[Federal Register: May 23, 2007 (Volume 72, Number 99)]
[Notices]
[Page 28998-29000]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr23my07-94]
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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
Copyright Office
[Docket No. 2007-1]
Section 109 Report to Congress
AGENCY: Copyright Office, Library of Congress.
ACTION: Notice of Public Hearings.
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SUMMARY: The Copyright Office is holding public hearings on issues
related to the operation of, and continued necessity for, the cable and
satellite statutory licenses under the Copyright Act.
DATES: Public hearings will be held from July 23, 2007, through July
26, 2007, in the Copyright Office Hearing Room, 4th Floor, James
Madison Memorial Building, 101 Independence Avenue, S.E., Washington,
D.C. 20540. Each daily session will begin at 10 a.m. Persons wishing to
testify should notify the Copyright Office in writing no later than
close of business on June 15, 2007. See SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION for
additional filing requirements.
[[Page 28999]]
ADDRESSES: Notices of intent to testify should be addressed to Ben
Golant, Senior Attorney, and may be sent by mail or by e-mail to
section109@loc.gov. The Copyright Office will notify each person
expressing an intention to testify of the expected date and time of
his/her testimony. See SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION for alternative means
of submission and filing requirements.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ben Golant, Senior Attorney, and Tanya
M. Sandros, Acting General Counsel, Copyright GC/I&R, P.O. Box 70400,
Southwest Station, Washington, DC 20024. Telephone: (202) 707-8380.
Telefax: (202) 707-8366.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On December 8, 2004, the President signed
the Satellite Home Viewer Extension and Reauthorization Act of 2004, a
part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2004. See Pub. L. No.
108-447, 118 Stat. 3394 (2004) (hereinafter ``SHVERA''). Section 109 of
the SHVERA requires the Copyright Office to examine and compare the
statutory licensing systems for the cable and satellite television
industries under Sections 111, 119, and 122 of the Copyright Act and
recommend any necessary legislative changes no later that June 30,
2008.
Under Section 109, Congress indicated that the report shall
include, but not be limited to, the following: (1) A comparison of the
royalties paid by licensees under such sections, including historical
rates of increases in these royalties, a comparison between the
royalties under each such section and the prices paid in the
marketplace for comparable programming; (2) An analysis of the
differences in the terms and conditions of the licenses under such
sections, an analysis of whether these differences are required or
justified by historical, technological, or regulatory differences that
affect the satellite and cable industries, and an analysis of whether
the cable or satellite industry is placed in a competitive disadvantage
due to these terms and conditions; (3) An analysis of whether the
licenses under such sections are still justified by the bases upon
which they were originally created; (4) An analysis of the correlation,
if any, between the royalties, or lack thereof, under such sections and
the fees charged to cable and satellite subscribers, addressing whether
cable and satellite companies have passed to subscribers any savings
realized as a result of the royalty structure and amounts under such
sections; and (5) An analysis of issues that may arise with respect to
the application of the licenses under such sections to the secondary
transmissions of the primary transmissions of network stations and
superstations that originate as digital signals, including issues that
relate to the application of the unserved household limitations under
Section 119 and to the determination of royalties of cable systems and
satellite carriers.
According to Section 109's legislative history, the Copyright
Office shall conduct a study of the Section 119 and Section 122
licenses for satellite, and the Section 111 license for cable, and to
make recommendations for improvements to Congress no later than June
30, 2008. The legislative history further instructs that the Copyright
Office must analyze the differences among the three licenses and
consider whether they should be eliminated, changed, or maintained with
the goal of harmonizing their operation. See H.R. Rep. No. 108-660,
108th Cong., 2d Sess., at 19 (2004).
Earlier this year, we released a Notice of Inquiry seeking comment
on several issues associated with the matters identified in Section 109
of the SHVERA. See 72 FR 19039 (April 16, 2007). To further supplement
the record, the Office is announcing public hearings for the purpose of
taking testimony from interested persons. This Notice describes the
schedule and structure for the public hearings.
Public Hearings. Because both the cable and satellite carrier
statutory licenses have an impact on the operations and revenues of a
number of industries, the Office believes that input from all affected
industries is critical to a balanced and comprehensive report to
Congress. Consequently, the Office has determined that a process
involving both written comments and open hearings is essential to
gathering the necessary information. We are, therefore, announcing the
following schedule.
The Office will conduct public hearings with interested parties in
the Copyright Office Hearing Room at the Madison Building of the
Library of Congress beginning on July 23, 2007, and running through
July 26, 2007, if necessary. The format for these hearings will
resemble the traditional Congressional hearing model in that there will
be panels of witnesses that will present testimony to a panel of
Copyright Office staff, headed by the Register of Copyrights. The
Register and Office staff will ask questions of the various persons who
testify, and interested parties may submit written questions to the
Office by July 2, 2007, which may be addressed to specific witnesses,
or the witnesses as a whole, at the discretion of the Office.
The public hearings are open to the general public. However, in
order to testify, interested persons must inform the Office of their
intention to testify no later than the close of business on June 15,
2007. Notification of intention to testify must be in written form,
either by letter or e-mail, and must be in the possession of the
Copyright Office by the close of business on June 15th. Because of time
constraints, and the need for the Copyright Office to schedule the
panels of witnesses as soon as possible, it is recommended that persons
wishing to testify deliver their notification by hand or by e-mail by
the deadline. Notifications received after the June 15th deadline will
not be accepted, and such person or persons will not be allowed to
testify.
The public hearings will begin at 10 a.m. each morning, and will
continue until 5 p.m., unless otherwise directed by the Register of
Copyrights. The Office will notify each witness who has filed a timely
notice of intention to testify several days in advance of the date he/
she is expected to appear and offer testimony. The Office will also
notify each witness of the other witnesses who will appear on his/her
panel. Because of space limitations in the Copyright Office Hearing
Room, witnesses are encouraged to appear only on the date they are
scheduled to offer testimony.
Witnesses may bring with them on the day of their testimony a
written summary of their oral testimony. Witnesses who bring such
written summaries are asked to provide ten copies of the written
summaries for use by the Office and others in attendance at the
hearing.
Transcription services of the public hearings will be provided by
the Office. Those parties interested in obtaining transcripts of the
hearings will need to purchase them from the transcription service.
Written Statements. All persons who notify the Office of their
intention to testify must submit a written statement of their testimony
by the July 2, 2007, deadline. We are cognizant that formal written
comments in response to the Office's Section 109 NOI are also due on
that date. Parties may submit these comments as their testimony, but an
executive summary of such comments also must be submitted by the
deadline. Because of time limitations, the Office encourages parties
submitting written statements to deliver them to the Office by hand or
by e-mail on or before the deadline. Facsimile transmissions of written
statements will not be accepted.
[[Page 29000]]
Parties submitting written statements are encouraged to include any
and all information that they consider relevant to the statutory
licensing of broadcast retransmissions. Parties may also include any
exhibits that they deem relevant. Ten copies of each written statement
must be submitted by the deadline.
There is no prescribed format for the written statements. Parties
are encouraged to organize their testimony in as clear and readable
form as possible, and to provide a glossary of technical terms used in
the written statement. Parties who do not wish to appear at the public
hearings are nonetheless permitted, and encouraged, to submit written
statements or summaries by the July 2, 2007 deadline.
Reply Comments. After the close of the public hearings, interested
parties may submit comments in reply to the written statements and oral
testimony. The reply phase is open to all parties, and is not limited
to those who testified at the hearings and/or submitted written
statements. Reply comments must be in the possession of the Copyright
Office by September 13, 2007. We note that this is the date formal
reply comments to the Section 109 NOI are due. Reply comments, then,
should respond to the formal written comments submitted by parties, to
the oral and written testimony submitted for the hearing, and to any
other filings parties may wish to submit upon completion of the
hearing. No facsimile transmissions of reply comments will be accepted.
Participation and Filing Requirements. Each person wishing to
testify must submit a formal written statement of his/her testimony no
later than the close of business on July 2, 2007. Written statements
will also be accepted from parties who do not wish to testify.
Summaries of the formal written testimony, for purposes of oral
testimony, may be submitted on the date of testimony. In addition,
interested parties may submit written questions, for possible use by
panel members of the Copyright Office during the course of hearings, no
later than close of business on July 2, 2007.
After the close of the hearings, interested parties may submit
written reply comments to the testimony offered at the hearings,
including any proposed legislative amendments, no later than close of
business on September 13, 2007.
If hand delivered by a private party, an original and five copies
of any statements or comments should be brought to Library of Congress,
U.S. Copyright Office, Office of General Counsel, 101 Independence Ave,
4th floor, Washington, D.C. 20559, between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. The
envelope should be addressed as follows: Ben Golant, Office of the
General Counsel, U.S. Copyright Office.
If delivered by a commercial courier, an original and five copies
of a comment or reply comment must be delivered to the Congressional
Courier Acceptance Site (``CCAS'') located at 2nd and D Streets, NE,
Washington, D.C. between 8:30 a.m. and 4 p.m. The envelope should be
addressed as follows: Office of the General Counsel, U.S. Copyright
Office, LM 430, James Madison Building, 101 Independence Avenue, SE,
Washington, DC. Please note that CCAS will not accept delivery by means
of overnight delivery services such as Federal Express, United Parcel
Service or DHL.
If sent by mail (including overnight delivery using U.S. Postal
Service Express Mail), an original and five copies of a comment or
reply comment should be addressed to U.S. Copyright Office, Copyright
GC/I&R, P.O. Box 70400, Southwest Station, Washington, DC 20024. If
sent by e-mail, please send to section109@loc.gov.
Scope of the Proceeding. In accordance with the text of Section 109
of the SHVERA, the Copyright Office will be conducting a global review
of the cable and satellite carrier statutory licenses. The hearing will
focus on issues related to the retransmission of over-the-air broadcast
signals. Any matters raised in the Section 109 NOI are subject to
discussion and debate.
Conclusion
We hereby provide notice to the public on the scheduling of
hearings associated with Section 109 of the SHVERA and the retention,
reform, or elimination of Sections 111, 119, and 122 of the Copyright
Act.
Dated: May 14, 2007
Marybeth Peters,
Register of Copyrights,
U.S. Copyright Office.
[FR Doc. E7-9836 Filed 5-22-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 1410-30-S