Media Bureau Workshops to Begin Ownership Review

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The FCC's Media Bureau will initiate a series of workshops as a first step in beginning the Commission's 2010 quadrennial review of its media ownership rules, as required by the Telecom Act of 1996 every four years. The agency will review its ownership rules to determine whether any of the current regulations are necessary in the public interest. Under Section 202(h), the Commission "shall repeal or modify any regulation it determines to be no longer in the public interest."

The purpose of the workshops initially will be to receive public input on the scope and methodology of the proceeding and later to help build an analytical and empirical foundation for a Commission decision. The forums will cover a wide variety of topics that the Commission expects to consider in its review, including the state of the current media marketplace and the role of the media ownership rules in that marketplace.

The Commission says it will seek viewpoints and information from a broad range of experts, consumers, public interest and trade associations, labor unions, media industry representatives, both traditional and new, and other interested persons.

The Bureau will hold its first workshop in the series in early November, 2009. This initial forum will provide an opportunity for academics, industry stakeholders, and the public interest community to present their views on the framework the Commission should use for conducting its ownership review.