In a split vote of 3-2 the FCC voted Thursday to open a review into Commission’s national broadcast audience reach cap.
Current rules prevent a single TV broadcaster from owning stations that reach more than 39 percent of households nationwide.
The FCC is considering whether the cap, which was set by Congress, should be modified, kept in place, or eliminated altogether.
The notice of proposed rulemaking also asks whether the UHF discount, which lets stations count fewer households toward their ownership limits and was reinstated by the Commission earlier this year, should be eliminated.
“我们需要全面了解国家上限规则，包括UHF折扣。由于视频编程选项的爆炸爆炸以及自2004年上次考虑的上次考虑以来，市场发生了很大变化。因此，我们需要检查我们的规则是否应该相应地改变。”主席Ajit Pai说。
专员杰西卡·罗森韦尔（Jessica Rosenworcel）和米尼农·克莱伯恩（Mignon Clyburn）也进行了反对投票，他引起了人们对竞争的一部分担忧。
“Localism, diversity and competition are bedrock principles of our national media policy, and indeed our democracy,” Clyburn said in her dissent. “Giving a single broadcaster the means to buy up enough local stations to exceed the 39 percent cap is inconsistent with the statute and must be rejected.”
Commissioner Michael O’Rielly and Brendan Carr voted to approve the notice of proposed rulemaking, though O’Rielly took issue with whether the FCC has authority to take action on the cap put in place by Congress.
The item made no tentative conclusions and no date was set for any action to be taken.
对上限的规则更改可能是Sinclair广播集团提议购买Tribune Media的关键，因为合并后的公司将拥有233个站，并达到该国72％。
Filed Under:行业法规
