Television, online streaming and a la carte programming services were just some of the topics discussed at the most recent lecture in the Institute for the Study of the Judiciary, Politics and the Media (IJPM) Law, Politics and the Media Lecture Series.

On Wednesday, Wayne Johnsen, a Class of 1982 Syracuse University alumnus, discussed “Aereo, FilmOn X and the Regulatory Treatment of Video Programming Over the Internet.” The lecture was part of a series held in conjunction with the Law, Politics and the Media (LAW 839/PSC 700) class.

Johnsen, who is also a partner at Wiley Rein LLP, where he said he “specializes in regulation of media,” started the lecture by discussing the history of the communications industry with laws and regulations. Starting with the Communications Act of 1934, Johnsen explained the lag between legislation in regulating communication and the fast growth in technology.

The last amendment to this act was made in 1999, Johnsen said, adding that there have been many changes in media technology since then. Identifying these problems in legislation helped Johnsen to transition into his main topic: the Aereo company and copyrights.

Aereo was a former media technology company that allowed subscribers to stream television through devices that were connected to the Internet through micro-antenna technology. The company was dissolved due to legal issues after the Supreme Court ruled that it breached copyright laws.

Aereo founder Chet Kanojia, who is considered by many to be a pioneer in media technology, visited the Syracuse University campus in November 2015 to talk about the company’s failure in a discussion with Roy Gutterman, director of the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications’ Tully Center for Free Speech.

Johnsen further discussed Aereo and the scarcity of laws that fit the scope of the variety of new technologies being developed in the media and entertainment industries.

After explaining the Aereo case, Johnsen identified companies that went through similar issues with copyrights in media. Some of these companies include Sky Angel, an Internet subscription service; Ivi, a broadcast streaming program; and the historic Sony Betamax case.

Johnsen closed his lecture by returning to his point that the current legislation for media copyrights and the communications industry in general does not fit the new technologies that have been created in the past few years.

Amanda Finney, a graduate student studying television, radio and film in the Newhouse School, said she thought it was interesting to have a Newhouse alumnus come back and share his perspective, “especially since he is now an attorney in the industry.”

Many of those in attendance Wednesday were students from the Law, Politics and the Media class, an SU graduate course offered this semester.

Johnsen’s speech was the third lecture in the IJPM Law, Politics and the Media series.

“Hearing from Mr. Johnsen, we wanted to help our students recognize that there is a lot of policy-making and litigation that determines the content you see,” said Keith Bybee, a LAW 839 professor.

There are eight lectures in the series, and each features a guest speaker who is chosen to discuss a topic that is relevant to the class.

There are five more lectures scheduled for the series that will cover topics such as “Law and Pop Culture” and “Blogging in the Age of Obama.” The next lecture will be held on March 23 in Dineen Hall.

Published on March 2, 2016 at 11:59 pm

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