Television Programming & Production

The television industry moves extremely quickly, is brutally competitive, requires constant attention to audiences and advertisers, and is subject to intense scrutiny from public watchdogs and regulators. At the same time it is extremely dynamic, with tremendous opportunities driven by new technologies and evolving business relationships.

Clients receive great value working with lawyers who are focused on the industry and provide a full range of services. Our lawyers share your passion for the industry. With long experience in our clients’ legal and business issues, we help them spot opportunities, identify issues before they arise, manage risk, and give them the peace of mind to focus on the work they love.

We represent all aspects of the television business, including development, production, licensing and distribution. We are well-versed in cable, satellite and broadcast television issues as well as the basics of getting a program from pilot stage to initial broadcast and beyond.

The services we provide include the following:

• Financing, production and distribution transactions
• Talent contracts
• Licensing and syndication agreements
• Sponsorship and product placement agreements
• Copyright and other intellectual property issues
• Pre-broadcast review
• First Amendment
• Defamation
• Prior restraint
• Antitrust
• FCC access, programming and digital conversion regulations
• Title clearance reports
• Production and pre-broadcast counseling

Our television industry team is part of a larger entertainment industry team that also focuses on the arts and other entertainment businesses. Our firm is a past recipient of the Chambers USA Awards for Excellence in media law, as well as a No. 1 national ranking in the areas of media law and First Amendment in the 2007 edition of The Best Lawyers in America. This breadth of focus enables us to help clients develop relationships and secure agreements to exploit their work across multiple channels.