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Practice Areas:

Advertising, Marketing & Promotions	Privacy	Data Security
Media & Entertainment	Technology	Intellectual Property
Copyrights

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Alan Friel is a partner in the Intellectual Property Department of Wildman Harrold. He counsels his clients on contractual transactions, intellectual property, regulatory compliance, financing, licensing, distribution, acquisitions, joint ventures and strategic alliances. His clients span a number of industries, including advertising and promotions, film, television, animation, music, publishing, technology, interactive games, software, Internet and eCommerce, manufacturing, telecommunications, apparel and consumer products. Alan is a member of the entertainment, intellectual property, technology and advertising sections of several bar associations and is AV® Preeminent™ 5.0 out of 5 Peer Review Rated by Martindale-Hubbell. He is also active in philanthropic activities, serving or having served as outside general counsel or on the board of several charitable institutions and trade associations.

Representative Experience:

• Counsels on new media, e-commerce and privacy transactions
• Extensive experience in matters relating to live action and animation television and theatrical motion picture development, production and distribution 
  
• Negotiates branded entertainment and product placement and integration agreements
• Represents clients regarding (online and offline) advertising, marketing, sponsorship and promotions 
• Drafts and negotiates licensing agreements and other intellectual property transactions 
• Counsels clients in connection with interactive game and software development and publishing
• Additional representative experience

Education:

Northeastern University School of Law, J.D., 1991
UCLA Anderson Graduate School of Business, EPM, 2001
Georgia State University, B.S., 1984, 1988

Publications And Presentations:

• Co-Author, "Key Considerations for Industry in Wake of the Boucher Online Privacy Bill," Corporate Counsel, July 27, 2010.
• Instructor, UCLA, Graduate School of Television, Film and Digital Media, Assistant Professor 1996–2009. Courses include “The Legal and Business Aspect of the Entertainment and Media Industries,” “New and Convergence Media,” “Negotiation Theory and Practice” and “Trends in Television and Emergence of Multiplatform Media.”
• Speaker, “Evolving Media Marketing Issues,” Fox Group Legal Department, Los Angeles, CA, June 11, 2010.
• Author, “Growing Promotional Use of Social Media in the Government's Crosshairs: The New FTC Guidelines,” AMEC M/E Insights, Winter 2009-2010.
• Speaker, “Who Let the Fans In?: ‘Next-Gen Digi-Marketing,’” TRANSMEDIA, HOLLYWOOD: S/Telling the Story, a UCLA/USC Industry Symposium, March 2010.
• Co-Author, “New Massachusetts Data Security Regulations Take Effect March 1, 2010,” Client Bulletin, February 2009.
• Speaker, “Marketing and Promotional Law,” Promax/BDA Annual Conference, 2003–2009. (also presented as an in-house clinical).
• Instructor, “State of Evolving Media: Business & Marketing Issues in the Digital Realm,” United Talent Agency, in-house presentation, December 10, 2009.
  
• Author, “Navigating FTC's Guidance on Social Media Marketing,” AdWeek, November 2009.
  
• Author, “The FTC'S New Endorsement Guides Call For Policies and Procedures for Recommendation Marketing Through Evolving Social Media Channels By December 2009 and Make Companies and Consumers Responsible for the Content of Sponsored Posts,” American Lawyer Media’s Internet Law & Strategy, November 2009.
  
• Speaker, “Video Games Marketing and Brand Integration,” PMA Promotion Marketing Law Conference, November 5-6, 2009.
  
• Author, “Recommendation Marketing Through Evolving Social Media Channels and the FTC’s Proposed Endorsement Guides,” American Lawyer Media’s e-Commerce Law & Strategy, October 2009.
  
• Speaker, “Annual Advertising Law Seminar,” The Association of Media and Entertainment and Counsel, October 29, 2009.
• Instructor, “Characters and Superheroes in Evolving Media,” Sony Pictures Entertainment, in-house training for legal department, October 23, 2009.
• Speaker, “Social Media Outreach & Digital WOM Marketing Strategies,” Direct Marketing Association 2009 Annual Conference, San Diego, CA, October 21, 2009.
• Speaker, “The Law of Marketing and Promotions,” Powering Up for the Future: LAPA's 33rd Annual Conference, October 17, 2009.
  
• Speaker, “Digital Playground: COPPA, CARU & Kids and Evolving Media,” Children’s Advertising Review Unit Conference, October 7, 2009.
  
• Speaker, “Approaching Web and Mobile 3.0: IP Issues with Digital Advertising and Marketing,” California State Bar Intellectual Property Conference, June 25, 2009.
  
• Co-Author, "So You Want to Run a Promotion?" Corporate Counselor, Spring 2009.
• Speaker, “Doing Business in the U.S.,” What To Expect At NAB 2009 Webinar, April 6, 2009.
• Speaker, "Hollywood and Madison Avenue Discover Massively Multiplayer Online Games (MMOG) and Virtual Worlds," Game Developers Conference 2009, San Francisco, CA, March 27, 2009.
  
• Co-Author, “Evolving Media Tools Require Companies to Navigate Changing Waters,” Los Angeles Daily Journal, March 17, 2009; reprinted in AMEC M/E Insights, Summer 2009.
  
• Co-Author, “As Technologies Evolve, Websites Play Compliance Catch-up,” Los Angeles Daily Journal, March 10, 2009; reprinted in AMEC M/E Insights, Summer 2009.
  
• Speaker, “Approaching Web and Mobile 3.0: the Evolution of Digital Marketing,” MediaMorphosis 2009, Beverly Hills, CA, February 3, 2009. 
  
• Speaker, “Evolving Media Legal Trends,” Fox Television Studios Legal Department, Los Angeles, CA, January 21, 2009. 
  
• Speaker, "January 2009 Privacy Update," ABA Section of Antitrust Law - The Privacy and Information Security, Corporate Counseling and Computer Industry & Internet Committees, January 13, 2009. 
  
• Co-Author, "A Game Changer," Los Angeles Daily Journal, November 5, 2008.
  
• Co-Author, "Spamalot No More - The Federal Trade Commission Has Issued Its Final Rule on CAN-SPAM," Marketing Management, September/October 2008.
  
• Instructor, “Hot and Emerging Legal Issues” Mattel, Inc., in-house clinical for Legal Department, El Segundo, California, August 21, 2008.
  
• Speaker, “Cross Platform – Integrating Content, Advertising and Sales,” Entertainment Industry Conference, Beverly Hills, CA, June 18, 2008. 
  
• Speaker, “Digital Marketing Practices Implementation and Legal Compliance,” Direct Marketing Association DM Days New York Conference & Expo, New York, NY, June 10-12, 2008. 
  
• Instructor, "Our Content, Their Content - Yahoo! Editor Guidelines," Yahoo! In-house training, Santa Monica, CA, June 10, 2008.
• Speaker, “Where Is Technology Headed Next And What Is The Future?” e-havioral, Peer to Peer and New Media Marketing Conference, Law Seminars International, Seattle, WA, June 2-3, 2008.
  
• Speaker, “Avoiding Third-Party Liability While Continuing to Reap the Benefits of User-Generated Content and Social Networking Sites,” Advertising Law XXI, American Conference Institute, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 28-29, 2008.
  
• Author, “No Purchase Necessary – Sweepstakes and Contests have become mainstays of the marketing arsenal, but they create legal issues for promoters,” Marketing Management, published by the American Marketing Association, March/April 2008.
  
• Speaker, “A Rockin Roller Coaster: Copyright in an Internet Age,” Northeastern University School of Law Intellectual Property Symposium, Boston, Massachusetts, March 29, 2008.
  
• Author, “New Eco-Regs – The FTC Considers Revising Environmental Marketing Rules,” Promo Magazine, March 2008.
  
• Speaker, “Grokster on Remand: The Implications to Peer-to-Peer and Social Networks,” West Legalworks webinar, January 29, 2008.
  
• Speaker, “Web 2.0: Social Networking, User Generated Content and Digital Advertising - Evolving Legal Issues,” Association of Media and Entertainment Counsel, Los Angeles, California, December 14, 2007 (also presented as an in-house clinical to multiple clients)
  
• Author, Book Chapter, “Legal and Business Affairs Counsel with Respect to Convergence Media,” Entertainment and Media Law Strategies, published by Aspatore Books, 2007.
  
• Speaker, “Social Networking and User-Generated Content,” iHollywood Forums, Los Angeles, California, December 12, 2007.
  
• Author, “Eco-Marketing On The Rise and Under Review,” & Speaker, “I Love Green: Producing Content and Selling Advertising for Cable,” Hollywood Goes Green Conference, Los Angeles, California, December 11, 2007.
  
• Author, “Harnessing Creativity or Creating Liability?,” Internet Law & Strategy Part 1 (Using User Generated Content and Engaging Users in Promotional Activities) November 2007, Part II (Online Sweepstakes and Contests) December 2007, (also published in e-Commerce Law & Strategy, December 2007) and Part III (Online Agreements, Privacy Policies, Use of Third Party Sites, E-Mail and Children's Issues As Related to Online Promotions) January 2008.
  
• Author, “Hollywood's New Idea Factories: How Advertisers and Their Agencies Work,” Branded Entertainment, A Roundtable Edition of the Association of Media & Entertainment Counsel Magazine, Winter/Spring 2007.
  
• Author, “Coordinating the Roles and Responsibilities of Companies and Their Advertising, Marketing, Promotional and Interactive Media Agencies,” Los Angeles Business Journal, April 2007.
  
• Speaker, “Web 2.0: Social Networking, User Generated Content and Digital Advertising - Evolving Legal Issues,” New York State Bar Association Entertainment Arts and Sports Law Section, New York, New York, November 16, 2007. (also presented as an in-house clinical to multiple clients)
  
• Speaker, “Emerging Social Networking, Consumer Recommendation and User Generated Content Issues,” Advertisers' & Marketers' Regulatory Summit, American Conference Institute, San Francisco, California, September 18–19, 2007. (also presented as in-house clinical to multiple clients)
  
• Speaker, “Branded Entertainment As An Alternative Means of Advertising,” 19th Annual National Forum on Advertising Law, American Conference Institute, June 2007.
  
• Instructor, “e-Marketing, Online and Privacy Law Update,” Mattel, Inc., in-house clinical for Legal Department, El Segundo, California, April 26, 2007.
  
• Speaker, “Legal Issues Relating To Massive Multiplayer Online Games,” Gamer Technology Law Conference, Law Seminars International, March 2007.
  
• Author, “Is Your Web Site COPPA Compliant?”, Internet Law and Strategy, January 2007.
  
• Author, “Privacy Policies,” Daily Journal, December 13, 2006. 
  
• Instructor, “Negotiation Theory and Practice,” ABC Disney Cable Group in-house training for Business and Legal Affairs Group, April 2006.
  
• Author, “The New Spamscape: FTC proposals might continue to change the rules on spam,” Marketing Management, January/February 2006.
  
• Author, “The Spam Spat: How will marketers be affected by the fight against spam?” Marketing Management, May/June 2005.
  
• Instructor, “Online Legal Issues Overview,” Paramount (Studios) Digital Entertainment in-house training for key management, June 2005.
  
• Instructor, “Advertising, Online and Privacy Law Update,” Sprint/Nextel in-house training for Legal Department, Corporate Headquarters, Reston, Virginia, June 2005.
  
• Speaker, “Rules of the Game,” Kaye Scholer's Interactive Entertainment Seminar, Los Angeles, California, March 2005.
  
• Instructor, “Gaming Online and Technology Issues,” Disney Internet Group, in-house training for Business and Legal Affairs, March 2005.
  
• Instructor, “Corporate Governance Issues for Entertainment Companies,” Dreamworks in-house training for legal department, January 27, 2005.
  
• Author, “Privacy Patchwork: The 'Anything Goes' Frontier is Becoming More Regulated,” Marketing Management, November/December 2004.
  
• Speaker, “Film and TV Tax Credits,” Louisiana Cultural Economy Initiative Conference, December 2004.
  
• Instructor, “Cyberlaw 101 – What You Need to Know to Avoid Common Legal Pitfalls of Publishing, Selling and Marketing on the Internet,” Mattel, Inc. in-house training for Legal Department, El Segundo, California, 2004.
  
• Speaker, “Acquiring Intellectual Property and Intellectual Property Companies,” New York State Bar Association Entertainment Arts and Sports Law Section, New York, New York 2003. (also presented as an in-house clinical to multiple clients)
  
• Speaker, “Where Success Lies...Now and in the Future,” Interactive Marketing Conference, Digital Media Wire, October 2002.
• Speaker, “Distribution of Content in the New Millennium,” 24th Annual UCLA Entertainment Law Symposium, e-Hollywood, February 5, 2000.
  

Professional Associations:

State Bar of California

New York Bar Association

American Bar Association (Sections: Entertainment, Intellectual Property, and Advertising and Promotions, Privacy, Internet and Computer Industry sub-committees)

International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP), Certified Privacy Professional 

Association of Media and Entertainment Counsel, Chair of the Law Firm Advisory Board

Promax/BDA (Promotions and Marketing Professionals), Special Counsel

Association of Electronic Interactive Marketers, Special Counsel 

Board of Editors of the Internet Law and Strategy and e-Commerce Law & Strategy, each publications of American Lawyer Media.

Assistant Professor, UCLA School of Film, Television and Digital Media

Legal Advisory Board, UCLA School of Film, Television and Digital Media

Promotional Marketing Association (PMA)

Bar Admissions:

California

New York

U.S. District Court for the Central District of California

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit

Pennsylvania (Inactive)