Federal Communications Law Journal

Browse past and current articles from this publication.

Viacom-CBS Merger: Media Competition and Consolidation in the New Millennium.
Media Access Project I start with six propositions. First, we have the best system of broadcasting in the world because of--not in spite of--Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rules that ha . . .

Joint Statement of Sumner M. Redstone Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Viacom Inc. and Mel Karmazin President and Chief Exec
Viacom CBS I. INTRODUCTION On September 6, 1999, Viacom Inc. and CBS Corporation agreed to combine the two companies in a merger of equals. Sumner Redstone will lead the new company, to be cal . . .

The game of radiopoly: an antitrust perspective of consolidation in the radio industry.
I. INTRODUCTION The mass consolidation of the radio industry is a result of two recent developments: the enactment of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 (Telecom Act)(1) and the use of the 1992 Me . . .

Online auction fraud: are the auction houses doing all they should or could to stop online fraud?
I. INTRODUCTION In April 1998, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) released a consumer alert pertaining to the increasing problem of online auction fraud. The consumer alert notified prospective on . . .

Don't talk to strangers: an analysis of government and industry efforts to protect a child's privacy online.
I. INTRODUCTION Statistics reveal that approximately sixty-four million adults in the United States use the Internet.(1) Studies also indicate that nearly two-thirds of children have used the Inte . . .

Copyright and antitrust: the effects of the Digital Performance Rights in Sound Recordings Act of 1995 in foreign markets.
I. INTRODUCTION The language of the Copyright Clause of the U.S. Constitution(1) and antitrust laws that prohibit monopolies and restraints of trade(2) may seem contradictory. While the Copyright . . .

Strategies to promote advanced telecommunications capabilities.
I. INTRODUCTION "[Section 706 of the 1996 Telecommunications Act] is an invitation to `grab the brass ring' of new technology and should not be used simply as an opportunity to pick the low level . . .

Progress and regress on interLATA competition.(long distance telecommunications)
I. INTRODUCTION Over sixty-six billion dollars were spent in 1997 on interstate and international long-distance telecommunications services.(1) MacAvoy and Taylor argue that, despite price decreas . . .

A history and analysis of the Federal Communications Commission's response to radio broadcast hoaxes.
I. INTRODUCTION: LAWS OF MISREPRESENTATION AND THE UNIQUE STATUS OF RADIO In explaining the limits of protection under the First Amendment, Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes once wrote: . . .

Who's taking whom: some comments and evidence on the constitutionality of TELRIC.(total element long run incremental cost pricin
I. INTRODUCTION Valuing the rate base has always been a contentious part of utility regulation. Over the last one hundred years, the Supreme Court has endorsed both original cost and fair-market v . . .

Cable Internet unbundling: local leadership in the deployment high speed access.
I. INTRODUCTION The evolution of law and technology has led to substantial activity in the field of communications law. The growth in popularity and use of the Internet has made it an area of econ . . .

Federal court jurisdiction over private TCPA claims: why the federal Courts of Appeals got It fight.(Telephone Consumer Protecti
I. INTRODUCTION In their first-year civil procedure class, law students learn that a federal statute grants federal district courts jurisdiction over cases "arising under" federal law.(1) Yet, sec . . .

Strike two: an analysis of the Child Online Protection Act's constitutional failures.
I. INTRODUCTION In 1995, Time magazine ran a cover story about the proliferation of pornography on the Internet.(1) The story was based on a study conducted by Marty Rimm, which was later discredi . . .

The constitutionality of the Driver's Privacy Protection Act: a fork in the information access road.
I. INTRODUCTION * City police departments discovered to have abused the cover of immunity to avoid prosecution for major traffic violations, leaving citizens to cover accident damages caused by at . . .

Shrinkwrap and clickwrap agreements: 2B or Not 2B?(Uniform Commercial Code)
I. INTRODUCTION According to a survey conducted in 1997 for the National Science Foundation, over forty percent of Americans own personal computers. Although nearly every one of these computer o . . .

The battle for Portland, Maine.(cellular telephone service)
I. INTRODUCTION Portland, Maine, sits serenely on the banks of Casco Bay. It suffers few of the typical problems of large metropolitan areas. The city is clean; the traffic is manageable; there is . . .

Privatization and the Freedom of Information Act: an analysis of public access to private entities under federal law.
I. INTRODUCTION This legislation springs from one of our most essential principles: a democracy works best when the people have all the information that the security of the [n]ation permits. No on . . .

Financing telecommunications projects in Asia: a promising regulatory perspective.
I. INTRODUCTION Asia's telecommunications market has long been viewed as lucrative and fast growing. The value of the Asian market is estimated at $180 billion, while a recent study shows that the . . .

Not in my backyard: the siting of wireless communications facilities.
It shall be the policy of the United States to encourage the provision of new technologies and services to the public.(1) I. INTRODUCTION Wireless service providers are not unlike their mor . . .

Private property, economic efficiency, and spectrum policy in the wake of the C block auction.
But if some of the consequences of his action are outside of the sphere of the benefits he is entitled to reap and of the drawbacks that are put to his debit, he will not bother in his planning abou . . .

The copyright dilemma involving online service providers: problem solved ... for now.
I. INTRODUCTION Much has changed in the world of communications in the last several years. A quarter century ago, the suggestion of watching year-old motion pictures at home was almost laughable. . . .

False alarm? (privacy protection of personal data in the U.S. and Europe)
Privacy law in the United States has been unsettled by a directive from the European Commission requiring every Member Nation of the European Union to enact comprehensive privacy legislation regulat . . .

Legal opinions in corporate transactions affected by FCC regulation: an economic approach.
I. INTRODUCTION In 1996, the Subcommittee on Legal Opinions (Subcommittee) of the Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA) published a report on legal opinion practice in corporate transactio . . .

Self-regulation and the media.
I. INTRODUCTION Calls for self-regulation of electronic media have recently been heard in Washington, D.C. In December 1998, a Presidential Advisory Committee recommended that digital television b . . .

The value of the tax certificate.
I. INTRODUCTION In 1995, Congress repealed section 1071 of the Internal Revenue Code, which allowed the Federal Communications Commission (FCC or Commission) to issue a certificate to sellers of c . . .

Investment in minority-owned media: a social investor's perspective.
I. INTRODUCTION The issue of capital access for minority media firms is a familiar problem. Minority representation is low in many media organizations, and minority representation among management . . .

The FCC's minority tax certificate program: a proposal for life after death.
I. INTRODUCTION There are two types of Federal Communications Commission (FCC or Commission) regulation: "Jewish mother" and positive incentive. The all-too-familiar Jewish mother approach relies . . .

Use of designated entity preferences in assigning wireless licenses.
I. INTRODUCTION The Federal Communications Commission (FCC or Commission) was granted the power to auction licenses for use of the electromagnetic spectrum in the 1993 Omnibus Budget Reconciliatio . . .

Measuring the nexus: the relationship between minority ownership and broadcast diversity after Metro Broadcasting.
I. INTRODUCTION In Metro Broadcasting, Inc. v. FCC,(1) the Supreme Court found that the federal government had a compelling interest in promoting the diversity of viewpoints via broadcasting. In a . . .

Private equity funding for minority media ownership.
I. INTRODUCTION The private equity market is a major source of capital in the United States. In 1998, organized private equity firms raised over $85.3 billion.(1) These firms are very interested i . . .

The digital dilemma: ten challenges facing minority-owned new media ventures.
I. INTRODUCTION Every morning in Africa, a gazelle awakens knowing that it must outrun the fastest lion if it wants to stay alive. Every morning, a lion wakes up knowing it must run faster . . .

Equity pooling and media ownership.
I. INTRODUCTION This Article examines methods to increase the diversity of ownership of media outlets. There are several reasons why public policy might be focused in this direction. First, the me . . .

Equality in the information age.
Anatole France once observed "the law, in its majestic equality, forbids all men to sleep under bridges ... the rich as well as the poor" Such a stunted idea of equality neither served those who sle . . .

Public Policy Toward Cable Television: The Economics of Rate Controls.(Review)
Public Policy Toward Cable Television: The Economics of Rate Controls , by Thomas W. Hazlett and Matthew L. Spitzer, The MIT Press and The AEI Press, 1997, 253 pages. To paraphrase William Shakesp . . .

From international competitive carrier to the WTO: a survey of the FCC's international telecommunications policy initiatives 198
I. INTRODUCTION In the December 1998 issue, the Federal Communications Law Journal published a law review article surveying the Federal Communication Commission's (FCC or Commission) international . . .

The First Amendment case against FCC IP telephony regulation.(Internet Protocol)
I. INTRODUCTION At the present rate of digital innovation, the communications industry promises to be a fruitful one for technocratically adept communications lawyers, not only because digital inn . . .

Employer liability for employee online criminal acts.
I. INTRODUCTION Typing away at his computer while at work, Jacob Jacks forged a new and unhealthy relationship with an unassuming woman through an online "sex chat room." A computer technical advi . . .

Betting on the net: an analysis of the government's role in addressing Internet gambling.
Respect for the law is among the most precious qualities a decent society Can adorn and protect itself with, and when that respect is attenuated by attempted enforcement of moral principles widely f . . .

To net or not to net: Singapore's regulation of the Internet.
Online technology is like any other: made by human hands, blessed with our best intentions, and tainted with our worst vices.(1) Certain liberties in a developing nation sometimes have to be sacri . . .

Playing the name game: a glimpse at the future of the Internet domain name system.
What's in a name! that which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.(1) -- William Shakespeare I. INTRODUCTION While a rose may smell as sweet regardless of its taxonomy, when i . . .

Cap-sized: how the promise of the price cap voyage to competition was lost in a sea of good intentions.
I. INTRODUCTION The "telecommunications revolution" has moved from cliche, to reality. It is now transforming how people live and work. Telephone service is now available through a computer termin . . .

Federal preemption of state universal service regulations under the Telecommunications Act of 1996.
I. INTRODUCTION Section 254(f) of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 provides that states may adopt regulations "not inconsistent with" the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC or Commission) . . .

The fairness doctrine is dead and living in Israel.
I. INTRODUCTION Although the fairness doctrine has been eliminated in the United States as of 1987,(1) the idea of regulating speech concerning issues of public disagreement continues to stir a li . . .

Commercial Speech in the Law of the European Union: Lessons for the United States?(tobacco advertising)
I. INTRODUCTION On July 6, 1998, the Council of Ministers of the European Union adopted a proposal calling for a ban on all tobacco advertising in the European Union.(1) The far-reaching measure w . . .

State Sales & Use Tax on Internet Transactions.
I. INTRODUCTION With the explosive growth of electronic commerce, the way people do business is dramatically changing. More and more transactions are being conducted electronically, and the geogra . . .

A birthday party: the terrible or terrific two's? 1996 Federal Telecommunications Act.(second anniversary of the 1996 Telecommun
Good afternoon and welcome to the Ohio Public Utilities Commission's observance of the Telecommunications Act's "Cotton Anniversary."(1) That's right. The first anniversary is paper, and the secon . . .

From the International Competitive Carrier to the WTO: A Survey of the FCC's International Telecommunications Policy Initiatives
I. INTRODUCTION As both the mainstream and trade press reports continue to herald, the world is in the midst of an international telecommunications revolution. With the creation and implementation . . .

"Wildly Enthusiastic" About the First Multilateral Agreement on Trade in Telecommunications Services.
I. INTRODUCTION Traditionally, telecommunications services have been provided by national monopolies. In a sign that monopolies are a thing of the past, the World Trade Organization's (WTO)(1) Fou . . .

Liberalized Telecommunications Trade in the WTO: Implications for Universal Service Policy.(World Trade Organization)
I. TELECOMMUNICATIONS: A SERVICE SECTOR AND A BACKBONE FOR OTHER SECTORS The telecommunications market is one of the largest markets in the world, second only to the financial services market. The . . .

. . .