Audio Video News

Screener ban blocked: A federal judge in New York has sided with a group of independent film producers in their effort to overturn a ban by the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) on issuing preview copies of potential nominees for the annual Academy Awards. On Friday, December 5, US District Chief Judge Michael Mukasey found in favor of the plaintiffs, ruling that the ban runs counter to US antitrust law. He granted a preliminary injunction to lifts the ban, after hearing testimony from filmmakers who claimed that it could severely damage their ability to reach critics and viewers. One filmmaker estimated that the ban could reduce box office sales for independents by as much as 75%, a potential loss claimed to constitute "an unreasonable restriction of trade."

Federal regulators appear to have few objections to the proposed buyout of the satellite broadcaster by News Corporation—which makes for a completely different scenario than last year's aborted acquisition of DirecTV by rival Echostar.

Give-and-take is the essence of politics. On Monday evening, November 24, demonstrating that it's better to compromise than to lose entirely, US lawmakers agreed to cap broadcast ownership at 39% of the national market of potential viewers—less than half-way between the old limit of 35% and a new one of 45% approved by the Federal Communications Commission last June. Some Democratic lawmakers decried the 39% deal as a betrayal by their Republican colleagues.