Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Communications Law Commons

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

University of Georgia School of Law

Discipline
Keyword
Publication Year
Publication
Publication Type

Articles 1 - 27 of 27

Full-Text Articles in Communications Law

Chopped And Screwed: How The Soundexchange V. Sirius Xm Decision Remixes Section 114 Of The Copyright Act, Cat Wood May 2026

Chopped And Screwed: How The Soundexchange V. Sirius Xm Decision Remixes Section 114 Of The Copyright Act, Cat Wood

Georgia Journal of Law & Technology

In SoundExchange, Inc. v. Sirius XM Radio Inc. (S.D.N.Y. 2025), the court held that SoundExchange—the congressionally designated nonprofit that collects and distributes statutory digital performance royalties under 17 U.S.C. § 114—lacks authority to bring suit to recover alleged underpayments. That ruling creates an enforcement paradox at the center of the section 114 statutory-license ecosystem: SoundExchange is the entity built to receive royalty reports, audit compliance, and distribute payments at scale, yet it cannot directly compel payment through litigation when the system fails. This Note argues that the decision misreads statutory structure by treating SoundExchange as a mere administrative clearinghouse rather …


Fight For Your Right: An Analysis Of A Musician’S Ability To Terminate A Copyright Assignment Of A Music Recording, Ian Waldron Feb 2026

Fight For Your Right: An Analysis Of A Musician’S Ability To Terminate A Copyright Assignment Of A Music Recording, Ian Waldron

Georgia Journal of Law & Technology

In 2019, musicians joined together to launch two separate lawsuits against Sony Music Entertainment (“Sony”) and Universal Music Group (“UMG”) after the record labels ignored the musicians’ copyright termination notices. Copyright termination is a powerful tool that allows the original owner of a work, under some circumstances, to regain possession years after they have assigned it to another party. To defend their actions, UMG and Sony countered that since the recordings were created under a record deal, they were works for hire and the musicians acted as employees. Therefore, under the record label’s theory, the musicians would have no ownership …


Abandoning Press Freedom, Ronnell Andersen Jones, Sonja R. West Jan 2026

Abandoning Press Freedom, Ronnell Andersen Jones, Sonja R. West

Scholarly Works

Among elected officials and the broader public, attitudes toward the press are deeply polarized along ideological lines. Polling shows that most liberals favor the press, while conservatives view it more negatively— a partisan divide that has widened significantly over the past decade. Conventional wisdom suggests that the same ideological split is also at work at the Supreme Court, with liberal Justices championing the work of the press while their conservative colleagues express more skepticism. This perception is reinforced by historical examples of liberal Justices advancing press rights alongside broader democracy-engagement and social-justice issues. Recent calls from some conservative Justices to …


Press Freedom's History And Tradition, Ronnell Andersen Jones, Sonja R. West Jan 2026

Press Freedom's History And Tradition, Ronnell Andersen Jones, Sonja R. West

Scholarly Works

Backward-looking, history-and-tradition analysis is gaining greater prominence at the U.S. Supreme Court. While the Court has not yet explicitly applied its history-and-tradition framework to press freedom questions, the methodology’s dominance across other areas, coupled with some urgent concerns about the scope of newsgatherer protections and some Justices’ interest in reconsidering long-established precedent, suggest that this application could be imminent. In anticipation of that moment, we set out to empirically map the Court’s engagement with the history and tradition of press freedom in its rhetoric over time. Our goals were to explore, both quantitatively and qualitatively, how the Court’s Justices have …


Juridical Discourse For Platforms, Thomas E. Kadri Jan 2022

Juridical Discourse For Platforms, Thomas E. Kadri

Scholarly Works

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg has created a private “Supreme Court,” or so he says. Since 2021, his company’s Oversight Board has issued verdicts on a smattering of Facebook’s decisions about online speech. Cynics frame the Board as a Potemkin village, but defenders invoke analogies to separation of powers to claim that this new body empowers the public and restrains the company. Some are even calling for a single “platform supreme court” to rule over the entire industry.

Juridical discourse for platforms is powerful, but it can also be deceptive. This Response explores how juridical discourse has legitimized and empowered Facebook’s …


Tennessee V. Fcc And The Clear Statement Rule, Lee D. Whatling Jan 2017

Tennessee V. Fcc And The Clear Statement Rule, Lee D. Whatling

Georgia Law Review

In 2016, the Sixth Circuit in Tennessee v. FCC
overturned an FCC preemption order striking down state
laws that restricted municipal broadband providers from
servicing communities outside of their respective
municipal borders. The court held Congress had not
provided a clear statement in § 706 of the
Telecommunications Act of 1996 that it intended to grant
the FCC preemption power under these circumstances.
The immediate practical consequences of the decision were
that communities previously serviced by municipal
broadband providers, but located outside of municipal
borders, were now at the mercy of state laws that sought to
restrict that service.
This …


The “Sovereigns Of Cyberspace” And State Action: The First Amendment’S Application (Or Lack Thereof) To Third-Party Platforms, Jonathan Peters Jan 2017

The “Sovereigns Of Cyberspace” And State Action: The First Amendment’S Application (Or Lack Thereof) To Third-Party Platforms, Jonathan Peters

Scholarly Works

Many scholars have commented that the state action doctrine forecloses use of the First Amendment to constrain the policies and practices of online service providers. But few have comprehensively studied this issue, and the seminal article exploring “[c]yberspace and the [s]tate [a]ction [d]ebate” is fifteen years old, published before the U.S. Supreme Court reformulated the federal approach to state action. It is important to give the state action doctrine regular scholarly attention, not least because it is increasingly clear that “the private sector has a shared responsibility to help safeguard free expression.” It is critical to understand whether the First …


Legal Implications Of Direct Satellite Broadcasting – The U.N. Working Group, Nancy M. Lesko Dec 2016

Legal Implications Of Direct Satellite Broadcasting – The U.N. Working Group, Nancy M. Lesko

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.


The Judicial Role In Extraterritorial Application Of The Securities Exchange Act Of 1934: Vesco, William A. Aileo Jun 2016

The Judicial Role In Extraterritorial Application Of The Securities Exchange Act Of 1934: Vesco, William A. Aileo

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.


The Law Of Outer Space, Robert E. Clute Apr 2016

The Law Of Outer Space, Robert E. Clute

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.


The Development Of Canadian Law On Trans-Border Data Flow, Douglas Yarn Apr 2015

The Development Of Canadian Law On Trans-Border Data Flow, Douglas Yarn

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.


Telecommunications - Joint Ventures - The Significance Of The At&T-Philips Joint Venture, Edward P. Hudson Apr 2015

Telecommunications - Joint Ventures - The Significance Of The At&T-Philips Joint Venture, Edward P. Hudson

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.


No. 9 - Cybersecurity And National Defense: Building A Public-Private Partnership, Rebecca H. White, C. Donald Johnson, Loch K. Johnson, Quentin E. Hodgson, Jamil Jaffer, Clete D. Johnson, Victoria Woodbine, Timothy L. Meyer, Adam Golodner, Barry Hensley, Andrea Matwyshyn, Jacob Olcott Apr 2015

No. 9 - Cybersecurity And National Defense: Building A Public-Private Partnership, Rebecca H. White, C. Donald Johnson, Loch K. Johnson, Quentin E. Hodgson, Jamil Jaffer, Clete D. Johnson, Victoria Woodbine, Timothy L. Meyer, Adam Golodner, Barry Hensley, Andrea Matwyshyn, Jacob Olcott

Occasional Papers Series

Organized and sponsored by the Dean Rusk Center for International Law and Policy, Cybersecurity and National Defense: Building a Public-Private Partnership was a daylong conference exploring issues related to the national security dimensions of cyber attacks as well as the role of the private sector in addressing cybersecurity risks. The overarching theme was the scope of public-private collaboration in addressing cybersecurity risks and the potential for future cooperation between government and the private sector. Clete D. Johnson, Chief Counsel for Cybersecurity at the Federal Communications Commission gave a lunchtime address on the FCC’s approach to communications security in the Internet …


International Satellite Piracy: The Unauthorized Interception And Retransmission Of United States Program-Carrying Satellite Signals In The Caribbean, And Legal Protection For United States Program Owners, Judith S. Weinstein Feb 2015

International Satellite Piracy: The Unauthorized Interception And Retransmission Of United States Program-Carrying Satellite Signals In The Caribbean, And Legal Protection For United States Program Owners, Judith S. Weinstein

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.


Foreign Affairs And First Amendment Rights: Office Of Foreign Assets Control Prohibits Abc's Pan American Games Broadcast. Capital Cities/Abc, Inc. V. Brady, 740 F. Supp. 1007 (S.D.N.Y. June 29, 1990), Allison Sanford Nov 2014

Foreign Affairs And First Amendment Rights: Office Of Foreign Assets Control Prohibits Abc's Pan American Games Broadcast. Capital Cities/Abc, Inc. V. Brady, 740 F. Supp. 1007 (S.D.N.Y. June 29, 1990), Allison Sanford

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.


European Unification - Broadcasting Law - Eastern Europe And The "Television Without Frontiers" Directive: Radio Freed Europe - Can Television Unify It?, Christopher B. Scott Oct 2014

European Unification - Broadcasting Law - Eastern Europe And The "Television Without Frontiers" Directive: Radio Freed Europe - Can Television Unify It?, Christopher B. Scott

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.


Remaking The Pen Mightier Than The Sword: An Evaluation Of The Growing Need For The International Protection Of Journalists, Dylan Howard Oct 2014

Remaking The Pen Mightier Than The Sword: An Evaluation Of The Growing Need For The International Protection Of Journalists, Dylan Howard

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.


Voice Over Internet Protocol: An International Approach To Regulation, Jimar Sanders Sep 2014

Voice Over Internet Protocol: An International Approach To Regulation, Jimar Sanders

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.


Who's Checking?: Taking A Look At Recently Enacted Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Laws In The United States And Zimbabwe And Their Impact On The Separation Of Powers, Andrew M. O'Connell Sep 2014

Who's Checking?: Taking A Look At Recently Enacted Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Laws In The United States And Zimbabwe And Their Impact On The Separation Of Powers, Andrew M. O'Connell

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.


Media Ownership Regulations: A Comparative Perspective, Enrique Armijo Sep 2014

Media Ownership Regulations: A Comparative Perspective, Enrique Armijo

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.


What's Wrong With Wireless?: An Argument For A Liability Approach To Electromagnetic Spectrum Regulation, Daniel Sineway Jan 2007

What's Wrong With Wireless?: An Argument For A Liability Approach To Electromagnetic Spectrum Regulation, Daniel Sineway

Georgia Law Review

For decades, the Federal Communications Commission has regulated the transmission of radio signals under a single regulatory framework. The current regulatory model functions extremely well for simple radio or television broadcasts, but newer technologies such as cellular phone networks or wireless internet systems are hindered by the present framework's rigid, inflexible construct. In response, several prominent scholars have proposed alternatives to the existing scheme. The two most notable alternatives are a private property approach and a commons approach. The private property model treats the ability to broadcast a signal as a private property right, and thus includes all of the …


Unplugging The Cable Franchise: A Regulatory Framework To Promote The Iptv Cable Alternative, Thomas Hildebrand Jan 2007

Unplugging The Cable Franchise: A Regulatory Framework To Promote The Iptv Cable Alternative, Thomas Hildebrand

Georgia Law Review

Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) is a new technology that promises to revolutionize the cable television industry. IPTV combines digital video technologies decades in development with the many advantages of Internet delivery, including cost and interactivity. The characteristics of IPTV that distinguish it from conventional cable television raise many regulatory questions. It is clear, however, that the decades-old cable franchising system, along with other cable-specific regulations, are a poor fit for IPTV. Wholesale application of these regulations could stifle the deployment of IPTV technology. Recently, telecommunications companies have begun rolling out competitive cable systems using IPTV over local telephone networks. To …


Concurring In Part & Concurring In The Confusion, Sonja R. West Aug 2006

Concurring In Part & Concurring In The Confusion, Sonja R. West

Scholarly Works

When a federal appellate court decided last year that two reporters must either reveal their confidential sources to a grand jury or face jail time, the court did not hesitate in relying on the majority opinion in the Supreme Court's sole comment on the reporter's privilege--Branzburg v. Hayes. "The Highest Court has spoken and never revisited the question. Without doubt, that is the end of the matter," Judge Sentelle wrote for the three-judge panel on the Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. By this declaration, the court dismissed with a wave of its judicial hand the arguments …


Race To The Stars: A Federalism Argument For Leaving The Right Of Publicity In The Hands Of The States, Usha Rodrigues Oct 2001

Race To The Stars: A Federalism Argument For Leaving The Right Of Publicity In The Hands Of The States, Usha Rodrigues

Scholarly Works

This Note will argue that, given the variation in the right of publicity from state to state, and the relative newness of this property right, Congress should refrain from passing a law to federalize it. Although there are sound arguments for adopting this right, there are also reasons to hesitate. Given that only half of the states have adopted it, federalization seems premature. This Note will only obliquely address the main objection usually leveled at a robust right of publicity, namely that it stifles creativity and implicates First Amendment concerns. The focus instead will be on the right of individual …


Challenging Defamatory Opinions As An Alternative To Media Self-Regulation, James F. Ponsoldt Oct 1998

Challenging Defamatory Opinions As An Alternative To Media Self-Regulation, James F. Ponsoldt

Scholarly Works

This Essay analyzes defamation law as it applies to the media. Part I summarizes the state of defamation law prior to the 1990 Supreme Court decision in Milkovich v. Lorain Journal Co., when opinion was presumed immune from liability. Part II examines the holding in Milkovich, which suggests the potential liability for recklessly defamatory statements couched as or in the context of opinion. Part III reviews post-Milkovich decisions during the 1990's. This Essay concludes that the predictions of Milkovich were accurate in many jurisdictions and could apply to televised allegations during the coverage of the Clinton affair. …


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 …


Comparative Broadcast Licensing Procedures And The Rule Of Law: A Fuller Investigation, Michael Botein Jul 1972

Comparative Broadcast Licensing Procedures And The Rule Of Law: A Fuller Investigation, Michael Botein

Scholarly Works

Professor Botein examines the validity of Professor Fuller's widely read but seldom criticized theory that traditional administrative adjudication is unsuited to resolve certain kinds of social tasks, which Fuller had labeled "polycentric problems." Professor Botein focuses upon Professor Fuller's example of the FCC's comparative licensing procedure as a problem unsuited to adjudication. Taking as his starting point Professor Fuller's criticism of the FCC -- a criticism Fuller never tested against the Commission's actual operations -- Professor Botein examines Fuller's theory of polycentricity by analyzing its contents, applying it to concrete situations, and exploring whether there exists any alternatives better than …