Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 248 / Tuesday, December 27, 2011 / Notices 80969 

1The ‘‘Phase I Parties’’ with regard to the motion 

for cable royalties are the Program Suppliers, Joint 

Sports Claimants, Public Television Claimants, 

Commercial Television Claimants, Canadian 

Claimants Group, Music Claimants (American 

Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers; 

Broadcast Music, Inc.; and SESAC, Inc.), Devotional 

Claimants, and National Public Radio. 

Public Television Claimants, Canadian Claimants 

Group, and National Public Radio are not 

signatories to the motion for distribution of satellite 

royalties as they are not eligible to receive these 

royalties. 

2The further distributions are requested pursuant 

to section 801(b)(3)(A) of the Copyright Act, which 

allows the Judges to authorize the distribution of 

cable and satellite royalties ‘‘to the extent that the 

Copyright Royalty Judges have found that the 

distribution of such fees is not subject to 

controversy.’’ 17 U.S.C. 801(b)(3)(A). Prior partial 

distributions of 50% of the cable and satellite 

royalties have been made for each of the years 

2004–2009 pursuant to section 801(b)(3)(C). See 

Distribution Orders cited infra. 

3As of October 27, 2011, the remaining 50% for 

the 2004–2009 cable royalties amounted to 

approximately $462 million and the remaining 50% 

for the 2004–2009 satellite royalties amounted to 

approximately $270 million. 

LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 

Copyright Royalty Board 

[Docket Nos. 2007–3 CRB CD 2004–2005, 

2008–4 CRB CD 2006, 2009–6 CRB CD 2007, 

2010–6 CRB CD 2008, 2011–7 CRB 2009; 

2010–2 CRB SD 2004–2007, 2010–7 CRB 

2008, 2011–8 CRB SD 2009] 

Distribution of the 2004–2009 Cable 

and Satellite Royalty Funds 

AGENCY: Copyright Royalty Board, 

Library of Congress. 

ACTION: Notice requesting comments on 

Phase I and II controversies and 

soliciting objections on motions for 

further distribution. 

SUMMARY: The Copyright Royalty Judges 

are soliciting objections on motions of 

the Phase I claimants for further 

distributions in connection with the 

2004–2009 cable and satellite royalty 

funds as well as requesting comments as 

to the existence of Phase I and Phase II 

controversies with respect to the 

distribution of these royalty funds. 

DATES: Comments and objections are 

due on or before January 26, 2012. 

ADDRESSES: Comments and objections 

may be sent electronically to 

crb@loc.gov. In the alternative, send an 

original, five copies, and an electronic 

copy on a CD either by mail or hand 

delivery. Please do not use multiple 

means of transmission. Comments and 

objections may not be delivered by an 

overnight delivery service other than the 

U.S. Postal Service Express Mail. If by 

mail (including overnight delivery), 

comments and objections must be 

addressed to: Copyright Royalty Board, 

P.O. Box 70977, Washington, DC 20024– 

0977. If hand delivered by a private 

party, comments and objections must be 

brought to the Library of Congress, 

James Madison Memorial Building, LM– 

401, 101 Independence Avenue SE., 

Washington, DC 20559–6000. If 

delivered by a commercial courier, 

comments and objections must be 

delivered to the Congressional Courier 

Acceptance Site located at 2nd and D 

Street, NE., Washington, DC. The 

envelope must be addressed to: 

Copyright Royalty Board, Library of 

Congress, James Madison Memorial 

Building, LM–403, 101 Independence 

Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20559– 

6000. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

LaKeshia Keys, Program Specialist, by 

telephone at (202) 707–7658 or by email 

at crb@loc.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

Each year cable systems and satellite 

carriers must submit royalty payments 

to the Copyright Office as required by 

the statutory licenses set forth in 

sections 111 and 119, respectively, of 

the Copyright Act, title 17 of the United 

States Code, for the retransmission to 

cable and satellite subscribers of overthe-air television broadcast stations 

(cable subscribers also receive radio 

broadcast signals). These royalties are 

then distributed to copyright owners 

whose works were included in such a 

qualifying transmission and who timely 

filed a claim for royalties. Distribution 

of the royalties for each calendar year is 

conducted by the Copyright Royalty 

Judges in two phases. At Phase I, the 

royalties are divided among the 

representatives of the major categories 

of copyrightable content (movies, sports 

programming, music, etc.) requesting 

the distribution. At Phase II, the 

royalties are divided among the various 

copyright owners within each category. 

Distribution of royalties in any given 

royalty year may be made through a 

negotiated settlement among the parties. 

17 U.S.C. 111(d)(4)(A), 119(b)(4)(A). If, 

however, the claimants do not reach an 

agreement with respect to the proper 

distribution of the royalties, either at 

Phase I or Phase II, the Copyright 

Royalty Judges are required to conduct 

a proceeding to determine the 

distribution of any royalties that remain 

in controversy. 17 U.S.C. 111(d)(4)(B), 

119(b)(4)(B). 

Notices of Phase I Settlement and 

Motions for Further Distribution 

On November 4, 2011, representatives 

of the Phase I claimant categories (the 

‘‘Phase I Parties’’) 1 filed with the Judges 

separate ‘‘Phase I Parties’ Notice of 

Phase I Settlement and Motion for 

Further Distribution’’ 2 with respect to 

the 2004–2009 cable and satellite 

royalty funds. Specifically, the Phase I 

Parties stated that they had reached a 

global ‘‘settlement of all outstanding 

Phase I controversies regarding 

distribution of the 2004–2009’’ cable 

and satellite royalty funds. Motions at 2. 

Consequently, they requested that the 

Judges: (1) Reserve specified amounts 

($20 million of the cable royalties and 

$13 million of the satellite royalties)— 

to be divided equally among each of the 

six years—to satisfy previously 

identified Phase II controversies and (2) 

authorize the lump-sum distribution of 

all remaining 2004–2009 cable and 

satellite royalties to the Phase I Parties 

through a common agent. Id. The 

reserve amounts 3 would be allocated 

among three categories in which Phase 

II controversies have been identified 

previously. With regard to the cable 

royalties, the reserve amounts would be: 

$3 million for the Program Suppliers 

category; $1 million for the Joint Sports 

category; and $16 million for the 

Devotional category. Cable Motion at 4. 

Similarly, the reserve amounts for the 

satellite royalties would be: $3 million 

for the Program Suppliers category; $1 

million for the Joint Sports category; 

and $9 million for the Devotional 

category. Satellite Motion at 4. 

The Independent Producers Group 

(‘‘IPG’’) opposes both of the Phase I 

Parties’ motions. IPG, which has 

asserted Phase II claims in each of the 

categories for which reserve amounts 

are proposed, bases its opposition, in 

part, on its concerns that the proposed 

reserve amounts are inadequate to 

resolve outstanding Phase II claims. See 

IPG Opposition at 4–5. 

On December 14, 2011, the Judges 

held a hearing on the Phase I Parties’ 

motions, where the Phase I Parties and 

IPG reiterated their respective positions. 

In light of IPG’s continued opposition to 

the Phase I Parties’ motions and to 

determine whether any other 

controversies with respect to the 2004 

through 2009 cable and satellite royalty 

funds may be outstanding, the Judges 

are directing publication of this notice. 

In particular, the Judges solicit 

comments to determine whether there 

are any controversies, either at Phase I 

or Phase II, with respect to each of the 

royalty funds that are the subject of the 

motions (i.e., cable or satellite 2004 

through 2009). 


sroberts on DSK5SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
80970 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 248 / Tuesday, December 27, 2011 / Notices 

Request Regarding Reasonable 

Objections to the Proposed Settlements 

The Judges also seek to determine 

whether any interested claimant has a 

reasonable objection that would 

preclude the requested distributions of 

the 2004–2009 cable and satellite 

royalty funds to the Phase I Parties. 

Such objections should address whether 

the reserve amounts proposed by the 

Phase I Parties are adequate by year. If 

not, then what would be an adequate 

reserve amount to settle all outstanding 

claims for each of the years covered by 

the proposed settlement? The Judges 

must be advised of the existence and 

extent of all such objections by the end 

of the comment period. The Judges will 

not consider any objections with respect 

to the requested distributions that come 

to their attention after the close of that 

period. 

Finally, the Judges have authorized 

prior partial distributions of 50% of 

each of the 2004–2009 cable and 

satellite royalties pursuant to their 

authority under section 801(b)(3)(C). 

See, Distribution Orders, Docket No. 

2007–3 CRB CD 2004–2005 (April 10, 

2008, and April 16, 2008); Distribution 

Order, Docket No. 2008–4 CRB CD 2006 

(December 2, 2008); Distribution Order, 

Docket No. 2009–6 CRB CD 2007 

(October 22, 2009); Distribution Order, 

Docket No. 2010–6 CRB CD 2008 

(January 11, 2011); Distribution Order, 

Docket No. 2011–7 CRB CD 2009 

(October 13, 2011); Distribution Order, 

Docket No. 2010–2 CRB SD 2004–2007 

(March 23, 2010); Distribution Order, 

Docket No. 2010–7 CRB SD 2008 

(January 11, 2011); and Distribution 

Order, Docket No. 2011–8 CRB SD 2009 

(October 13, 2011). As a condition of 

receiving a partial distribution under 

that provision of the Copyright Act, the 

parties must ‘‘sign an agreement 

obligating them to return any excess 

amounts to the extent necessary to 

comply with the final determination on 

the distribution of the fees made under 

[section 801(b)(3)(B)].’’ 17 U.S.C. 

801(b)(3)(C)(ii). The Judges seek 

comment on what conditions, if any, 

should be imposed on the Phase I 

Parties to ensure that they are obligated 

to repay any amounts with interest that 

they received in the proposed 

settlement if such amount is later 

determined to be in excess of what a 

particular Phase I Party is due. For 

example, should each Phase I Party be 

required to represent that it will repay 

any overpayment or is such obligation 

already covered by the representations 

that each Phase I Party signed as a 

condition to receiving its respective 

shares of the earlier partial distributions 

for 2004 through 2009? 

Each Phase I Parties’ Notice of Phase 

I Settlement and Motion for Further 

Distribution is posted on the Copyright 

Royalty Board (‘‘CRB’’) Web site at 

http://www.loc.gov/crb. Comments 

received in response to this Notice also 

may be posted on the Web site. 

Dated: December 20, 2011. 

William J. Roberts, Jr., 

U.S. Copyright Royalty Judge. 

[FR Doc. 2011–33037 Filed 12–23–11; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 1410–72–P 

NATIONAL ARCHIVES AND RECORDS 

ADMINISTRATION 

Records Schedules; Availability and 

Request for Comments 

AGENCY: National Archives and Records 

Administration (NARA). 

ACTION: Notice of availability of 

proposed records schedules; request for 

comments. 

SUMMARY: The National Archives and 

Records Administration (NARA) 

publishes notice at least once monthly 

of certain Federal agency requests for 

records disposition authority (records 

schedules). Once approved by NARA, 

records schedules provide mandatory 

instructions on what happens to records 

when no longer needed for current 

Government business. They authorize 

the preservation of records of 

continuing value in the National 

Archives of the United States and the 

destruction, after a specified period, of 

records lacking administrative, legal, 

research, or other value. Notice is 

published for records schedules in 

which agencies propose to destroy 

records not previously authorized for 

disposal or reduce the retention period 

of records already authorized for 

disposal. NARA invites public 

comments on such records schedules, as 

required by 44 U.S.C. 3303a(a). 

DATES: Requests for copies must be 

received in writing on or before January 

26, 2012. Once the appraisal of the 

records is completed, NARA will send 

a copy of the schedule. NARA staff 

usually prepare appraisal 

memorandums that contain additional 

information concerning the records 

covered by a proposed schedule. These, 

too, may be requested and will be 

provided once the appraisal is 

completed. Requesters will be given 30 

days to submit comments. 

ADDRESSES: You may request a copy of 

any records schedule identified in this 

notice by contacting Records 

Management Services (ACNR) using one 

of the following means: 

Mail: NARA (ACNR), 8601 Adelphi 

Road, College Park, MD 20740–6001. 

Email: request.schedule@nara.gov. 

FAX: (301) 837–3698. 

Requesters must cite the control 

number, which appears in parentheses 

after the name of the agency which 

submitted the schedule, and must 

provide a mailing address. Those who 

desire appraisal reports should so 

indicate in their request. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Margaret Hawkins, Director, National 

Records Management Program (ACNR), 

National Archives and Records 

Administration, 8601 Adelphi Road, 

College Park, MD 20740–6001. 

Telephone: (301) 837–1799. Email: 

request.schedule@nara.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Each year 

Federal agencies create billions of 

records on paper, film, magnetic tape, 

and other media. To control this 

accumulation, agency records managers 

prepare schedules proposing retention 

periods for records and submit these 

schedules for NARA’s approval, using 

the Standard Form (SF) 115, Request for 

Records Disposition Authority. These 

schedules provide for the timely transfer 

into the National Archives of 

historically valuable records and 

authorize the disposal of all other 

records after the agency no longer needs 

them to conduct its business. Some 

schedules are comprehensive and cover 

all the records of an agency or one of its 

major subdivisions. Most schedules, 

however, cover records of only one 

office or program or a few series of 

records. Many of these update 

previously approved schedules, and 

some include records proposed as 

permanent. 

The schedules listed in this notice are 

media neutral unless specified 

otherwise. An item in a schedule is 

media neutral when the disposition 

instructions may be applied to records 

regardless of the medium in which the 

records are created and maintained. 

Items included in schedules submitted 

to NARA on or after December 17, 2007, 

are media neutral unless the item is 

limited to a specific medium. (See 36 

CFR 1225.12(e).) 

No Federal records are authorized for 

destruction without the approval of the 

Archivist of the United States. This 

approval is granted only after a 

thorough consideration of their 

administrative use by the agency of 

origin, the rights of the Government and 

of private persons directly affected by 

the Government’s activities, and 


sroberts on DSK5SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES