems by June 30.

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Follow These Five Organizational Tips for Paralegals

The Paralegal Resource

A paralegal organization may handle hundreds of cases, so these professionals must find the best ways to effectively manage their time. Check out these simple tips that can help those employed at a legal organization to maintain optimal productivity.

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Review the Best Ways to Destroy Confidential Data

The Paralegal Resource

Companies may employ several solutions for destroying data, and understanding how to effectively prevent private information from getting into the wrong hands will help you better manage your operations.

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California Civil Discovery Act Undergoes Significant Overhaul

Short article looking at the new CCP 2016.

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Stay Calm, Cool and Collected When Dealing with Angry Clients

The Paralegal Resource

Unfortunately, a person may have a bad day every once in a while, and you may face the challenge of having to assist this person in a professional setting. Dealing with angry clients can be difficult, but following these simple tips can help you become a better communicator.

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$11,000 FCC Fine to MVPD for EEO Rule Violations

Broadcast Law Blog

Broadcasters are not the only ones with FCC-regulated EEO obligations. Cable system operators and other MVPDs have similar FCC EEO obligations, requiring wide dissemination of information about job openings and the maintenance of public file information. In a decision released today, the FCC proposed a $11,000 fine to an MVPD for failing to widely disseminate information about all of its job openings, for failing to keep a public file with the required information about its recruitment efforts,

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Music Royalty Settlement Announced on Mechanical Royalties - Not A Decision on Webcasting Rates

Broadcast Law Blog

The broadcast and music trade press brought news of a settlement between music companies and digital media services regrading digital music royalties. Some press reports jumped to the conclusion that the decision had something to do with the royalty rates that Internet radio companies pay SoundExchange for streaming their music on the Internet. Others expressed disappointment that it did not seem to address that issue at all.

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May 7 Deadline Set for Comments on Proposed Rules on Interference to Full-Power FM by LPFM Stations, and on LPFM Service Rules (Including Proposal for 250 Watt LPFM Stations)

Broadcast Law Blog

Determining how much interference to full-power FM stations is acceptable from LPFM stations is perhaps, in the long run, one of the most important issues discussed in the FCC's two orders released two weeks ago clarifying the rules for LPFM stations. The FCC's proposals on this issue, and several others, has now been published in the Federal Register , asking for public comments by May 7, with reply comments due May 21.

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Dangers of Digital "Reporting": Legal Risks and Unreliable Transcripts

In the world of legal proceedings, the choice between a certified stenographer and digital "reporting" holds significant implications. Certified stenographers go through rigorous training and testing and stand as the gold standard for accuracy in capturing every word. Their expertise ensures a reliable record, a crucial foundation for legal cases.

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Online Video Services Prompt FCC to Ask for Comments on Definition of MVPD

Broadcast Law Blog

As technology changes, the definitions in the FCC rules don't always keep up. In a public notice released last Friday, the FCC asked for public comment on what its definition of an "MVPD" - Multichannel Video Programming Distributor - means for purposes of its program access rules. These rules limit exclusive contracts for certain programming that one would normally think of as network cable programming, in order to make that programming available to competing distribution technologies

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Advantages of Cloud Storage in Electronic Discovery Outweigh Risks

The Paralegal Resource

Electronic discovery (eDiscovery), the process many attorneys use to secure evidence in civil or criminal legal cases, may require the use of cloud computing.

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On the Schedule for the April 27 FCC Meeting: Television Public Interest Obligations, TV Channel Sharing and Third-Party Fundraising by Noncommercial Broadcasters

Broadcast Law Blog

Three broadcast items are tentatively scheduled for the next FCC meeting, to be held on April 27, according to the tentative agenda released today. In one expected action, though perhaps moving more quickly than many thought possible, the FCC has indicated that it will adopt a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on adopting a new form on which television broadcasters would detail their public interest programming and other programming that addresses community needs.

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FCC Votes to Require Online Public File for TV Stations - Rejects Compromise for Political File

Broadcast Law Blog

At its meeting today, the FCC voted to require that television stations maintain most of their public inspection files online , in a database to be created by the FCC (see the FCC's Public Notice here ). While the details about this obligation have not yet been released, from the comments at the FCC meeting, much is already evident. All TV stations will have to post their files to an online server to be maintained by the FCC.

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Optimizing Contract Management and Enhancing Team Collaboration: Insights from a Legal Operations Perspective

Speaker: Adina Marta Newman

Learn about a world of effective contract management and seamless teamwork across departments in this upcoming webinar from Cobblestone Software. You'll discover practical strategies and tips that legal professionals can use to streamline contract processes and enhance collaboration, making significant impact across legal and corporate departments. Join us as we show how you can supercharge contract processes, improve team communication, and take your contributions to the next level.