FR Doc 03-13579

[Federal Register: May 30, 2003 (Volume 68, Number 104)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 32381-32382]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr30my03-17]

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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS

37 CFR Parts 252 and 257

[Docket No. 2003--1 CARP]

Filing of Claims for Cable and Satellite Royalties

AGENCY: Copyright Office, Library of Congress.

ACTION: Waiver of regulation.

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SUMMARY: The Copyright Office of the Library of Congress is announcing
alternative methods for the filing of claims to the cable and satellite
royalty funds for the year 2002, to avoid potential problems with mail
delivery. Claimants are strongly encouraged to file their cable and
satellite claims electronically, utilizing the special procedures
described in this document to ensure that their claims are timely
received.

EFFECTIVE DATE: May 30, 2003.

ADDRESSES: If hand delivered, an original and two copies of each claim
should be brought to: Office of the Copyright General Counsel, James
Madison Memorial Building, Room 403, First and Independence Avenue,
SE., Washington, DC 20540 from July 1, 2003 through July 31, 2003.
Online submissions should be made to the following: for cable claims
``http://www.copyright.gov/carp/cable/claims.html''; for satellite
claims ``http://www.copyright.gov/carp/satellite/claims.html''. See
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION for information about on-line electronic
filing through the Copyright Office website. If sent by mail, an
original and two copies of each claim should be addressed to: Copyright
Arbitration Royalty Panel (CARP), P.O. Box 70977, Southwest Station,
Washington, DC 20024.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tanya Sandros, Senior Attorney or
Susan Grimes, CARP Specialist, P.O. Box 70977, Southwest Station,
Washington, DC 20024. Telephone: (202) 707-8380. Telefax: (202) 252-
3423.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

Section 111 of the Copyright Act, 17 U.S.C., places a statutory
obligation on cable systems who retransmit over-the-air broadcast
signals to submit royalty fees to the Copyright Office for such
retransmissions. Distribution of the royalty fees is made to copyright
owners whose works were embodied in those retransmissions made by cable
systems. 17 U.S.C. 111(d)(3). In order to claim eligibility for a
distribution of cable royalty fees, a claimant must submit to the
Copyright Office a claim during the month of July following the
calendar year in which the retransmission took place. 17 U.S.C.
111(d)(4)(A). The regulations governing the content and submission of
cable claims are found at 37 CFR part 252.
Likewise, copyright owners whose works were embodied in over-the-
air television broadcast signals retransmitted by satellite carriers
may seek a distribution of the satellite royalty fees collected by the
Copyright Office. 17 U.S.C. 119. Eligibility for satellite royalty fees
is predicated upon the submission of a claim in the month of July
following the calendar year in which the retransmission took place. 17
U.S.C. 119(b)(4)(A). The regulations governing the content and
submission of satellite claims are found at 37 CFR part 257.
For both cable and satellite, a claim is considered timely filed
with the Copyright Office if it is hand delivered to the correct office
within the Copyright Office during the month of July, or if it is
mailed to the correct address and it bears a July U.S. Postal Service
postmark. See 37 CFR 252.4 (cable); 37 CFR 257.4 (satellite). The
regulations do not provide for the filing of cable and satellite claims
by alternative methods such as electronic submission.
Unfortunately, the Office has experienced disruptions of postal
service since October 17, 2001. See 66 FR 62942 (December 4, 2001) and
66 FR 63267 (December 5, 2001). While mail delivery to the Office has
resumed, the Office continues to experience delays in receipt of its
mail, due in part to the diversion of mail to an off-site location for
screening. Consequently, last year the office offered and recommended
alternative methods for the filing of cable and satellite claims to the
2001 royalty funds. See 67 FR 21176 (April 30, 2002). The Office is
offering and recommending the same alternative filing methods this year
for claims to the 2002 royalty funds.
Moreover, claimants are strongly advised to send their claims early
in the month of July. Persons submitting claims at the end of the month
risk missing the deadline for submission of claims.
Claimants are further advised that this Notice covers only the
means by which claims may be accepted as timely filed; all other filing
requirements, such as the content of claims, remain unchanged, except
as noted herein. See 37 CFR parts 252 (cable) and 257 (satellite).

Acceptable Methods of Filing Cable and Satellite Claims for the Year
2002

Claims to the 2002 cable and satellite royalty funds may be
submitted as follows:

a. Hand Delivery

In order to best ensure the timely receipt by the Copyright Office
of their cable and satellite claims, the Office encourages claimants
who do not file their claims electronically to deliver their claims
personally by 5 p.m. E.S.T. on any business day, during the month of
July, 2003, and no later than July 31, 2003, to the Office of the
Copyright General Counsel, James Madison Memorial Building, Room 403,
First and Independence Avenue, SE., Washington, DC. Private carriers
should not be used for such delivery, as packages brought in by private
carriers may be subject to screening at an off-site facility before
being delivered to the Office and may be deemed untimely and rejected
unless the treated package is received by the Office of the Copyright
General Counsel by 5 p.m. E.S.T. on July 31, 2003. Thus, claims should
be hand delivered by the claimant or a representative of the claimant
(i.e., the claimant's attorney or a member of the attorney's staff)
directly to the Office of the General Counsel.
Claimants hand delivering their claims should note that they must
follow all provisions set forth in 37 CFR parts 252 and 257.

b. On-line Submission

The Office has devised on-line electronic forms for filing both
single and joint cable and satellite claims from July 1, 2003 through
July 31, 2003. Claimants will be able to access and complete the forms
via the Copyright Office website and may submit the forms
electronically as provided in the instructions accompanying the forms.
Cable forms will be posted on the Office Web site at ``http://www.copyright.gov/carp/cable/claims.html
''. Satellite forms will be
posted at ``http://www. copyright.gov/carp/satellite/claims.html''.
Claimants filing a joint claim may list each of their joint claimants
directly on the Office's on-

[[Page 32382]]

line joint claim form or may submit the list of joint claimants as a
file attachment to the submission page. Lists of joint claimants sent
as an attachment must be in a single file in either Adobe Portable
Document (``PDF'') format, in Microsoft Word Version 2000 or earlier,
in WordPerfect 9 or earlier, or (in the case of text-only files) in
ASCII text. There will be an ``attach'' button on the form that will
allow claimants to attach the file containing the list of joint
claimants and then to submit the completed form to the Office. The
attachment must contain only the names and addresses of the joint
claimants. See 37 CFR 252.3(b)(1) and 257.3(b)(1).
The cable and satellite forms will be available for use during the
month of July. It is critically important to follow the instructions in
completing the forms before submitting them to the Office. Claims
submitted on-line using forms or formats other than those specified in
this Notice will not be accepted by the Office. Claims filed on-line
must be received by the Office no later than 11:59 p.m. E.S.T. on July
31, 2003. Specifically, the completed electronic forms must be received
by the Office's server by that time. Any claim received after that time
will be considered as untimely filed. Claimants who file electronically
will receive an electronic mail message in response, stating that the
Office has received their submission. Therefore, claimants utilizing
this filing option are required to provide an e-mail address. Claimants
submitting their claims on-line are strongly encouraged to send their
claim no later than July 30, 2003, in order to better ensure timely
receipt by the Office.
When filing claims on-line, all provisions set forth in 37 CFR part
252 and 257 apply except Sec. Sec. 252.3(b)(5) and 257.3(b)(5), which
require the original signature of the claimant or of the claimant's
duly authorized representative on the claim. The Office is waiving this
provision for this filing period because at this time the Office is not
equipped to receive and process electronic signatures.

c. By Mail

Sections 252.4(a)(2) and 257.4(a)(2) direct claimants filing their
claims by mail to send the claims to the Copyright Arbitration Royalty
Panel, P.O. Box 70977, Southwest Station, Washington, DC 20024.
Claimants electing to send their claims by mail are encouraged to send
their claims by certified mail return receipt requested, to have the
certified mail receipt (PS Form 3800) stamped by the United States
Postal Service, and to retain the certified mail receipt in order to
secure the only acceptable proof of a timely filing. In the event there
is a question as to whether the claim was deposited with the United
States Postal Service during the month of July, the claimant must
produce the certified mail receipt (PS Form 3800) which bears a United
States Postal Service postmark, indicating an appropriate date. 37 CFR
252.4(e) and 257.4(e). Claimants whose claims were received after July
31, with only a business meter mark, and who have been unable to
produce the certified mail receipt, have had their claims rejected as
untimely.
As noted above, disruption of the mail service and delivery of
incoming mail to an off-site screening center have reduced the
timeliness of receipt of mail by the Copyright Office. Such delays may
hamper the Office's ability to compile a claimant list, and may affect
the Office's ability to make partial distributions of cable and
satellite funds not in controversy.\1\ Consequently, the Office
suggests that claimants use the mail only if none of the other methods
outlined above are feasible. Claims sent by mail should be addressed in
accordance with Sec. Sec. 252.4(a)(2) and 257.4(a)(2), and the Office
again strongly encourages the claimant to send the claim by certified
mail return receipt requested, to have the certified mail receipt (PS
Form 3800) stamped by the United States Postal Service, and to retain
the certified mail receipt, as it constitutes the only acceptable proof
of timely filing of the claim. Claims dated only with a business meter
that are received by the Office after July 31, 2003, will be rejected
as being untimely filed. Claimants who have ignored this rule have had
their claims rejected.
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\1\ The Office also notes that some of the mail it has received
has been damaged due to the decontamination process. Damage or
destruction of claims sent by mail could adversely affect a
claimant's eligibility for cable or satellite royalties.
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When filing claims by this method, claimants must follow all
provisions set forth in 37 CFR part 252 for cable claims and part 257
for satellite claims.

Faxes Not Permitted

Although the Copyright Office permitted the submission of 2002
Digital Audio Recording Technology (``DART'') claims via facsimile
transmission, the Office has determined that, due to the high volume of
cable and satellite claims received by the Office relative to DART
claims, it is impractical to permit the faxing of cable and satellite
claims. Consequently, any cable or satellite claims received by the
Copyright Office via facsimile transmission will not be accepted.

Waiver of Regulation

The regulations governing the filing of cable and satellite claims
require ``the original signature of the claimant or of a duly
authorized representative of the claimant.'' Sec. 252.3(b) (cable);
Sec. 257.3(b) (satellite). This Notice, however, waives these
provisions as set forth herein solely for the purpose of filing claims
to the 2002 cable and satellite royalty funds. The Office is not
waiving the statutory deadline for filing either cable or satellite
claims, a deadline the Office has no power to waive. See, United States
v. Locke, 471 U.S. 84, 101 (1985). Thus, claimants are still required
to file their claims by July 31, 2003.
Waiver of an agency's rules is ``appropriate only if special
circumstances warrant a deviation from the general rule and such
deviation will serve the public interest.'' Northeast Cellular
Telephone Company v. FCC, 897 F.2d 1164, 1166 (D.C. Cir. 1990); see
also, Wait Radio v. FCC, 418 F.2d 1153 (D.C. Cir. 1969), cert. denied,
409 U.S. 1027 (1972). Under ordinary circumstances, the Office is
reluctant to waive its regulations. However, the continued problems
with the delivery of the mail constitutes a special circumstance which
has forced the Office to deviate from its usual mail processing
procedures. Thus, given such uncertainties, the Office believes that
the public interest will best be served by waiving, for this filing
period only, the requirement that cable and satellite claims bear the
original signature of the claimant or of a duly authorized
representative of the claimant when, and only when, such claim is filed
electronically.

Dated: May 23, 2003.
David O. Carson,
General Counsel.
[FR Doc. 03-13579 Filed 5-29-03; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 1410-33-P