Archive for the ‘Obama’ tag
The Big Test – Proposed Comcast and NBC Universal Merger
The proposed merger between Comcast and NBC Universal is a major test for the Obama administration’s positions on vertical mergers and media consolidation. Comcast has already made some commitments to aid it during the review process, which is likely to take at least a year. These commitments include continuing free over-the-air broadcast of NBC and Telemundo as well as enhancing availability of children’s programming and Hispanic-focused content through on demand capabilities and some use of the digital spectrum available to various channels.
The big questions left are how the Obama administration will react to the proposed merger and what conditions might be placed on the merger once its terms become more concrete. The merger would see a significant combination of internet service provision, television programming distribution, television programming production, and news gathering into one entity. At the very least, Comcast’s position as “one of the nation’s leading providers of cable, entertainment and communications products and services” is certain to raise a lot of questions during the review process.
An interesting effect of entering the review process is how Comcast’s need to enhance its image to aid in regulatory agency approval, and how this might affect the ability of other television networks to demand better retransmission terms from Comcast. It is entirely possible that Comcast may have to take a softer line in its negotiations and pay more for local broadcasts than it has in the past, in order to help convince regulatory agencies that the merger will not have anticompetitive effects.
Jackson Browne v. John McCain: Copyright Lawsuit Settled, Case Dismissed
The lawsuit between rock artist Jackson Browne and Senator John McCain and the Republican Party was recently settled, and ordered dismissed on August 4, 2009, almost a year after the suit was filed by Browne.
Browne filed a lawsuit against McCain, the Republican National Committee, and the Ohio Republican Party over the unauthorized usage of Browne’s signature song “Running on Empty” in a commercial criticizing the energy policy of then-Democratic Presidential candidate Barack Obama. The commercial, which aired on television and YouTube.com, featured parts of the sound recording of “Running on Empty” throughout.
The causes of action listed in Browne’s complaint, filed in U.S. District Court in California, included copyright infringement, trademark infringement, and violation of the California common law right of publicity. The defendants’ motion to dismiss, relied, amongst other things, on a fair use defense against Browne’s copyright claims and a political speech exemption against the trademark claim. The motion to dismiss was ultimately denied.
The lawsuit brought to light the clash between intellectual property rights and fair use as well as the First Amendment in the context of political speech, as political campaigns turn more and more to popular culture references in the media to reach out to voters. McCain was also opposed by artists for his campaign’s use of popular music from the Foo Fighters, Heart, and John Mellencamp. Even Obama ran into trouble during his campaign, when soul legend Sam Moore (of “Soul Man” fame) asked Obama to stop using one of his songs.