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1 Ent. L. Rep. 1 (1979-1980)

handle is hein.journals/enterml1 and id is 1 raw text is: ILAV II N4& IL111lQ Actin iDictures Televisin Iadic 4usic Theater IUublishin S)crts Volume 1, Number I In this issue: Supreme Court holds that ASCAP/BMI blanket licenses to television networks do not constitute price fixing which is illegal per se under antitrust law s ................................ 1 Supreme Court holds there is no First Amendment privilege preventing inquiry into the state of mind of those who edit, produce or publish, or into the editorial process, in libel lawsuits brought by public figures ............................... 2 FCC's cable television access rules held invalid by Supreme Court ........................... 3 California Court of Appeal upholds preliminary injunction restraining Olivia Newton-John from recording for anyone other than MCA, but limits injunction to term of recording contract ......... 4 Book and movie based on true incident in life of Agatha Christie are protected by First Amendment. 5 Federal Court of Appeals affirms FCC decision to renew license of television station KCOP, without a hearing, despite FCC's occasionally garbled rationale for doing so ........................ 6 Publisher's share of earnings of musical composition must be based on most current accounting available ......................... 7 Educational Programs Calendar ................ 8 Editors' Note ................................ 8 Lionel S. Sobel Editor Eileen L. Selsky Associate Editor Copyright © 1979 by the Entertainment Law Reporter Publishing Company, 9440 Santa Monica Blvd., Suite 600, Beverly Hills, CA 90210 Published twice monthly. Subscription rates are $85 per year for subscribers in the United States and Canada, and $100 per year for subscribers elsewhere. June1,1979 Entertainment Law Reporter Supreme Court holds that ASCAP/BMI blanket licenses to television networks do not constitute price fixing which is illegal per se under antitrust laws The U.S. Supreme Court has held that the issu- ance by ASCAP and BMI to CBS of blanket licenses to copyrighted musical compositions at mutually pre-negotiated fees is not price fixing per se un- lawful under the antitrust laws. In so holding, the Court ruled against CBS, which had initiated the case with a complaint alleging both antitrust and copyright violations. The CBS action named ASCAP, BMI and their respective members and affiliates as class action co-defendants charging, among other things, that ASCAP and BMI are unlawful monopolies and that the blanket license practices employed by them con- stitute illegal price fixing. CBS urged that the issu- ance of blanket licenses be enjoined and replaced with a per-use license. The issuance of blanket licenses to copyrighted musical compositions is a practice-which has been used by both ASCAP and BMI ever since their cre- ations in 1914 and 1939. The practice evolved from the practical need to facilitate the administration of license negotiations and detection of unauthorized use. With this end in mind, blanket licenses, which give the licensee an unlimited right to perform any of the compositions owned by BMI/ASCAP mem- bers or affiliates during a stated term, were estab- lished in the music industry. The Supreme Court noted that at the time ASCAP was organized, ... those who performed copyrighted music for profit were so numerous and widespread, and most performances so fleeting, as a practical matter it was impossible for the many individual copyright owners to negotiate with and license the users and detect unauthorized uses. In response to these problems, ASCAP and BMI were created to act as . . . clearing house(s) for copyright owners and users to solve.., the ... prob- lems associated with the licensing of music. As a result, throughout the years the two organizations have operated primarily, though not exclusively, un-

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