Communications Law Commons^™

A Model For Emergency Service Of Voip Certification And Labeling, Tom Lookabaugh, Patrick S. Ryan, Douglas C. Sicker

Federal Communications Law Journal

The diffusion of VoIP technology promises revolutionary changes to a century old model of voice telephony. Though these changes bring extraordinary opportunities, they also bring challenging policy implications for businesses and regulators. In this Article, the Authors examine the technical difficulties of providing the same quality and dependability of emergency services in VoIP based telephony as consumers have come to expect from PSTN-based telephone networks. Given the technical complexity and heterogeneity of VolP, the Authors propose industry self-regulation through an advanced certification framework as a more effective alternative to direct government regulation. After surveying a number of successful self-regulatory regimes, …

Costs And Consequences Of Federal Telecommunications Regulations, Jerry Ellig

Federal Communications Law Journal

Federal regulation of telecommunication profoundly affects United States consumers, determining what services are priced above and below cost, what kinds of technologies and services are offered and when, and what firms are allowed to compete. In this Article, the Author surveys the voluminous literature on the economic costs and outcomes of these regulations, focusing predominantly on the effects of regulation on prices, quantity, quality of service, and overall consumer and social welfare. The Author estimates costs and assesses outcomes for ten types of federal telecommunications regulated activity: telecommunications regulatory spending, long-distance access charges, universal service funding, local number portability, enhanced …

The Continuing Role Of State Policy, Jeffrey A. Hart

Federal Communications Law Journal

A review of Hernan Galperin's New Television, Old Politics: The Transition to Digital TV in the United States and Britain, Cambridge University Press, 2004. Based on comparative case studies in Britain and the United States, this book analyzes the transition to digital television in both countries, considers governmental regulatory strategies, and focuses on the impact of various factors, including political influence and market and technological changes.

Why Stovepipe Regulation No Longer Works: An Essay On The Need For A New Market-Oriented Communications Policy, Randolph J. May

Federal Communications Law Journal

In the ten years since the 1996 Telecommunications Act, the telecommunications industry has undergone profound technological and marketplace changes. May argues that the "techno-functional constructs" of the statute regulate services based on increasingly obsolete definitions. This Article argues that those changes have undermined the "stovepipe" regulatory scheme of the 1996 Act. In an increasingly diverse and competitive marketplace, the "stovepipe" model of regulation should be left in the dustbin of history. Instead, May argues that a new market-oriented regulatory regime focusing on consumer welfare through the application of antitrust principles should form the basis of a new regulatory model.

Measuring Media Market Diversity: Concentration, Importance, And Pluralism, Brian C. Hill

Federal Communications Law Journal

The Third Circuit's rejection of the FCC's application of its Diversity Index in setting Cross-Media Limits in Prometheus Radio Project v. FCC represented a significant setback for the FCC's media ownership policies. This Article argues that the FCC's Diversity Index is fatally flawed because it fails to simultaneously account for two assumptions shared by the FCC and the Third Circuit: diversity in a media market increases with ownership concentration, and an individual entity's contribution to diversity increases with the weighted market shares of that entity's outlets. The Author proposes an alternative index that does satisfy both assumptions before applying the …

Communications Policy For 2006 And Beyond, Reed H. Hundt, Gregory L. Rosston

Federal Communications Law Journal

In this Article, the Authors propose sweeping changes to the current telecommunications regulatory regime. With impending reform in telecommunications laws, the Authors argue that an important first step is the creation of a bipartisan, independent commission to examine and recommend implementation of more market-oriented communications policy. Through maximizing the operation of the markets, the authors argue that communications policy will better serve its goals of increasing business productivity and consumer welfare through the better services and lower prices. Important steps to achieve optimal market operation include deregulating retail prices where multifirm competition is available, minimizing the cost of public property …

Masthead Vol.58 No.1 (2006)

Federal Communications Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Editor's Note, R. Matthew Warner

Federal Communications Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Toward A Limited Right Of Access To Jury Deliberations, Torrence Lewis

Federal Communications Law Journal

Jury deliberations receive extensive protection from public examination. These protections make jury deliberations much less accessible to the public than most other governmental deliberations. This Comment examines the constitutional, common law, and statutory protections for jury deliberations and the dangers that these protections seek to prevent. The Author argues that a limited post-verdict right of access to jury deliberations could restore public faith in the jury and could eventually improve the quality of jury deliberations. The Author suggests a possible framework that would provide the public with a limited right of access and still address the primary concerns that led …

Open Video Systems: Too Much Regulation Too Late?, Michael Botein

Articles & Chapters

No abstract provided.

Reclaiming Copyright, Christina Bohannan

Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Seeking Privacy: Examining A Role For The Fiduciary In Protecting Personal Information, Marcey L. Grigsby

NYLS Law Review

No abstract provided.

Challenging Standard Conceptions Of Tradition, Science And Technology In 2006: Why Laws Prohibiting The Sale Of Violent Video Games To Minors Should Be Ultimately Upheld, Ilana Lubin

Cardozo Journal of Equal Rights & Social Justice

The note argues that regulating the sale of violent video games to minors is constitutionally justifiable, supported by scientific evidence on adolescent brain development and legal precedents. It critiques the lack of a clear legal standard in court decisions and advocates for a nuanced approach that balances First Amendment rights with public safety concerns.

A Digital Age Communications Act Paradigm For Federal-State Relations, Kyle D. Dixon, Philip J. Weiser

Publications

This article captures the effort of the Digital Age Communications Act (DACA) to craft a new framework for the federal-state relationship in implementing a next generation telecommunications regulatory regime. In particular, it sets forth a DACA model that would implement a "rule of law" regulatory paradigm for an era of technological dynamism. This era requires, as the article explains, a coherent federal framework that circumscribes the role of state and local authorities so as to advance sound competition policy goals. The sole exception to this policy is the recognition that a basic local service rate retains both political and practical …

Imposing Geographical “Locateability” For Voice Over Internet Protocol, Andrea W.M. Louie

NYLS Law Review

No abstract provided.

Regulation Of Municipal Wi-Fi, Michael Botein

NYLS Law Review

No abstract provided.

Representing The Media At Trial, Joseph A. Tomain, Richard M. Goehler, Amanda G. Main

Articles by Maurer Faculty

No abstract provided.

Out Of Thin Air: Using First Amendment Public Forum Analysis To Redeem American Broadcasting Regulation, Anthony E. Varona

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

American television and radio broadcasters are uniquely privileged among Federal Communications Commission (FCC) licensees. Exalted as public trustees by the 1934 Communications Act, broadcasters pay virtually nothing for the use of their channels of public radiofrequency spectrum, unlike many other FCC licensees who have paid billions of dollars for similar digital spectrum. Congress envisioned a social contract of sorts between broadcast licensees and the communities they served. In exchange for their free licenses, broadcast stations were charged with providing a platform for a free marketplace of ideas that would cultivate a democratically engaged and enlightened citizenry through the broadcasting of …

"Did You Want Fries With That?" The Unanswered Question Of Federal Product Placement Regulation, Raghu Seshadri

Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment & Technology Law

This note argues that the structure of existing FCC and FTC regulatory regimes is not effective in addressing challenges posed by certain types of product placement. Thus, a specific disclosure requirement targeting non-visual product placement is needed. Part I presents an overview of the existing federal regulatory structure governing product placement, and the current arguments for and against affirmative disclosure requirements. Parts II and III identify the various categories of product placement and argue that non-visual placement presents unique challenges that are absent in other categories of product placement. Finally, Part IV argues that the current regulatory regime is insufficient, …

Compulsory Licenses In Peer-To-Peer File Sharing: A Workable Solution?, Michael Botein, Edward Samuels

Articles & Chapters

No abstract provided.

National Cable & Telecommunications Ass'n V. Brand X Internet Services: A War Of Words, The Effect Of Classifying Cable Modem Service As An Information Service, David P. Manni

Jeffrey S. Moorad Sports Law Journal (1994 - )

No abstract provided.

Out Of Thin Air: Using First Amendment Public Forum Analysis To Redeem American Broadcasting Regulation, Anthony E. Varona

Articles

American television and radio broadcasters are uniquely privileged among Federal Communications Commission (FCC) licensees. Exalted as public trustees by the 1934 Communications Act, broadcasters pay virtually nothing for the use of their channels of public radiofrequency spectrum, unlike many other FCC licensees who have paid billions of dollars for similar digital spectrum. Congress envisioned a social contract of sorts between broadcast licensees and the communities they served. In exchange for their free licenses, broadcast stations were charged with providing a platform for a "free marketplace of ideas" that would cultivate a democratically engaged and enlightened citizenry through the broadcasting of …

The Priestly Class: Reflections On A Journalist's Privilege, William E. Lee

Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Progress On The Wipo Broadcasting And Webcasting Treaty, Matthew D. Asbell

Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Pop-Up Ads And Trademark Infringement: Whenu.Com Litigation, Janet Rubin

Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Leakers, Bloggers, And Fourth Estate Inmates: The Misguided Pursuit Of A Reporter's Privilege, Randall D. Eliason

Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal

No abstract provided.

January 1, 2003: The Birth Of The Unpublished Public Domain And Its International Implications, Elizabeth Townsend Gard

Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Censure The Tree For Its Rotten Apple: Attributing Liability To Parents For The Copyright Infringement Of Their Minor Children, Chad Silver

Cardozo Public Law, Policy & Ethics Journal

The note argues that holding parents legally responsible for copyright infringement committed by their minor children could serve as an effective deterrent against illegal music downloading. It explores the legal frameworks for parental liability, including contributory and vicarious liability, and evaluates the potential benefits and challenges of this approach in addressing the decline of the recording industry due to illegal file sharing.

The "News" From The Feed Looks Like News Indeed: On Video News Releases, The Fcc, And The Shortage Of Truth In The Truth In Broadcasting Act Of 2005, Janel Alania

Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Catch 1201: A Legislative History And Content Analysis Of The Dmca Exemption Proceedings, Bill D. Herman, Oscar H. Gandy Jr.

Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal

17 U.S.C. § 1201(a)(1) prohibits circumventing a technological protection measure (TPM) that effectively controls access to a copyrighted work. In the name of mitigating the innocent casualties of this new ban, Congress constructed a triennial rulemaking, administered by the Register of Copyrights, to determine temporary exemptions. This paper considers the legislative history of this rulemaking, and it reports the results of a systematic content analysis of its 2000 and 2003 proceedings.

Inspired by the literature on political agendas, policymaking institutions, venue shifting, and theories of delegation, we conclude that the legislative motivations for § 1201 were laundered through international treaties, …