Legal News

September Regulatory Dates for Broadcasters – Including Reg Fees, Nationwide EAS Test, Must-Carry Letters, Lowest Unit Rate, Translator and Repack Deadlines and GMR License Extension

By David Oxenford|2017-08-25T10:27:11-05:00August 25th, 2017|Legal News|

Summer is coming to an end, but the legal obligations never take a vacation, and September brings another list of regulatory deadlines for broadcasters. While the month is one of those without the usual list of EEO Public File obligations or quarterly FCC filing obligations, there still are a number of other regulatory deadlines for...… Continue Reading

Reminder – ETRS Form One to be Filed by August 27 By All EAS Participants – Including Broadcasters – In Anticipation of September Nationwide EAS Test

By David Oxenford|2017-08-24T10:47:43-05:00August 24th, 2017|Legal News|

All EAS Participants – including all full-power broadcasters – must complete the 2017 ETRS Form One on or before August 28, 2017. We wrote about this obligation here. The filing deadline was set for next week as the ETRS system is used so that stations can report on the results of nationwide EAS tests. With...… Continue Reading

Now Available: Archived Must-Carry/Retransmission Consent Webinar

By FHH Law|2017-08-23T13:47:43-05:00August 23rd, 2017|Legal News|

With the October 1 deadline looming, FHH’s Dan Kirkpatrick and Paul Feldman held a webinar to help industry leaders navigate the waters regarding must-carry/retransmission consent. If you missed the webinar, or just want a refresher, never fear: you can catch it in re-runs. We’ve posted a recording of the show here – all audio and slides...… Continue Reading

Complaints Filed Against TV Stations for Public File Violations on Political Issue Ads

By David Oxenford|2017-08-23T09:15:21-05:00August 23rd, 2017|Legal News|

Earlier this week, the Campaign Legal Center and Issue One, two political “watchdog” organizations, filed FCC complaints against two Georgia TV stations, alleging violations of the rules that govern the documents that need to be placed into a station’s public inspection file regarding political “issue advertising” (see their press release here, with links to the...… Continue Reading

Last of Citizens Broadband Radio Service Rules Become Final

By Mitchell Lazarus|2017-08-22T15:19:13-05:00August 22nd, 2017|Legal News|

The FCCs rules for Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) have become final, after many years in the works. No, it’s not your grandfather’s “Ten-four, good buddy” citizens band, but a high-end, super-Wi-Fi-type service that someday will serve your portable devices with fast digital signals. But don’t run down to Best Buy quite yet. The engineers are...… Continue Reading

Broadcasters Encounter FCC System Obstacles in Meeting Monday Deadline for EAS Form 1 Filing

By Lauren Lynch Flick|2017-08-22T07:29:54-05:00August 22nd, 2017|Legal News|

The FCC and FEMA have established September 27, 2017 as the date for the next nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System (EAS). Like last year’s test, all EAS participants must file Form 1 a month before the test. The Form 1 has been modified, however, requiring information that was not requested previously. In addition, […]

Reminder: FREE Must-Carry/Retransmission Consent Webinar Tuesday, August 22

By FHH Law|2017-08-18T13:28:05-05:00August 18th, 2017|Legal News|

This is a reminder that on Tuesday, August 22 from 2:00-3:15 p.m. (EDT), FHH carriage gurus Dan Kirkpatrick and Paul Feldman will present a FREE webinar entitled “Must-Carry and Retransmission Consent 2017.” Free registration for the webinar is available here. The industry faces an October 1, 2017 deadline requiring all full-power television stations to make...… Continue Reading

Looking at Music Royalty Issues for Radio and TV Broadcasters

By David Oxenford|2017-08-17T11:10:16-05:00August 17th, 2017|Legal News|

Last week, I participated in a discussion about music royalties for broadcasters at the Texas Association of Broadcasters Annual Convention in Austin. Speaking on the panel with me were the heads of the Radio Music License Committee and the TV Music Licensing Committee. These are the organizations that represent most commercial broadcasters in their negotiations...… Continue Reading

Looking for a New FM? – FCC Releases a Potential “Shopping List” of Channels that Will Be Available in a Future Auction

By David Oxenford|2017-08-15T10:48:25-05:00August 15th, 2017|Legal News|

It has been over two years since the last window allowing applicants to file for new FM stations (see our article here). There had been some speculation that the number of requests for new allotments was decreasing, leaving the FCC with few FM channels to auction off and thereby breaking what had been an almost...… Continue Reading