FCC’s Powell Clears 32 Radio Mergers

The Federal Communications Commission, working its way through a backlog, cleared 32 radio mergers after determining the deals warranted no further review. It’s one of the first major moves by new Chairman Michael Powell, appointed by President Bush to replace Democrat William Kennard, to act more swiftly on pending matters. Powell also told a meeting of broadcasters that the FCC will find it hard to defend U.S. limits on ownership of broadcast stations after a court overturned restrictions for cable television. A U.S. appeals court on March 2 struck down an FCC rule that barred cable companies from reaching more than 30% of U.S. households. FCC rules limit a single company to reaching 35% of U.S. viewers through its own TV stations, and ban a newspaper from owing a TV station in the same market, or a broadcaster from owning a paper. The 32 mergers cleared were cases that had been “flagged” by the commission for closer competitive analysis.

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