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4/16/2009
Upcoming Deadlines
FCC Form 499-Q is Due by May 1, 2009
All providers of interstate telecommunications within the United States, with limited exceptions, must file a FCC Form 499-Q Telecommunications Reporting Worksheet by May 1, 2009 containing revenue information for January 1 through March 31 and projections for July 1 through September 30. The completed FCC Form 499-Q should be mailed to:

Form 499 Data Collection Agent
Attn: USAC Customer Service
2000 L St NW
Suite 200
Washington, DC 20036
Providers who have obtained a USAC Filer ID number may file the form electronically at: https://forms.universalservice.org/usaclogin/login.asp. A late fee may be imposed for failing to file or filing the worksheet after the due date.

The 499-Q form and instructions can be found on USAC’s website at: http://www.universalservice.org/fund-administration/forms/. The Universal Service Fund (“USF”) contribution factor for the second quarter 2009 is 11.3%.

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4/16/2009
FCC Fines Texas Low Power Noncommercial Educational Station $20,000 for Airing Advertisements. The FCC issued a Public Notice late today providing guidance to broadcasters regarding the DTV walk-in center consumer education requirement it created last month. On March 13th, the FCC imposed a number of additional DTV consumer education requirements upon stations still operating in analog format or which are operating in digital format, but not with final post-transition facilities. One of those requirements is that such stations publicize the location and hours of any walk-in DTV help centers located in their market by including that information in a daily PSA or crawl.

Today, the FCC issued the attached Public Notice, which provides very specific requirements for what qualifies as a walk-in DTV help center. The FCC indicates that “walk-in centers that have the [listed] characteristics and are located in a station’s designated market area (DMA) must be identified in that station’s consumer education campaign.” It therefore appears that stations will not be required to publicize any walk-in centers that do not meet the FCC’s stringent standards, and the principal impact of today’s clarification will be to reduce the number of consumer assistance facilities that broadcast stations are required to publicize under the new consumer education requirements.

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3/24/2009
This Advisory is intended specifically to help guide individuals and companies, that wish to distribute recorded music over the Internet for pleasure or profit, through the maze of licenses and royalties required for such “webcasting” activities. It discusses the recent settlement agreements entered into between SoundExchange and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (“CPB”) and the National Association of Broadcasters (“NAB”). For certain commercial radio stations considering whether to take advantage of the NAB/SoundExchange settlement, April 2, 2009 is a critical “opt-in” deadline.

Music licensing has always been a complex and controversial subject. The rise of the Internet has served to take this complexity and controversy to a whole new level. The last several years have seen a multitude of developments in online music, both in the types and successes of music-related websites and in the laws and regulations governing music copyrights.

A PDF version of this entire article can be found at Licensing and Royalty Requirements for Webcasters: Details and Deadlines.

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March 2009
The next Children’s Television Programming Report must be electronically filed with the FCC and placed in stations’ local Public Inspection Files by April 10, 2009, reflecting programming aired during the months of January, February and March 2009.

Statutory and Regulatory Requirements

As a result of the Children’s Television Act of 1990 and the FCC Rules adopted under the Act, full power and Class A television stations are required, among other things, to: (1) limit the amount of commercial matter aired during programs originally produced and broadcast for an audience of children 12 years of age and younger; and (2) air programming responsive to the educational and informational needs of children 16 years of age and younger. Each of these requirements translates into the obligation to prepare supporting documents on a quarterly basis.

A PDF version of this entire article can be found at 2009 First Quarter Children’s Television Programming Documentation Advisory

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March 2009
The next FCC Form 388 DTV Quarterly Activity Station Report must be electronically filed via CDBS and placed in stations’ local public inspection files by April 10, 2009, reflecting information for the months of January, February, and March 2009.
As we have previously advised, on March 3, 2008, the FCC released a Report and Order outlining new requirements for the education of consumers regarding the February 17, 2009, transition to digital television service. As a result of this Public Notice, stations were required to ensure that they elected one of the compliance “Options” contained in the Report and Order and began airing DTV consumer education announcements pursuant to their chosen “Option” no later than Monday, March 31, 2008.

A PDF version of this entire article can be found at 2009 First Quarter FCC Form 388 DTV Quarterly Activity Station Report Advisory for Broadcast Stations.

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March 2009
The next Quarterly Issues/Programs List (“Quarterly List”) must be placed in stations’ local public inspection files by April 10, 2009, reflecting information for the months of January, February, and March 2009. The FCC’s action adopting the new program report Form 355, which is intended to replace the Quarterly Issues/Programs Lists for full-power and Class A television stations, is not yet effective and thus will not have any effect on this first quarter public file requirement.

Content of the Quarterly List

The FCC requires each broadcast station to air a reasonable amount of programming responsive to signifi­cant community needs, issues, and problems as determined by the station. The FCC gives each station the discretion to determine which issues facing the community served by the station are the most signifi­cant and how best to respond to them in the station’s overall programming.

A PDF version of this entire article can be found at 2009 First Quarter Issues/Programs List Advisory for Broadcast Stations .

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March 2009
This Broadcast Station EEO Advisory is directed to radio and television stations licensed to communities in: Delaware, Indiana, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Tennessee and Texas, and highlights the upcoming deadlines for compliance with the FCC’s EEO Rule.

April 1, 2009 is the deadline for stations licensed to communities in the States/Territories referenced above to place their Annual EEO Public File Report in the public inspection file and post the report on the station’s website, if applicable.

Under the FCC’s rule that became effective as of March 10, 2003, all radio and television station employment units (“SEUs”), regardless of staff size, must afford equal employment opportunity to all qualified persons and practice nondiscrimination in employment.

A PDF version of this entire article can be found at Broadcast Station EEO Advisory.

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March 2009
Commercial and noncommercial Radio stations licensed to communities in Texas must electronically file their Biennial Ownership Reports with the FCC by April 1, 2009. Commercial and noncommercial Television stations licensed to communities in the States of Delaware, Indiana, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, and Tennessee must also electronically file their Biennial Ownership Reports by the same deadline.
As radio and television stations in the same State/Territory file their renewals one year apart, broadcast stations in the above-referenced states which are not subject to the April 1, 2009, deadline will be required to file their Biennial Ownership Reports by April 1, 2010.

A PDF version of this entire article can be found at Biennial Ownership Reports Due By April 1, 2009, for Certain Radio and Television Broadcasters.

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March 2009

FCC Fines a Michigan Radio Station for Broadcasting a Telephone Conversation Without Prior Notice.

FCC Fines Pennsylvania Noncommercial Educational Television Station $2,500 for Airing Advertisements.

FCC Fines AM Radio Station $6,000 for Conducting a Contest Without Describing All Material Terms.

A PDF version of this entire article can be found at A FCC Enforcement Monitor.

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TVNewsDay
3/4/2009
To say that current economic conditions are challenging for broadcasters is akin to noting that the Ice Age was chilly.

Like many industries, consolidation and growth was fueled by the easy availability of capital, and now broadcasters struggling under the weight of reduced advertising sales and large debt payments must also struggle to meet their loan covenants.

For those of us involved in both the regulatory and transactional sides of the industry, 2009 threatens to be the year that bankruptcies, loan workouts and alternative financing arrangements exceed all other major transactions.

In working with both broadcasters and their creditors seeking to navigate these dark waters, we have crafted some basic “rules of the road” that make it easier to both assess and preserve your options going forward.

At the outset, the most obvious piece of advice — and advice that is too often ignored — is that in today’s difficult financial environment, broadcasters need to continually focus on their relationships with their lenders.

Rather than avoiding such conversations as the risk of violating a loan covenant grows, broadcasters should actively engage their lenders, even if they find such discussions uncomfortable.

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