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Articles 3061 - 3090 of 3708

Full-Text Articles in Communications Law

The Future Of Software Copyright Protection: Arbitration V. Litigation, Alisa E. Anderson Jan 1989

The Future Of Software Copyright Protection: Arbitration V. Litigation, Alisa E. Anderson

UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal

The legal profession and computer industry have expressed dissatisfaction with the existing copyright protection provided computer software and its traditional means of enforcement by litigation. These criticisms are exemplified in the protracted NEC Corp. v. Intel Corp. litigation. After examination of the current copyright laws and the recent NEC/Intel decision, the author analyzes the IBM/Fujitsu settlement, which created a new hybrid form of commercial arbitration. By relinquishing extensive control over their businesses to the arbitrators, IBM and Fujitsu established a sophisticated mechanism to resolve future conflicts and forestall future litigation. The author concludes that this hybrid method of arbitration is …

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The Constitutional Administration Of The Beirut Agreement: Paradox Or Possibility, Alison E. Baur Jan 1989

The Constitutional Administration Of The Beirut Agreement: Paradox Or Possibility, Alison E. Baur

UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal

The Beirut Agreement is a multilateral treaty that allows for the dutyfree exchange of audiovisual materials, if they are certified by the exporting country to be "cultural, educational or scientific." The certification criteria used by the United States to define these terms was struck down as unconstitutional in the case of Bullfrog Films v. Wick. This Note analyzes the Bullfrog case and its subsequent appeal, as well as the issues surrounding the continued efforts of the United States Information Agency to draft satisfactory criteria. The Note concludes with the author offering suggestions for a constitutionally acceptable set of certification criteria.

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Technological Poetry: The Interface Between Copyrights And Patents For Software, Willis E. Higgins Jan 1989

Technological Poetry: The Interface Between Copyrights And Patents For Software, Willis E. Higgins

UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal

For historical reasons, there is an overlap between patent coverage for software as a technology and copyright coverage for software as a literary work. Each of these forms of protection for software has a proper role and should be allowed to coexist. Through common law evolution in case law and patent grants by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, patents have become the way to protect new and nonobvious functional concepts of software. Therefore, courts may be less willing to expand the scope of protected expression of copyrights to protect the functional aspects of software.

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Mandatory Television Access For Minor Party Presidential Candidates: Revamping Section 315 Of The Equal Opportunities Doctrine, M. Shannon Underwood Jan 1989

Mandatory Television Access For Minor Party Presidential Candidates: Revamping Section 315 Of The Equal Opportunities Doctrine, M. Shannon Underwood

UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal

The Equal Opportunities Doctrine requires that broadcasters providing exposure to candidates make comparable time available to all other candidates for the same elective office. Unfortunately, the Doctrine has been emasculated by exemptions that provide the Republican and Democratic candidates with free air time while denying time to minor party candidates, thus frustrating the Doctrine's goal of informing the public of a wide array of political thought. This Note argues that the exemptions from the Doctrine should be narrowed and also advocates a system of mandatory access for political candidates based upon their showing in the polls.

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What Does The Fairness Doctrine Controversy Really Mean, Jerome A. Barron Jan 1989

What Does The Fairness Doctrine Controversy Really Mean, Jerome A. Barron

UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal

In 1987, the FCC repealed broadcasting's Fairness Doctrine. This longestablished Doctrine required broadcasters to adequately cover issues of public importance and to provide a balanced presentation of controversial viewpoints. Opponents of the Fairness Doctrine would make broadcasting fungible, in a first amendment sense, with the print media. But what distinguishes broadcasting from the print media is not the Fairness Doctrine, but licensing in the public interest. This Commentary contends that there is an inherent bedrock fairness principle rooted in the public interest standard of the Federal Communications Act of 1934. The public interest standard is an independent source for the …

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Pressing California Shield Law On Criminal Defendants: A Weighting Game, Amy R. Bach Jan 1989

Pressing California Shield Law On Criminal Defendants: A Weighting Game, Amy R. Bach

UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal

Both the California Constitution and Evidence Code provide journalists with "shield" law protection that allows them to avoid contempt citations for failing to answer subpoenas. This protection allows them to ensure source confidentiality and is integral to the newsgathering process. However, it clashes with the federal constitutional guarantee that criminal defendants may subpoena information for their defense. This Note examines the controversy that arises when a criminal defendant seeks access via subpoena to the same information a reporter seeks to protect. The author proposes a revised approach to supplant currently inadequate standards for resolving such controversies.

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Constitutional Considerations Of The Children's Television Act Of 1988: Why The President's Veto Was Warranted, David S. Versfelt Jan 1989

Constitutional Considerations Of The Children's Television Act Of 1988: Why The President's Veto Was Warranted, David S. Versfelt

UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal

Late last year, President Reagan surprised many when he vetoed the Children's Television Act of 1988, which would have limited the time available for commercials broadcast during children's programming. His veto message referred to "freedom of expression," but did not elaborate on first amendment concerns raised by the legislation. The author evaluates these and other issues and concludes that President Reagan's veto was consistent with a sensitive approach to first amendment issues in the area of children's advertising.

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Digital Sampling: The Copyright Considerations Of A New Technological Use Of Musical Performance, Jeffrey S. Newton Jan 1989

Digital Sampling: The Copyright Considerations Of A New Technological Use Of Musical Performance, Jeffrey S. Newton

UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal

The author explores the controversial topic of digital sampling, a process that allows one musician to use another musician's performance without knowledge or consent. He explores the acquisition and use of samples and argues that a musician's "sound" is a copyrightable work, satisfying both constitutional and statutory requirements. The author further examines the interplay between sample acquisition and the Copyright Act's "fixation" requirement and the question of whether digitized tone colors are uncopyrightable upon utilitarian grounds. The author concludes that a musician's "sound" is copyrightable as a derivative work, that the standard of "substantial similarity" can be used to prove …

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Trade-Based Remedies For Copyright Infringement: Utilizing A Loss-Preventative Synthesis, Antionette M. Von Dem Hagen Jan 1989

Trade-Based Remedies For Copyright Infringement: Utilizing A Loss-Preventative Synthesis, Antionette M. Von Dem Hagen

UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal

Foreign infringement of U.S. intellectual property rights continues to affect U.S. business revenue, particularly for copyright-dependent industries. Trade-based remedies-such as sections 301 and 337 of the Trade Act of 1974, recently amended by the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988-may be used to combat this infringement successfully. Sections 301 and 337 have generally been used separately as distinct remedies for different problems. This Note suggests, however, that in view of U.S. industries' long-term goal of reducing revenue losses attributable to foreign intellectual property infringement, sections 301 and 337 are more effectively used in tandem, particularly against copyright infringement. This …

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Punitive Damages In Libel Cases After Browning-Ferris, P. Cameron Devore, Marshall J. Nelson Jan 1989

Punitive Damages In Libel Cases After Browning-Ferris, P. Cameron Devore, Marshall J. Nelson

UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal

The award of punitive damages in libel cases has been a topic of constitutional debate ever since the United States Supreme Court imposed first amendment restrictions on state libel laws in 1964. More recently, the constitutionality of punitive damages has been challenged in non-libel cases under the eighth and fourteenth amendments. Last year, in Browning-Ferris Industries of Vermont v. Kelco Disposal, Inc., the Supreme Court held that punitive damages are not prohibited by the eighth amendment but expressly reserved the fourteenth amendment issue for later consideration. This Article examines Browning- Ferris in light of the Court's prior treatment of punitive …

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The Department Of Communications: A Plan And Policy For The Abolition Of The Federal Communications Commission, Michael F. Starr, David J. Atkin Jan 1989

The Department Of Communications: A Plan And Policy For The Abolition Of The Federal Communications Commission, Michael F. Starr, David J. Atkin

UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal

Few areas of federal oversight have been as inconsistently addressed as that involving the regulation of broadcast and wire communication. Action in this realm has been all too often governed by political, rather than social or economic, imperatives. Many, no doubt, accept this situation as a necessary element of democratic decisionmaking. The deregulatory fervor of the 1980s could thus be seen as part of a long-term process of political redefinition. The consequences of regulatory neglect in this area will affect more than the traditional broadcast constituency of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). For, as traditional distinctions between communications technologies continue …

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Transborder Data Flows: Do We Mean Freedom Or Business?, Michael Bothe Jan 1989

Transborder Data Flows: Do We Mean Freedom Or Business?, Michael Bothe

Michigan Journal of International Law

The growth of the modem "information society" is a phenomenon transcending national borders, characterized by tremendous progress in both telecommunications and computer technology - a technology called collectively "telematics." Telematics have not only become the vital nervous system of our domestic economies and begun to play an increasing role in our private lifestyles, but have grown to link the nations of the world in constant, instantaneous, and complex ways. These communications and the data conveyed through them (whether their raw material is written text, tables, numbers, pictures, or voices), due to their importance, are in many respects a matter of …

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Cable Traffic And The First Amendment Must-Carry Under A Diversity Approach And Antitrust As Possible Alternative, Bruno Vandermeulen Jan 1989

Cable Traffic And The First Amendment Must-Carry Under A Diversity Approach And Antitrust As Possible Alternative, Bruno Vandermeulen

LLM Theses and Essays

Recent technological progress in the field of telecommunications has greatly changed the competitive structure between broadcasters, cable operators, and telephone companies. The legal and economic environment for these media participants has shifted, and new problems have arisen. One major problem is the enhanced threat of concentration of media corporations, as corporate bigness becomes desirable and the number of diversified owners of media outlets continues to decrease. This paper analyzes broadcasting regulations and subsequent case law to show the concern by the legislature and regulatory agencies to preserve diversity in opinion and media-ownership through emphasis on “localism” and a “marketplace of …

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Adam Smith Assaults Ma Bell With His Invisible Hands: Divesture, Deregulation, And The Need For A New Telecommunications Policy, Paul Stephen Dempsey Jan 1989

Adam Smith Assaults Ma Bell With His Invisible Hands: Divesture, Deregulation, And The Need For A New Telecommunications Policy, Paul Stephen Dempsey

UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal

In this article, the author provides a comprehensive legal, political, economic, and social analysis of the divestiture and partial deregulation of America's communications giant, AT&T. He reviews the three legal regimes that now oversee the telecommunications industry-the Federal Communications Commission, the state regulatory commissions, and Judge Harold Greene. After analyzing the costs and benefits of divestiture and deregulation, the author proposes congressional adoption of specific statutory solutions to the problems that have emerged. It is argued that the Federal Communications Act of 1934 should be updated to address contemporary social and economic needs.

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The Money Of Color: Film Colorization And The 100th Congress, Dan Renberg Jan 1989

The Money Of Color: Film Colorization And The 100th Congress, Dan Renberg

UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal

This Article examines the legal and legislative history of the National Film Preservation Act of 1988, the first federal legislation dealing with the controversial issue of film colorization. It analyzes the arguments advanced by some members of the motion picture industry in favor of banning all colorization performed without the author's consent. The Article concludes with a forecast of how the 101st Congress will handle further requests for legislation that would protect the integrity of black-and-white films and their creators.

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A Suggested Approach To The First Amendment Issues Involved In Broadcast Regulation, Jonathan D. Blake, Debora L. Osgood Jan 1989

A Suggested Approach To The First Amendment Issues Involved In Broadcast Regulation, Jonathan D. Blake, Debora L. Osgood

UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal

The debate over the first amendment justification for broadcast regulation has become heatedly polarized between the print-model, "look, Ma, no hands" theory of broadcast regulation and the public ownership/ public trustee model. This debate has assumed an even greater urgency this year because of the appointment of Alfred Sikes as the new Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and because of Congress' heightened interest in, and intense scrutiny of, the FCC's treatment of broadcast regulatory issues. In this article, the authors suggest that the FCC's traditional spectrum allocation responsibilities provide an appropriate and constitutionally defensible starting point for developing …

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Sobering News For The Alcohol Industry, Amanda Grove Jan 1989

Sobering News For The Alcohol Industry, Amanda Grove

UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal

On November 18, 1989, the Alcoholic Beverage Labeling Act of 1988 will become operative. As a result of this new federal law, all alcoholic beverage containers will be required to bear a government warning label. This note focuses on the past, present, and future of alcohol warning label legislation. First, the author traces the history and development of state and federal alcohol warning label legislation, analyzing key factors which led to passage of the Alcoholic Beverage Labeling Act of 1988. Next, the author critically examines the Act, highlighting omissions and proposing improvements. Finally, the author explores sources of continuing pressure …

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Opening The International Television Market To Greater Program Diversity, Donna Coleman Gregg Jan 1989

Opening The International Television Market To Greater Program Diversity, Donna Coleman Gregg

Scholarly Articles

This Article examines various national regulatory systems that govern television programming, their impact on the vitality and diversity of the entertainment program market, and their ability to withstand forces for change.

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The Fcc And Five Years Of The Cable Communications Policy Act Of 1984: Tuning Out The Consumer?, Mark R. Herring Jan 1989

The Fcc And Five Years Of The Cable Communications Policy Act Of 1984: Tuning Out The Consumer?, Mark R. Herring

University of Richmond Law Review

The Cable Communications Policy Act of 1984 (the "Cable Act") was a comprehensive amendment to the Communications Act of 1934. The Cable Act established the national policy for the regulation of the cable television industry. The focus of the Cable Act and the administrative rules implementing the act has been on the relationship between franchising municipal authorities and cable television operators. Congress addressed some consumer issues in the Cable Act such as subscriber privacy, commercial access channels, and public, educational, and governmental ("PEG") channels.

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The Northern Ireland Broadcasting Ban: Some Reflections On Judicial Review, Russell L. Weaver, Geoffrey Bennett Jan 1989

The Northern Ireland Broadcasting Ban: Some Reflections On Judicial Review, Russell L. Weaver, Geoffrey Bennett

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

This Essay initially examines the British government's ban on its broadcasting networks that restricts coverage of Northern Ireland organizations, and concludes by making some reflections on the system of judicial review in the United States. Professors Weaver and Bennett note that a comparable ban in the United States probably would be held unconstitutional. In Great Britain, however, the courts lack a similar power of judicial review, leaving the question of the Ban's legitimacy to the political process. While Great Britain enjoys a relatively free society, the authors conclude that government control over the British media poses troubling problems and suggests …

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The Northern Ireland Broadcasting Ban: Some Reflections On Judicial Review, Geoffrey Bennett, Russell L. Weaver Jan 1989

The Northern Ireland Broadcasting Ban: Some Reflections On Judicial Review, Geoffrey Bennett, Russell L. Weaver

Journal Articles

This Essay initially examines the British government's ban on its broadcasting networks that restricts coverage of Northern Ireland organizations, and concludes by making some reflections on the system of judicial review in the United States. Professors Weaver and Bennett note that a comparable ban in the United States probably would be held unconstitutional. In Great Britain, however, the courts lack a similar power of judicial review, leaving the question of the Ban's legitimacy to the political process. While Great Britain enjoys a relatively free society, the authors conclude that government control over the British media poses troubling problems and suggests …

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The Suppression Sanction Under The Electronic Communications Privacy Act For Violations Of The Private One-Party Consent Exception, Thomas M. Smith Jan 1989

The Suppression Sanction Under The Electronic Communications Privacy Act For Violations Of The Private One-Party Consent Exception, Thomas M. Smith

Villanova Law Review

No abstract provided.

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Resurrecting The Fairness Doctrine: The Quandary Of Enforcement Continues, Robert D. Richards Jan 1989

Resurrecting The Fairness Doctrine: The Quandary Of Enforcement Continues, Robert D. Richards

Cleveland State Law Review

Despite its repeal in 1987, the fairness doctrine remains one of the most controversial issues in broadcast regulation today. Since the doctrine's demise, Congress has tried twice unsuccessfully to revive this content-specific regulation which required broadcasters to actively search for controversial issues of importance and present a balance of viewpoints in programming exploring those issues. This article suggests a new standard of reviewing fairness complaints at renewal time which creates a strong presumption in favor of the broadcaster. Part I of the article focuses on the development of the fairness doctrine throughout its short history. In particular, it traces the …

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Diminishing Expectations Of Privacy In The Rehnquist Court, 22 J. Marshall L. Rev. 825 (1989), Laurence A. Benner Jan 1989

Diminishing Expectations Of Privacy In The Rehnquist Court, 22 J. Marshall L. Rev. 825 (1989), Laurence A. Benner

UIC Law Review

No abstract provided.

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Judicial Intrusion Into Cable Television Regulation: The Misuse Of O'Brien In Reviewing Compulsory Carriage Rules, Jonathan Mallamud Jan 1989

Judicial Intrusion Into Cable Television Regulation: The Misuse Of O'Brien In Reviewing Compulsory Carriage Rules, Jonathan Mallamud

Villanova Law Review

No abstract provided.

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Fairness Regulation: An Idea Whose Time Has Gone, Donald E. Lively Sep 1988

Fairness Regulation: An Idea Whose Time Has Gone, Donald E. Lively

Washington and Lee Law Review

No abstract provided.

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The Apologetics Of Suppression: The Regulation Of Pornography As Act And Idea, Steven G. Gey Jun 1988

The Apologetics Of Suppression: The Regulation Of Pornography As Act And Idea, Steven G. Gey

Michigan Law Review

The first three parts of this article discuss in detail the relationship between the Supreme Court's obscenity rulings and the academic theories that have been offered to bolster the conclusions reached by the Court in this area. Part IV of the article considers a contrary theory of free expression that requires constitutional protection for the dissemination and possession of pornography. In this section I argue that the present efforts to ban pornography are directly linked to a tolerance model of free expression. The tolerance model, which is usually contrasted with an analytical approach characterized by Holmesian skepticism, necessarily relies upon …

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Censorship In Secondary School Newspapers: Hazelwood School District V. Kuhlmeier, James E. Ellsworth May 1988

Censorship In Secondary School Newspapers: Hazelwood School District V. Kuhlmeier, James E. Ellsworth

Brigham Young University Journal of Public Law

No abstract provided.

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Questioning Broadcast Regulation, Jonathan Weinberg May 1988

Questioning Broadcast Regulation, Jonathan Weinberg

Michigan Law Review

A Review of Seven Dirty Words and Six Other Stories: Controlling the Content of Print and Broadcast by Matthew L. Spitzer

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Visual Arts And The Law: A Bibliography, Part Ii, Gail I. Winson Jan 1988

Visual Arts And The Law: A Bibliography, Part Ii, Gail I. Winson

UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal

No abstract provided.

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