[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 108 (Friday, June 5, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32182-32183]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-13784]
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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
Copyright Royalty Board
[Docket No. 14-CRB-0010-CD (2013); Docket No. 14-CRB-0011-SD (2013)]
In re Distribution of Cable Royalty Funds; In re Distribution of
Satellite Royalty Funds
AGENCY: Copyright Royalty Board, Library of Congress.
ACTION: Notice announcing commencement of distribution proceedings with
request for Petitions to Participate.
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SUMMARY: The Copyright Royalty Board announces the commencement of
proceedings to determine distribution of 2013 royalties deposited with
the Copyright Office under the cable service statutory license and the
satellite carrier statutory license. The Judges also set the date by
which all parties wishing to participate and share in the distribution
of cable or satellite retransmission royalties for 2013 must file a
Petition to Participate and pay the accompanying $150 filing fee. The
Judges seek a single Petition to Participate at any stage of the cable
royalty proceeding and a separate Petition to Participate at any stage
of the satellite royalty proceeding.
DATES: Petitions to Participate and the filing fee are due on or before
July 6, 2015.
ADDRESSES: This notice and request is also posted on the agency's Web
site (www.loc.gov/crb) and on Regulations.gov (www.regulations.gov).
Parties who plan to participate should see ``How to Submit Petitions to
Participate'' in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section below for
physical addresses and further instructions.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kimberly N. Whittle, CRB Attorney
Advisor, or LaKeshia Keys, CRB Program Specialist, by telephone at
(202) 707-7658 or by email at [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Twice each year, cable services and satellite carriers deposit with
the Copyright Office royalties payable for the license to transmit
over-the-air television and radio broadcast signals via cable and
satellite. 17 U.S.C. 111, 119. The Copyright Royalty Judges (Judges)
oversee distribution of the royalties to copyright owners whose works
are included in the retransmissions and who have filed a timely claim
for royalties. Pursuant to 17 U.S.C. 803(b)(1), the Judges hereby give
notice of the commencement of proceedings for distribution of cable and
satellite royalties deposited for broadcasts retransmitted in 2013 and
call for interested parties to file Petitions to Participate.
Any party wishing to receive royalties payable for 2013 must file a
Petition to Participate for the applicable proceeding no later than
July 6, 2015. The Judges will resolve all issues relating to
distribution of cable and satellite royalty funds for 2013 in these
proceedings, Docket No. 14-CRB-0010-CD (2013) and Docket No. 14-CRB-
0011-SD (2013). See 37 CFR 351.1(b)(2).
Commencement of Distribution Proceedings
The Judges have determined that controversies exist with regard to
distribution of the cable and satellite retransmission royalties that
licensees deposited for 2013. Therefore, pursuant to Section 804(b)(8)
of the Copyright Act, the Judges are causing this notice to be
published in the Federal Register to announce the commencement of cable
and satellite distribution proceedings for the 2013 funds.
The Judges base their conclusion regarding 2013 controversies upon
information provided by certain interested parties in response to the
Judges' published Notice Requesting Comments. See 79 FR 76396 (December
22, 2014). The Judges received comments from nine parties.\1\ All
respondents acknowledged the existence of controversies regarding
distribution of the 2013 royalty funds; \2\ most respondents asserted
optimism that they would resolve those controversies through
negotiation; the commencement of these proceedings does not foreclose
continued negotiations.\3\
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\1\ American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers,
Broadcast Music, Inc. (ASCAP) and SEASAC, styling themselves ``Music
Claimants''; the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation on behalf of
Canadian television stations and copyright owners of programs
broadcast on Canadian television stations, with limited exceptions,
referring to themselves as the ``Canadian Claimants Group''; Amazing
Facts, Inc., American Religious Town Hall Meeting, Inc., Billy
Graham Evangelistic Association, The Christian Broadcasting Network,
Inc., Christian Television Corporation and affiliated television
stations, Coral Ridge Ministries Media, Inc., Crenshaw Christian
Center, Crystal Cathedral Ministries, In Touch Ministries, Joyce
Meyer Ministries, Kerry Shook Ministries aka Fellowship of the
Woodlands, Lakewood Church aka Joel Osteen ministries, Living Church
of God (International), Inc., Living Word Christian Center,
Messianic Vision, Inc., Philadelphia Church of God, Inc., Word of
God Fellowship, Inc. dba Daystar Television Network, together
calling themselves the ``Devotional Claimants''; The Office of the
Commissioner of Baseball, National Basketball Association, National
Football League, National Collegiate Athletic Association, National
Hockey League, Women's National Basketball Association, together
styling themselves the ``Joint Sports Claimants''; National
Association of Broadcasters claiming to represent ``Commercial
Television Claimants''; Motion Picture Association of America, Inc.
on behalf of syndicated series, non-team sports, movies, and
specials, together claiming as ``Program Suppliers''; Public
Broadcasting Service (PBS) on behalf of copyright owners of
retransmitted programs aired originally on U.S. noncommercial
educational television stations; National Public Radio, Inc. (NPR)
for itself and participating NPR Member station licensees; and a
representative of commercial television calling itself the
``Broadcaster Claimants Group.''
\2\ One of the representative parties asserts no claim to 2013
cable royalty funds: The Broadcaster Claimants Group. Four of the
representative parties assert no claim to 2013 satellite royalty
funds: Music Claimants, Commercial Television Claimants, PBS, and
NPR.
\3\ On May 28, 2015, the Judges granted motions for partial
distribution of 2013 satellite and 2013 cable royalties. Order
Granting Motion of Phase I Claimants for Partial Distribution of
2013 Satellite Royalty Funds, Docket No. 14-CRB-0011 SD (2013) and
Order Granting Motion of Phase I Claimants for Partial Distribution,
Docket No. 14-CRB-0010 CD (2013).
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When submitting comments regarding the existence of controversies,
some claimants identified themselves as seeking royalties for a certain
category of programs. The Judges recognize that other claimants might
not be affiliated with or be represented by joint counsel for the self-
styled groups of claimants that have expressed an interest in this
proceeding. The Judges, therefore, provide this public notice to alert
any entity who claims an interest in cable or satellite retransmission
royalties deposited for royalty year 2013.
In order to share in the royalties at issue, any claimant, whether
or not affiliated with one of the groups identified in footnote 1
above, must file a Petition to Participate in each proceeding in which
it seeks royalties, individually or jointly with other claimants. If,
at a later point in the proceedings, a claimant chooses to join a group
participating through joint counsel, that claimant may withdraw its
individual Petition to Participate by giving written notice in the
proceeding identifying the group with which it wishes to affiliate. The
prerequisites to participation in a distribution proceeding are (1) the
filing (individually or jointly) of a valid claim for the royalty year
at issue (2013) and
[[Page 32183]]
(2) the filing (individually or jointly) of a valid Petition to
Participate.
Only attorneys who are members in good standing of the bar of one
or more states may represent parties before the Judges. All corporate
parties must appear through counsel. Only if the petitioning party is
an individual, may he or she represent himself or herself without legal
counsel. 37 CFR 350.2.
The Judges have assigned separate docket numbers to the cable and
satellite distribution proceedings for 2013. Participants are required,
therefore, to file separate Petitions to Participate with respect to
each fund.
Petitions To Participate
Parties filing Petitions to Participate must comply with the
requirements of Section 351.1(b) of the CRB's regulations. In addition,
each Petition to Participate must set forth the name of each claimant,
the corresponding claim number, and an indication of whether the claim
is an individual or joint claim. Petitioners are responsible for making
a sufficient showing of a ``significant interest'' in the royalty funds
at issue. See 17 U.S.C. 803(b)(2).
Claimants whose claims do not exceed $1,000 in value and who
include a statement in their Petitions to Participate that they will
not seek distribution of more than $1,000 may file the Petition to
Participate without payment of the filing fee. The CRB will reject any
Petition to Participate that is not accompanied by either the statement
of limitation described in the preceding sentence or the $150 filing
fee. The CRB will not accept cash payment. Parties must pay the filing
fee with a check or money order payable to the ``Copyright Royalty
Board.'' The CRB may reject any Petition to Participate that is
accompanied by a check returned for lack of sufficient funds.
How To Submit Petitions To Participate
Any party wishing to participate and share in the distribution of
cable or satellite royalty funds for 2013 shall submit to the Copyright
Royalty Board the filing fee (US $150), if required, an original
Petition to Participate, five paper copies, and an electronic copy in
Portable Document Format (PDF) that contains searchable, accessible
text (not an image) on a CD or other portable memory device to only one
of the following addresses.
U.S. mail: Copyright Royalty Board, P.O. Box 70977, Washington, DC
20024-0977; or
Overnight service (only USPS Express Mail is acceptable): Copyright
Royalty Board, P.O. Box 70977, Washington, DC 20024-0977; or
Commercial courier: Address package to: Copyright Royalty Board,
Library of Congress, James Madison Memorial Building, LM-403, 101
Independence Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20559-6000. Deliver to:
Congressional Courier Acceptance Site, 2nd Street NE. and D Street NE.,
Washington, DC; or
Hand delivery: Library of Congress, James Madison Memorial
Building, LM-401, 101 Independence Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20559-
6000.
Participants should conform filed electronic documents to the
Judges' Guidelines for Electronic Documents, available online at
www.loc.gov/crb/docs/Guidelinesfor_Electronic_Documents.pdf.
Dated: June 1, 2015.
Suzanne M. Barnett,
Chief Copyright Royalty Judge.
[FR Doc. 2015-13784 Filed 6-4-15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 1410-72-P