Cumulus Seeks Emergency Ruling As Nielsen Ratings Deadline Nears.

Cumulus Media has filed an emergency motion in federal appeals court asking a New York court to clear up a procedural question that has temporarily blocked it from trying to enforce a procedural victory it scored last month against Nielsen in its ongoing antitrust lawsuit over national ratings.

In a motion filed last week, Cumulus is asking the Second Circuit Court of Appeals to explicitly declare that its stay of a preliminary injunction against Nielsen ended July 13, when a three-judge panel affirmed the injunction and vacated a stay that had been placed on its enforcement. With the clock ticking down on when Westwood One will lose national ratings, Cumulus is asking the court an answer its request by Aug. 21, saying it needs enough time to return to the district court before its current access to the data expires in September.

How We Got Here

The emergency motion comes after U.S. District Judge Jeannette Vargas declined last week to act on Cumulus’ request to enforce the injunction. Vargas said her court “appears to lack jurisdiction” because Nielsen has asked the Second Circuit to rehear its July decision and, as a result, the appeals court has not yet issued its mandate formally concluding the appeal. Vargas said she would wait for the Second Circuit to clarify whether its earlier stay remains in effect before ruling on Cumulus’ enforcement requests.

Cumulus says the answer should be straightforward.

“The text of the order is clear,” the broadcaster tells the Second Circuit. “The plain text of this Court’s order and judgment thus immediately lift the stay of the injunction.”

At issue is whether Nielsen must comply with the preliminary injunction Vargas issued earlier this year that prohibits Nielsen from enforcing its policy tying access to its complete Nationwide ratings product to purchases of its local ratings services. It also prohibits Nielsen from charging a “commercially unreasonable” rate.

The Second Circuit stayed that injunction in February while Nielsen appealed. But following briefing and oral arguments, the appeals court lifted the stay last month. Nielsen has since petitioned for both panel rehearing and rehearing by the full Second Circuit That means the appeals court’s final orders will not issue until at least seven days after those petitions are resolved. Nielsen contends that until they’re issued, the stay remains in place and it’s not required to comply with the injunction.

But Cumulus argues Nielsen is incorrectly linking two separate procedural issues. “The Court’s decision lifting the stay became effective immediately,” Cumulus says. The company points to a 2025 ruling and other federal court decisions that support its position that a stay ends when it is lifted, even if the appeals process is not formally complete. Cumulus argues that means Vargas can enforce her injunction now while Nielsen continues seeking a rehearing.

Tight Timeline

The procedural question has taken on greater importance as the two sides remain at odds over how much Cumulus will pay for Nielsen’s national radio ratings.

Cumulus has accusing Nielsen of failing to provide a “commercially reasonable” standalone price for Nationwide as required in injunction. But Nielsen says rejected that, and Vargas has not ruled on that dispute because of the uncertainty over whether the injunction is currently enforceable.

Cumulus says it cannot afford to wait indefinitely. Its existing access to Nationwide will end in September, less than a month away, while Westwood One is currently negotiating with national advertisers. “It must maintain continued access to Nationwide to sell advertiser inventory,” the emergency motion says.

What’s Next

If Cumulus gets the clarification it seeks from the Second Circuit, it plans to return to district court where it wants the judge to determine whether Nielsen’s standalone Nationwide offer actually complies with the preliminary injunction.