WASHINGTON, DC - Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP has added three partners to the firm's Business Trial practice group and Communications team: Gardner Gillespie, Dave Thomas, and Paul Werner. Gillespie, Thomas and Werner join Sheppard Mullin's Washington, D.C. office from Hogan Lovells’ Washington office. To read the full press release click here.
By Brian Weimer and Douglas Svor
In August 2012, the Coalition for Broadcast Investment (“CBI”), a group comprising national broadcast networks, radio and television station licensees, and community and consumer organizations, filed a letter with the FCC requesting clarification of the foreign ownership rules contained in Section 310(b)(4) of the Communications Act. Specifically, CBI requested clarification that “the FCC will conduct a substantive, facts, and circumstances evaluation of proposals for foreign investment in excess of 25 percent in the parent company of a broadcast licensee.…” If adopted, this approach would represent a marked change of course for the FCC, which has in the past “categorically refused” to consider transactions involving investment in broadcasters above the 25% benchmark, according to CBI.
Continue Reading...By Brian Weimer and Douglas Svor
Following up on an important FCC Law Blog item, entities subject to the Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act (“CVAA”) should be aware that the April 1, 2013 deadline to electronically file the first annual recordkeeping certification is less than a week away.
Continue Reading...The National Defense Authorization Act for 2013 has authorized satellite export licensing to move from the State Department back to the Commerce Department as part of the Export Control Reform. Join Sheppard Mullin for a lunch program by partners Curtis Dombek and Scott Maberry with an introduction by Brian Weimer, leader of the firm's Communication Practice. Curt currently serves on the Commerce Department Technical Advisory Committee working with the Administration to write the new regulations. You will learn which agency will regulate which aspects of satellites, earth stations and related equipment, how parts and components will be treated, how Technical Assistance Agreements and foreign nationals will be affected, and how launch sites and destination country policies are likely to change. The seminar will take place on Wednesday, March 20, 2013 at Sheppard Mullin’s Washington, D.C. office from 12 p.m. – 2 p.m. EST. To register for this event, please click here.
By Brian Weimer and Douglas Svor
Recently, the FCC issued a Public Notice reminding the providers and equipment manufacturers of advanced communications services (ACS) of their obligation to maintain records evidencing their efforts to comply with the Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act (CVAA). In addition, these entities are also required to submit an annual certification stating that such records are being kept in accordance with the statute. The CVAA is a 2010 law ensuring access to ACS for people with disabilities, and the FCC began issuing regulations implementing the legislation in 2011.
Continue Reading...The Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) recently adopted new rules governing the Wireless Communications Service (“WCS”) in the 2.3 GHz band. The new rules largely follow those proposed by AT&T and Sirius XM earlier this year and are designed to both encourage the development of new broadband services and mitigate the potential for harmful interference to Satellite Digital Audio Radio Service (“SDARS”) operations in the adjacent portion of the 2.3 GHz band.
Continue Reading...One of the most important and exciting nights of the year for the communications industry is almost upon us. On November 8, 2012, the Young Lawyers Committee of the Federal Communications Bar Association will hold its 23rd Annual Charity Auction to benefit THC - Housing Families, Transforming Lives and the FCBA Foundation. THC serves D.C.’s homeless and other at-risk children and their families by providing housing and support services.
Continue Reading...By Edwin Komen and Brian Weimer
New FCC regulations on closed captioning of IP-delivered video programming have caught many by surprise even though they have been in the works for the past two years. Many of those who will be directly impacted by the new rules may still be unaware of the rapidly approaching compliance deadline of September 30, 2012. Most pre-recorded video programming must be captioned for IP-delivery if it is shown on television with captions on or after September 30, 2012. The producer or supplier of the content bears the initial responsibility for inserting the captioning but the distributors also have the duty to confirm compliance. There are many variations and different applicable dates for different kinds of programming (e.g., live vs. pre-recorded but edited vs. archived). As in all aspects of the law, the application of the law and the associated regulations depends on the specific circumstances surrounding each video program in a library. However, since the dates for implementation vary widely depending on the content and whether it has been broadcast on television in the US, producers, suppliers and distributors must carefully consider each video program in relationship to the relevant regulations. Video programming distributers will also be subject to new consumer complaint procedures that require distributors to have prescribed procedures in place by September 30, 2012. And while the deadline for device manufacturers to comply with their new closed captioning requirements is not until 2014, the reality of equipment development cycles requires device manufacturers to pay close attention to the new requirements immediately.
Continue Reading...By Curt Dombek, Brian Weimer, Dan Brooks, and Reid Whitten
Since 1999, strict controls on the export of U.S. satellites and satellite components have drastically eroded U.S. manufacturers’ market share in the global satellite industry. On April 18, 2012, the U.S. Departments of State and Defense released the “1248 Report” containing findings related to reducing some of those controls. The 1248 Report assesses the national security risks of removing certain satellites and related components from the tightly controlled United States Munitions List (USML) and transferring them to the generally less restrictive Commerce Control List (CCL). The report concludes that most communications satellites, lower-performing remote sensing satellites, and related components could be transferred from the USML to the CCL without harming U.S. national security. The transfer of these items to the CCL could greatly benefit the U.S. satellite industry by significantly easing the export controls placed on its products.
Continue Reading...By Brian Weimer and Dan Brooks
In a striking move by the FCC, the Commission has proposed to eliminate the ancillary terrestrial component ("ATC") rules from the 2 GHz Mobile Satellite Service ("MSS") band and repurpose the spectrum for pure terrestrial use (while retaining the mobile satellite allocation in the band). While the proposal is a long way from being adopted, DISH Network Corporation stands to gain tremendously now that it has become the only 2 GHz licensee after acquiring both DBSD and TerreStar out of bankruptcy earlier this month. The FCC postponed for another day the question as to what to do about the ATC rules for Big LEO MSS (i.e., Globalstar) and L-band MSS (i.e., LightSquared).
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