Twenty-First Century Fox 2013 Annual Report Download - page 31

five non-broadcast networks they carry. Compliance has been required since July 1, 2012 and applies to FOX
affiliates in the Top 25 markets. Fox News Channel, which is among the top five non-broadcast networks, falls
within the statutory exemption for “live or near-live” programming. The same statute requires programming that
was captioned on television to retain captions when distributed via Internet Protocol apps or services. Although
not required by FCC regulation, the Company has committed to provide program ratings information for its
broadcast network programming for use in conjunction with V Chip technology, which blocks the display of
television programming based on its rating. The Company has also agreed to make this ratings information
available for all full-length entertainment programs that stream on websites the Company controls. FCC
regulations governing network affiliation agreements mandate that television broadcast station licensees retain
the right to reject or refuse network programming in certain circumstances or to substitute programming that the
licensee reasonably believes to be of greater local or national importance. Violation of FCC regulations can result
in substantial monetary forfeitures, periodic reporting conditions, short-term license renewals and, in egregious
cases, denial of license renewal or revocation of license.
Filmed Entertainment
United States. TCFF is subject to the provisions of so-called “trade practice laws” in effect in 25 states
relating to theatrical distribution of motion pictures. These laws substantially restrict the licensing of motion
pictures unless theater owners are first invited to attend a screening of the motion pictures and, in certain
instances, also prohibit payment of advances and guarantees to motion picture distributors by exhibitors. Further,
pursuant to various consent judgments, TCFF and certain other motion picture companies are subject to certain
restrictions on their trade practices in the United States, including a requirement to offer motion pictures for
exhibition to theaters on a theater-by-theater basis and, in some cases, a prohibition against the ownership of
theaters.
Other International Regulation. In countries outside of the United States, there are a variety of existing or
contemplated governmental laws and regulations that may affect the ability of TCFF to distribute and/or license
its motion picture and television products to cinema, television or in-home media, including copyright laws and
regulations that may or may not be adequate to protect its interests, cinema screen quotas, television quotas,
contract term limitations, discriminatory taxes and other discriminatory treatment of U.S. products. The ability of
countries to deny market access or refuse national treatment to products originating outside their territories is
regulated under various international agreements, including the World Trade Organization’s General Agreement
on Tariffs and Trade and General Agreement on Trade and Services; however, these agreements have limited
application with respect to preventing the denial of market access to audio-visual products originating outside the
European Union.
Internet
The Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998 (“COPPA”) prohibits websites from collecting
personally identifiable information online from children under age 13 without prior parental consent. The
Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing Act of 2003 (“CAN-SPAM”) regulates the
distribution of unsolicited commercial emails, or “spam.” Online services provided by the Company may be
subject to COPPA and CAN-SPAM requirements.
Federal regulators’ interest in issues of privacy, cybersecurity and data security has been steadily increasing.
On February 23, 2012, the Administration issued a white paper on consumer data privacy that includes a
Consumer Privacy Bill of Rights. The Administration is convening multi-stakeholder processes to implement the
Bill of Rights through industry codes of conduct that would be enforceable by the Federal Trade Commission
(“FTC”) and State Attorneys General. The Administration also announced it would work with Congress to
implement these rights through legislation. On March 26, 2012, the FTC released a report on consumer privacy,
which sets forth a detailed privacy framework and urges industry to accelerate the pace of adoption of self-
regulatory measures, including more widespread adoption of a Do-Not-Track browser mechanism. The report
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