ownership rules

Regulation The change, allowing the agency to approve mergers exceeding the 39% cap on a case-by-case basis, is likely to face legal challenges

LeGeyt and others reiterated their support for an FCC proposal to remove a rigid 39% ownership cap on station groups

Vote on replacing TV station ownership rule will be accompanied by the Commissioners considering plans to opening up more unlicensed spectrum and other issues.

If the judge issues a preliminary injunction blocking the integration of Nexstar and Tegna, the trial and appeals could eat up most of 2026 and 2027

The station group argued that the FCC can strengthen access to free broadcast sports by ending ownership caps and setting a firm date for the ATSC 3.0 transition

Association ties sports rights to ‘outdated’ ownership rules

On March 4 they will head to Capitol Hill to advocate for ownership rule reforms, AM radio and the future of local broadcasting

The study filed with the FCC found that in `the majority of duopolies, triopolies, and quadropolies’ station groups offered `essentially the same local news’

The transfers had been opposed by DirecTV who contended they would increase retrans fees and programming prices for consumers

Nexstar spent $3.2 million lobbying the FCC in 2025 on various issues while Sinclair spent $800,000, according a new report from OpenSecrets