Covington & Burling LLP operates as a limited liability partnership worldwide, with the practice in England and Wales conducted by an affiliated
limited liability multinational partnership, Covington & Burling LLP, which is formed under the laws of the State of Delaware in the United States
and authorized and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority with registration number 77071..
Covington’s entertainment and media lawyers assist studios, television networks and stations, streaming services, music companies, digital gaming companies, and other content creators and media industry leaders with their most significant and complex legal and business issues.
With deep industry expertise, international reach, and a multidisciplinary approach, our team provides holistic solutions for entertainment and media clients, including effectively supporting key transactions and other business initiatives, efficiently resolving regulatory issues, and successfully handling high-stakes litigation.
Capabilities and Services
Content Creation and Distribution
For more than 50 years, Covington attorneys have represented media and entertainment companies in content creation, licensing and distribution matters -- from the inception of broadcast television to the evolving transition to digital streaming. Our clients include content owners and creators, such as film studios, national and regional television networks, broadcast stations, digital video channels, video game publishers, social media companies, and sports leagues and teams. We also work with several major streaming services in a range of content licensing and distribution matters, including in acquiring, producing, and distributing original and licensed content for their proprietary platforms. Working closely with Covington’s Tech Transactions, litigation, and regulatory experts, we provide multi-faceted support for clients’ most complex matters, including:
Acquisition, licensing, and production of all types of content rights, including video programming, music, video game content, name, image and likeness rights, and other rights of publicity.
Production services, content development, and talent engagement agreements.
Content distribution agreements covering traditional and digital media technologies—from traditional cable and satellite to streaming Internet and mobile -- and numerous business models.
Due diligence, strategy, and regulatory support in connection with media-related corporate transactions.
Evaluation of compliance with most favored nations, content usage restrictions and holdbacks, and other contractual provisions, increasingly in relation to migration to digital streaming and direct-to-consumer models.
Multi-territory launch, expansion, monetization, and marketing of direct-to-consumer media platforms.
Video monetization agreements, including bundling, app placement, and integration, revenue sharing partnerships, and ad tech and other data monetization arrangements.
Metaverse, NFT and web3 matters in the media space.
Active participation in the legislative and regulatory process in venues around the world, including developing markets.
Global Media and Entertainment Litigation
Our litigators represent entertainment and media clients on a broad array of disputes—from content distribution and IP licensing disputes, to complex commercial disputes, class actions, and copyright and trademark matters. Leveraging our deep regulatory and transactional expertise within the firm, our litigators have developed a strong track record for efficiently resolving disputes and facilitating favorable outcomes with our clients’ business objectives top-of-mind. In addition to handling cases in federal and state court and arbitration proceedings globally, the team frequently counsels clients on how to avoid litigation and manage their contractual risk. We pride ourselves on understanding our clients’ businesses, the industry, and the business and policy implications at issue in every case, effectively deploying our collective decades of litigation experience and strategic judgment to achieve wins both inside and outside the courtroom. A few highlights include:
For CBS Interactive, secured dismissal at the pleadings stage of a lawsuit filed by the City of East St. Louis, seeking to impose substantial franchise fees on CBSi’s internet-delivered Paramount+ streaming service, in violation of state and federal law.
Represented all major record labels and publishers (including Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group, and Sony Music) in significant copyright infringement cases against ISPs, Charter Communications, and Bright House Networks.
Represented Fox News Networks in litigation against Charter Communications, alleging that Charter applied incorrect carriage rates for all systems following its acquisition of Time Warner Cable. Covington was brought in as replacement counsel and successfully resolved the matter.
Counsel for United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee in a variety of investigations, litigation, and other matters arising from issues related to athlete safety and investigations of sexual and other abuses of athletes.
Represented Bytedance/TikTok in a successful challenge to a Trump administration executive order intended to ban the TikTok platform in the United States.
Conducted litigation diligence on behalf of the Walt Disney Company in connection with its acquisition of 21st Century Fox and provide ongoing support regarding film distribution strategy.
Harnessing the firsthand experience of our team of litigators, transactional and regulatory lawyers, and business advisors—many of whom are former musicians, songwriters, audio engineers, A&R consultants, and label employees—we have advised and represented clients across the full range of issues confronting the global music industry in some of the most significant lawsuits, transactions, and advisory matters in recent history.
Covington’s Gaming Industry Group handles the most complex legal and business challenges for industry leaders—including integrated resorts, casinos, game manufacturers, and online gaming platforms. We advise a wide range of clients in critical transactions, litigations, investigations, and arbitrations as well as cybersecurity, privacy, information management, intellectual property, licensing, and insurance recovery matters. Moreover, our regulatory team—with more than 120 former government officials—is able to adeptly handle the unique policy issues confronting the industry.
Film and Television
Covington has decades of experience working with television and film companies. With several lawyers who have prior experience working in-house in TV and film, we understand the ins and outs of the business. Deploying that industry knowledge, Covington has helped shepherd some of the largest transformations in the industry—from the shift to online distribution and innovative business models, to the biggest mergers and acquisitions in the industry’s history—and handled some of the industry’s most impactful litigation and regulatory matters.
Covington has played a central role in headline-making sports and entertainment matters for decades. Our work spans the industry—from league and association structuring, governance, and rule-making matters to acquisitions of franchises or other sports related businesses; from launches of single sport and regional sports networks to groundbreaking Internet and mobile media agreements; from the formation of new e-sport start-up ventures to multi-billion dollar stadium financings. We frequently advise clients as they enter into partnerships, sponsorships, and other arrangements involving musicians, influencers, events, and entertainers, and when they engage in the use of music and video content in connection with marketing, advertising, and other initiatives. Sports industry participants regularly turn to Covington to handle their most significant litigation matters, and seek our advice on complex, industry-shaping legal questions covering a diverse range of areas—from antitrust counseling to collective bargaining, tax, financings, governance, commercial litigation, media rights, and regulatory affairs.
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