September 2016 Independent Contractor Misclassification and Compliance News...
The past month’s judicial and administrative activity in the area of IC misclassification reflects the wide range of industries facing these types of claims: communications; cleaning services;...
View ArticleSomething for Everyone? Pre-election FCC Draft Business Data Service Fact...
FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler has released an October 7, 2016 “Fact Sheet” summarizing key points of his draft Business Data Service (“BDS”) Reform Order to regulate the leased, dedicated high capacity...
View ArticleWhat to Expect From the Trump FCC
In the days since the recent election, many tech, media and telecom industry observers remain unsure of what to expect from the Federal Communications Commission under the Trump administration....
View ArticleFinding of Exceptionality Leaves Unsuccessful Infringement Plaintiff Liable...
Needless to say, a finding of exceptionality under 35 U.S.C. § 285 can have crippling consequences. Just ask Rembrandt Technologies, LP, which recently was slapped with an order to pay the prevailing...
View ArticleGood News for Public Agencies and Communities on Regulation of Cable Systems
An FCC order that local governments, schools and the public have opposed for almost a decade was reversed today by the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals....By: Best Best & Krieger LLP
View ArticleYour Daily Dose of Financial News
Big American banks (BofA, Citi, Morgan Stanley) are avoiding deals with Chinese conglomerate HNA Group over concerns regarding HNA’s debt level and ownership structure....By: Robins Kaplan LLP
View ArticleSixth Circuit Overturns FCC Cable Order - Partner Joseph Van Eaton...
An FCC order that local governments, schools and the public have opposed for almost a decade was reversed by the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals. The case is Montgomery County v. FCC, which had its...
View ArticleMany California Cities May Not be Receiving Full Cable Franchise Fee
A decision from the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California suggests that many California cities are receiving less than the full cable franchise fee to which they are...
View ArticleCable Operators Reduced Franchise Fee to Municipalities Not Permitted - BB&K...
For years, California cable operators have reduced the franchise fee paid to local governments by the amount paid to the California Public Service Commission. While a small amount for many communities,...
View ArticleNew Flavors Of The Alice Analysis On Display In Federal Circuit Ineligibility...
Two-Way Media Ltd v. Comcast Cable Communications, LLC et al., Fed. Cir. (November 1, 2017) - The Federal Circuit’s decision last week to invalidate all of the claims of two audio and video streaming...
View ArticleFCC Commissioners Debate Adjustments to Merger Review Standard
In the first major transaction approval under Ajit Pai’s Chairmanship, the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) recently approved, subject to targeted, transaction-specific conditions, license and...
View ArticleYour Daily Dose of Financial News
AT&T’s chief is weighing in the DOJ’s call to sell CNN in order to make its deal with Time Warner go through, and, as Randall sees it, “selling CNN makes no sense”....By: Robins Kaplan LLP
View ArticleCable Providers “Cut the Cord”: Audio/Video Streaming Patents Fail Both Alice...
The Federal Circuit affirmed the decision of the Delaware District Court in Two-Way Media, Ltd. v. Comcast Cable Communications, Inc., Nos. 16-2531, 16-2532 (Fed. Cir. Nov. 1, 2017), determining that...
View ArticleYour Daily Dose of Financial News
Breakingviews is all about new GE CEO John Flannery’s quest for the “soul” of the company, but it’s also very interested in less philosophical matters—especially on the heels of GE halving...
View ArticleThe Last Time DOJ Sued to Block a Vertical Merger was Over Forty Years Ago ....
On November 20, 2017, the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) filed suit in the District Court for the District of Columbia to block AT&T’s attempted acquisition of Time Warner Inc. AT&T (through its...
View ArticleAT&T rings Justice's bell: What the AT&T-Time Warner merger decision means...
In a lengthy June 12, 2018 opinion, United States District Judge Richard J. Leon handed the U.S. Department of Justice a major defeat in clearing the way for the merger of media and telecommunications...
View ArticleCable Price Survey Launched as FCC Gears up for Inaugural Communications...
The FCC’s Media Bureau has adopted an Order initiating an industry survey on cable prices. Survey feedback will feature in the first installment of the Communications Marketplace Report, which the...
View ArticleAT&T/TIME Warner DOJ Smack Down: You Don't Need a Weatherman to Know Which...
Talk about a shellacking. In his recent opinion in the latest incarnation of U.S. v. AT&T, U.S. District Court Judge Richard Leon rejected, in no uncertain terms, the U.S. Justice Department’s...
View Article2018 FCC Regulatory Fees Payment Deadline September 25
The FCC has announced a deadline of September 25 for receipt of its Fiscal Year 2018 annual regulatory fees. Fees are owed on all authorizations held as of October 1, 2017, or held on the fee due date....
View ArticleFCC’s Foreign Media Reporting Requirements: Extension of FARA or New Domain?
On September 4, 2018, the Federal Communications Commission issued a new rule requiring foreign media outlets to submit reports to the FCC disclosing their relationships with foreign principals. The...
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