Category: Legislative Update

NAB President and CEO Gordon Smith testified on Thursday (4/15) before the Senate Commerce Committee’s Subcommittee on Communications, Media, and Broadband to promote broadcasting as the best investment for the Administration’s vaccine-promoting advertising message, which is backed by over $1 billion in COVID-19 aid funding. He spoke during the subcommittee hearing, “Shot of Truth: Communicating… read more

By: David Oxenford, Wilkinson Barker Knauer LLP The Commission’s staff last week issued a Public Notice reminding broadcasters that  the reimbursement program for those broadcasters displaced by the repacking of the television band after the incentive auction is coming to an end.  The FCC reminded broadcasters eligible for reimbursement (including certain FM stations and LPTV licensees… read more

By: David Oxenford, Wilkinson Barker Knauer LLP On April 1, The United States Supreme Court released its decision upholding the FCC’s 2017 changes to its ownership rules in the FCC v Prometheus Radio Project case (see our summary here).  Those rules had been put on hold in 2019 by a decision by the Third Circuit Court of Appeals which… read more

The FCC’s Media Bureau has announced that it will not accept FM commercial and noncommercial educational (NCE) minor change applications during the Auction 109 Form 175 application filing window. This window will open on April 28, 2021, and close on May 11, 2021. In Auction 109, scheduled to begin on July 27, 2021, the Media… read more

On April 7, National Association of Broadcasters President and CEO Gordon H. Smith announced his plans to transition to an advisory and advocacy role effective Dec. 31, 2021. The organization’s Chief Operating Officer Curtis LeGeyt has been named the next president and CEO of NAB effective Jan. 1, 2022. In a video message to members,… read more

On March 30, President Biden signed into law the two-month extension to apply for a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan. As a refresher, the legislation extends PPP through May 31 and allows 501(c)(6) organizations and others more time to pursue a second PPP loan. Further, if eligible organizations apply by May 31, the Small Business… read more

There is fresh bipartisan backing in Congress for advancing media diversity, according to a recent InsideRadio report. Resolutions have been introduced in the House and Senate that call diversity a “core tenet” of the public interest standard in the government’s media policy. The House resolution (H.Res.277) also pledges to work with media companies to develop… read more

By: David Oxenford, Wilkinson Barker Knauer LLP The Copyright Office this week granted a request from the Copyright Royalty Board for more time to decide on the royalties to be paid to SoundExchange for the public performance of sound recordings by webcasters, including broadcasters who simulcast their programming on the Internet.  As we wrote in July, the CRB decision on the webcasting royalties for 2021-2025 was initially… read more