‘Spidey’ Gets WDRQ Fined $4,000

The commission found ABC licensee WDRQ(FM), Detroit apparently liable for violating its contest rules and fined the station $4,000. After receiving a complaint from a contestant, the agency found that the station did not adequately reveal the terms of the contest “War of the Sexes.”
Contestant Joe Lucker won a pass for the movie “Spiderman,” for one night, but couldn’t get to see it because the theater was too crowded. The FCC said it wasn’t clear to winners that they might not get into the movie and that other prizes might be substituted.
WDRQ argues when it awarded Lucker the prize that he was told that admission to the movie was not guaranteed. The station offered him tickets for another night and gave him several station promotion items. WDRQ stated it also told listeners on air afterwards that movie passes did not guarantee admission.
ABC said that the station now airs generic contest rules “that note the station reserves the right to substitute a prize for equal or greater value in the event that the announcement prize is unavailable.”
The agency stated that WDRQ failed to broadcast the nature and value of the contest prize – the fact that the movie passes did not guarantee admission. Although the station took remedial actions, the commission found a penalty was still warranted.