FCC scraps cap on ownership of national television market

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission voted 2-1 on Thursday to remove a rule that prevented a single company from owning TV stations that reach over 39% of the U.S. households. The cap remained the same for over 20 years, and the FCC has granted few exceptions, preventing huge broadcast mergers. The FCC said its decision will allow broadcast media to better compete with streaming services, which reach roughly 80% of U.S. adults without restrictions.

The FCC would replace the cap with a case-by-case review, it said. Its review process would account for the importance of localism, viewpoint diversity, and competition, it said. The commission also argued that, while the 39% cap was codified in federal law, the commission retained the authority to change it. Congress could direct the FCC to change its rules, but had never withdrawn the commission’s power to do so, according to the FCC statement.

Which FCC commissioners voted for and against the change? Chairman Brendan Carr and Commissioner Olivia Trusty, both Republicans, voted to remove the cap. Carr wrote in a recent op-ed that local TV stations would be better able to compete with national streaming distributors, leading to more local news and more confidence in media reporting.

Democratic Commissioner Anna Gomez, who voted against the change, described it as unlawful and outside the FCC’s authority. Some Republican lawmakers and former commissioners agreed with her, she said. The change didn’t take pressure off of local news stations, she argued: It left them vulnerable to big broadcasters instead of big digital streaming companies, she said.

Dig deeper: Read my report on the FCC’s recent decision to ban new imports of foreign-made robots.