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The FCC’s “Contest Rule” provides that it is illegal to “predetermine or prearrange” the outcome of a contest or to broadcast a “predetermined or prearranged” contest. This means that any time that a sweepstakes or contest is announced or advertised via television or radio, the television or radio broadcaster must comply with the Contest Rule and accurately disclose the important rules and policies of the contest. READ MORE
As a follow-up to our posting on September 17, 2015, and in response to questions we have received from several of our readers, I wanted to clarify that the Federal Communication Commission’s (“FCC”) revision to its contest rules did not go into effect immediately after its September 17 meeting. READ MORE
As we anticipated in our most recent posting, the Federal Communication Commission this morning made a substantial change to its Contest Rules. In a press release today, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced the adoption of new Broadcast Contest Rules “that allow broadcasters to disclose contest rules online as an alternative to broadcasting them over the air.” READ MORE
The Federal Communication Commission may be on the verge of permitting broadcasters to present sweepstakes and contest rules online, rather than during the on-air description of the promotion. The FCC’s agenda for its open meeting on September 17, 2015, lists as one of the two subjects to be discussed: “Modernizing contest rules. READ MORE
The FCC’s Enforcement Bureau has brought a number of cases against broadcasters who conduct or advertise a contest on air. These cases range from failure to accurately disclose the end date for a sweepstakes, to a station’s employee rigging a contest so that his friends and family would win. READ MORE
Our recent post about the possibility that the Federal Communications Commission will no longer require broadcasters to disclose contest rules in their advertisements brought several questions from readers. Most of the questions were about the FCC regulations and enforcement activities. Here is a brief overview of the two major components of the FCC’s Contest Rule. READ MORE
Anyone who watches television or listens to the radio has heard a fast-talking announcer race through the abbreviated rules for a sweepstakes or contest. Or perhaps you’ve seen a copy of the official rules for only a second or two in a microscopic font size on your television screen. READ MORE
Operating in accordance with the rules and alerting entrants to the material terms of the sweepstakes or contest is sound advice when creating any sweepstakes or contest. READ MORE
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