|
Reminder: Broadcaster Copyright Royalty Claims |
|
|
Pursuant
to the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, a cable or satellite system carrying
secondary transmissions of broadcast stations must pay “compulsory license”
royalties to the Register of Copyrights. These royalties are held in a
pool to compensate eligible copyright owners who submit timely claims.
In order to share in the distribution of the royalty fees collected for the
year 2009, eligible copyright owners must file a claim with the U.S. Copyright
Royalty Board by no later than August 2, 2010. Three
types of copyright owners whose works were the subject of secondary
transmissions by cable systems during the relevant period are qualified to
receive royalties: ·
Those whose work was
included in a cable system’s secondary transmission of a non-network
television program beyond the local service area of the station (generally,
the DMA of a television station); ·
Those whose work was
included in a secondary transmission identified in a cable system’s “special
statement of account” for substituted or additional non-network television
programs; and ·
Those whose work was
included in non-network programming consisting exclusively of aural signals
carried by a cable system beyond the local service area of the station. In order
to be eligible to receive satellite royalty fees, a copyright owner’s works
must have been included in a secondary transmission for private home viewing
made by a satellite carrier during calendar year 2009. Claims
to the cable and satellite royalty funds for programming that aired in 2009
must be filed using forms available from the Copyright Royalty Board.
Cable royalty claim forms are available at http://www.loc.gov/crb/cable/;
satellite royalty claim forms are available at http://www.loc.gov/crb/satellite/.
Typically, claims must be submitted by the last day in July. Because
July 31 falls on a Saturday this year, claims may be submitted by 5 p.m.
(Eastern time) on the first business day in August (i.e., August
2). Claims may be submitted by mail, courier, hand delivery or online. If you believe that you are eligible to share in cable or
satellite royalties, or have any questions about the requirements for filing,
please contact your primary attorney in our office. July 1, 2010 |
|
|
This memorandum is intended only as a general discussion of these issues and should not be regarded as legal advice. We would be pleased to provide additional details or advice about specific situations if desired. Copyright © 2010, Lerman Senter PLLC 2000 K Street NW,
Suite 600 | Washington, DC 20006-1809 To Unsubscribe: Unsubscribe | To Update Client Info: Update Client Info |
|
