Communications Law
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Communications law refers to the regulation of electronic communications by wire or radio. It encompasses regulations governing broadcasting, telephone and telecommunications service, cable television, satellite communications, wireless telecommunications, and the Internet.


History

In the 19th century cross-border communication was facilitated by the development of the telegraph and Morse code. The first transatlantic cable was installed between 1858 and 1866. To address these developments international organizations were created, notably the International Telegraph Union in 1865 (today the International Telecommunication Union).


Areas of Communications Law

Communications laws regulate the activities of a
communications service provider A telecommunications company is a kind of electronic communications service provider, more precisely a telecommunications service provider (TSP), that provides telecommunications services such as telephony and data communications access. Many t ...
and the use of public resources for the deployment of communications facilities and services in the following broad areas:


Radiospectrum Regulation

Rules for
spectrum management Spectrum management is the process of regulating the use of radio frequencies to promote efficient use and gain a net social benefit.Martin Cave, Chris Doyle, William Webb, ''Modern Spectrum Management'', Cambridge University Press, 2007 The ter ...
governing who may make transmissions over the public airwaves and under what conditions; Assignment of blocks of
radio frequency Radio frequency (RF) is the oscillation rate of an alternating electric current or voltage or of a magnetic, electric or electromagnetic field or mechanical system in the frequency range from around to around . This is roughly between the u ...
for government, private, public, or commercial use by allocation or
spectrum auction A spectrum auction is a process whereby a government uses an auction system to sell the rights to transmit signals over specific bands of the electromagnetic spectrum and to assign scarce spectrum resources. Depending on the specific auction for ...
.


Market Regulation

Rules governing relationships between various communications industries and market participants designed to ensure the steady flow of communications and prevent
market failure In neoclassical economics, market failure is a situation in which the allocation of goods and services by a free market is not Pareto efficient, often leading to a net loss of economic value.Paul Krugman and Robin Wells Krugman, Robin Wells (2006 ...
s; Includes rules governing broadcast signal
must-carry In cable television, many governments, including the ones of the United Kingdom, the United States, and Canada, apply a must-carry regulation stating that forces a cable TV provider to carry the public interest programming, like locally licensed te ...
and
retransmission consent Retransmission consent is a provision of the 1992 United States Cable Television Consumer Protection and Competition Act that requires cable operators and other multichannel video programming distributors (MVPDs) to obtain permission from commerc ...
, the
interconnection In telecommunications, interconnection is the physical linking of a carrier's network with equipment or facilities not belonging to that network. The term may refer to a connection between a carrier's facilities and the equipment belonging to its ...
of telecommunications facilities, wireless network
roaming Roaming is a wireless Wireless communication (or just wireless, when the context allows) is the transfer of information (''telecommunication'') between two or more points without the use of an electrical conductor, optical fiber or oth ...
, intercarrier compensation, cable program access and carriage,
net neutrality Net neutrality, sometimes referred to as network neutrality, is the principle that Internet service providers (ISPs) must treat all Internet communications equally, offering User (computing), users and online content providers consistent tra ...
, and
utility pole A utility pole, commonly referred to as a transmission pole, telephone pole, telecommunication pole, power pole, hydro pole, telegraph pole, or telegraph post, is a column or post used to support overhead power lines and various other public util ...
attachments.


Content Regulation

Rules prohibiting broadcast obscenity and limiting the commercial content of children's programming; Rules to ensure media coverage of local events and to preserve diversity of viewpoints by preventing too much
concentration of media ownership In chemistry, concentration is the abundance of a constituent divided by the total volume of a mixture. Several types of mathematical description can be distinguished: '' mass concentration'', '' molar concentration'', '' number concentration'', ...
in local markets.


Access to Markets

Rules designed to ensure communications markets are open to new entrants; Includes regulations limiting state and local authority to charge excessive fees or deny access to the public
right-of-way (transportation) A right of way (also right-of-way) is a specific route that people, animals, vehicles, watercraft, or utility lines travel, or the legal status that gives them the right to do so. Rights-of-way in the physical sense include controlled-access h ...
for deploying communications facilities.


Consumer Protection

Ensuring the reasonableness of rates, terms, and conditions of communications services offered to the public, particularly in areas that lack competition in one or more services; Rules requiring
closed captioning Closed captioning (CC) is the process of displaying text on a television, video screen, or other visual display to provide additional or interpretive information, where the viewer is given the choice of whether the text is displayed. Closed cap ...
and services for the hearing impaired; Review of communications provider
mergers and acquisitions Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) are business transactions in which the ownership of a company, business organization, or one of their operating units is transferred to or consolidated with another entity. They may happen through direct absorpt ...
to ensure the public will benefit from the consolidation.


Communications Law in the United States

In the United States, the primary sources of communications law are the federal
Communications Act of 1934 The Communications Act of 1934 is a United States federal law signed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on June 19, 1934, and codified as Chapter 5 of Title 47 of the United States Code, et seq. The act replaced the Federal Radio Commission w ...
, as amended by subsequent legislation including the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act, the Cable Communications Act of 1984, the Satellite Home Viewer Act, the
Cable Television Consumer Protection and Competition Act The Cable Television Consumer Protection and Competition Act of 1992 (also known as the 1992 Cable Act) is a United States federal law which required cable television systems to carry most local broadcast television channels and prohibited cable ...
, and the
Telecommunications Act of 1996 The Telecommunications Act of 1996 is a United States federal law enacted by the 104th United States Congress on January 3, 1996, and signed into law on February 8, 1996, by President Bill Clinton. It primarily amended Chapter 5 of Title 47 of ...
. All of these federal statutes are codified at Title 47 of the
United States Code The United States Code (formally The Code of Laws of the United States of America) is the official Codification (law), codification of the general and permanent Law of the United States#Federal law, federal statutes of the United States. It ...
. Communications law also includes various state laws regulating public utilities, telecommunications, cable television, and wireless antennas.Evans, Sara A. "Wireless Service Providers v. Zoning Commissions: Preservation of State and Local Zoning Authority Under the Telecommunications Act of 1996." Ga. L. Rev. 32 (1997): 965. Communications regulations are found in
Title 47 of the Code of Federal Regulations The Code of Federal Regulations, Telecommunications, containing the U.S. federal regulations for telecommunications can be found under 'Title 47'' of the United States Code of Federal Regulations. Commonly referenced parts * Part 15—concerning ...
by the
Federal Communications Commission The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, internet, wi-fi, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains j ...
and the
National Telecommunications and Information Administration The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) is a bureau of the United States Department of Commerce that serves as the president's principal adviser on telecommunications policies pertaining to the United States' ec ...
of the
United States Department of Commerce The United States Department of Commerce (DOC) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government. It is responsible for gathering data for business and governmental decision making, establishing industrial standards, catalyzing econ ...
, and in state regulatory codes by the
Public Utilities Commission A public utilities commission is a quasi-governmental body that provides oversight and/or regulation of public utility, public utilities in a particular area (locality, municipality, or Administrative division, subnational division), especially in ...
of each state. Communications lawyers are represented by the
Federal Communications Bar Association The Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA) is the voluntary bar association for attorneys, engineers, consultants, economists, government officials, and law students involved in the study, development, interpretation, and practice of communi ...
, an organization for attorneys and engineers involved in "the development, interpretation and practice of communications law and policy."


References

{{Authority control Telecommunications law