FCC Allows CBS to Buy American Radio

The Federal Communications Commission approved CBS Corp.’s $1.6-billion acquisition of American Radio Systems Corp. after requiring only modest divestitures. The FCC told CBS to divest radio stations in the San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose market within six months. CBS must also complete the sale of seven stations in the Boston, St. Louis and Baltimore markets as required by the Justice Department when it approved the deal in March. Following the merger, CBS will become one of the largest radio operators in the country with more than 170 stations. The divestitures prevent CBS from violating FCC rules prohibiting a single company from owning too many stations in one market. The FCC also granted CBS a series of temporary waivers allowing ownership of television and radio stations in the same markets while the agency works to overhaul its so-called cross-ownership rules. Last September, CBS, then called Westinghouse Electric Corp., agreed to buy Boston-based American Radio for $1.6 billion in cash and the assumption of $1 billion of debt.