In a recent Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (FNPRM), the FCC announced that it is seeking comment on proposals that would require video programmers to file contact information and closed captioning certifications with the FCC.  Specific topics on which the FCC is seeking comment include the following: Whether video programmers should be required to file contact information for the resolution of closed captioning complaints with the FCC.  The FNPRM also seeks comment on whether programmers…

The STELA Reauthorization Act (“STELAR”) has been signed into law by the President.  STELAR extends the statutory copyright license for satellite carriage of distant signals for another five years (through December 31, 2019).  It also extends through January 1, 2020 the statutory good faith negotiation requirement imposed on broadcasters and MVPDs for retransmission consent negotiations.  As discussed below, it makes several other changes to the Communications Act and to the Copyright Act.…

This morning the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit granted a stay of an FCC order that would have made hundreds of thousands of pages of highly confidential unredacted programming distribution and negotiation strategy documents available for inspection by third parties.  The disclosure of these materials would have occurred as part of the FCC’s review of the Comcast-Time Warner Cable and AT&T-DIRECTV mergers.  The stay was granted in response to a petition filed…

The FCC was set to release today hundreds of thousands of pages of highly confidential documents — including unredacted programming distribution agreement materials and negotiating strategy documents — for inspection by third parties as part of the Commission’s review of the Comcast-Time Warner Cable and AT&T-DIRECTV mergers.  On Friday, November 14, however, a coalition of the largest broadcast and cable networks (“Content Companies”) won a temporary stay from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the…

Yesterday, the Federal Communications Commission’s Enforcement Bureau issued an advisory reminding political campaigns about the restrictions placed on the use of autodialed calls, prerecorded calls, and text messages by the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”) and the FCC’s corresponding rules.  The Enforcement Bureau warns that it is “closely monitoring this space” and will “rigorously enforce the important consumer protections in the TCPA and [the FCC’s] corresponding rules.” The advisory summarizes four key restrictions on political…

On Wednesday, May 7, Covington attorneys Stefanie Doebler and Saurabh Anand will be participating in a webinar that might be of interest to many of the readers of this blog.  The presentation, entitled “Advertising Drugs and Health Care Products via Social Media,” will provide attendees with an overview of a recent FDA draft guidance addressing social media, and will also address the following areas: The regulatory scheme and FDA’s policy surrounding advertising and promotion via…

By Miranda Cole and Katharina Grosse-Ophoff In its UPC judgment this week the European Court of Justice (“ECJ”) has clarified the application of consumer protection laws to, and the jurisdiction of national regulatory authorities over, providers of electronic communications services (“ECS”) that are established in one member state who provide services in another.  The court also confirmed that ECS providers need not establish a branch in member states in which they provide service, as long as they are…