3-1-2012
It's probably a regular occurrence around the country and Arbitron is sending out a warning it must stop. Proposals featuring Arbitron numbers, rankers and other materials are looked at, analyzed and scrutinized as salespeople try to convince an advertising agency they are worthy of a buy. Those materials often include stations that pay for the data and stations that do not. They undoubtedly wind up, somehow, in the hands of stations that do not subscribe who may or may not figure a way to use those numbers to help them sell. Arbitron subscribers pay a substantial fee to purchase those numbers from Arbitron and the ratings firm is sending out a "friendly" reminder that if stations do not pay, they cannot play. They also warn that one "rogue" employee could land you in big trouble.
Dear X:
I hope you are doing well. This letter is a friendly reminder sent as part of our ongoing effort to keep licensed agency subscribers informed of any radio station subscription changes as they occur. Please carefully review this letter regarding your obligations and kindly review your license agreement for further particulars.
The corresponding link (http://www.arbitron.com/subscribers/subscribers.asp) identifies radio stations that are in good standing and properly licensed subscribers with Arbitron. Please note that this list is updated frequently. We recommend that you please review the list at least once a month, if not more frequently, and promptly notify your employees of its contents.
Please note that any radio stations not in good standing or not listed at the website as Arbitron subscribers (collectively, the ?Unauthorized User?), may not receive, reference, or use any Arbitron audience estimates, reports, data, surveys, maps, software, or any other Arbitron information (collectively, the ?Arbitron Information?), in any manner whatsoever, in whole or in part. Any such use of Arbitron Information is in violation of Unauthorized User?s license agreement(s) and/or Arbitron?s intellectual property rights, including but not limited to U.S. copyright protections.
As a friendly reminder, please understand that your agency is contractually prohibited from providing, sharing, using, or referencing any Arbitron information to or on behalf of Unauthorized Users. For example, generating Maximi$er reports and submitting such in response to an avail on behalf of an Unauthorized User is a breach of your license agreement. In addition, sharing such orally or merely showing an Unauthorized User the Arbitron Information is a breach.
In the unlikely event you receive or become aware of any Arbitron Information being used, referenced, or supplied by an Unauthorized User, please immediately contact and promptly notify your designated Arbitron representative in writing. This step is important in order to protect your company from any potential liability since courts can impute that failure to provide prompt written notice can make a party complicit with the Unauthorized User?s actions.
In addition, please clearly and expressly share the contents of this letter with all of your employees, agents, affiliates, subsidiaries, and divisions, and inform them of their respective obligations with the foregoing. It is your company?s responsibility to inform anyone that you can exercise reasonable control over that they are expressly required to be in compliance, including but not limited to current and or departed employees.
Please further note that a ?rogue? employee, such as a disobedient or negligent employee, just with a single act or omission, can subject your company to liability for their noncompliant actions, placing your company in breach of Arbitron?s intellectual property rights. Consequently, we encourage your company to clearly inform your employees of their obligations. We would also suggest that you ensure that departingemployees, voluntarily or involuntarily departing, are apprised of their continuing obligations prior to their departure.
Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions regarding the contents of this letter. In the interim, Arbitron thanks you for your continued patronage and greatly appreciates your cooperation with regard to the contents of this letter.
Respectfully yours,
James Derry
Legal & Business Affairs
james.derry@arbitron.com
Arbitron Inc.
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