West Virginia Code Chapter 47. Regulation of Trade § 47-11D-3. Blind bidding prohibited; invitation to bid; provisions of article waived as to certain exhibitors

(a) Blind bidding is hereby prohibited within this State. No bids may be returnable, no negotiations for the exhibition or licensing of a motion picture may take place, and no license agreement or any of its terms may be agreed to, for the exhibition of any motion picture within this State before that motion picture has been trade screened either within this State or, alternatively, at the local exchange serving the geographic area within this State for which bids have been invited.

(b) A distributor shall include in each invitation to bid for a motion picture for exhibition within this State, if such motion picture has not already been trade screened within this State, the date, time and place of the trade screening of the motion picture either within this State or, alternatively, at the local exchange serving the geographic area within this State for which bids have been requested.

(c) A distributor shall provide reasonable and uniform notice to all exhibitors in each competitive market within this State of all trade screenings for that competitive market of motion pictures he is distributing.

(d) The provisions of this article are waived with respect to West Virginia exhibitors whose theatres are located within twenty miles of a state line of a state where a provision for prior trade screening before bidding has not been adopted, so long as theatres exist within the other state within twenty miles of the state line between that state and West Virginia and no further than twenty miles from at least one West Virginia exhibitor's theatre in the same competitive market. Any other purported waiver of the requirements of this article shall be void and unenforceable.