Cumulus, Zimmer Urge FCC to End Radio Ownership Caps

RADIO ONLINE | Tuesday, September 15, 2026 | 2:43pm CT

Cumulus Media and Zimmer Radio

Cumulus Media and Zimmer Radio of Mid-Missouri are urging the Federal Communications Commission to eliminate its local radio ownership limits, arguing in separate ex parte meetings that rules unchanged since 1996 no longer reflect today's competitive audio and advertising marketplace.

The filings come as the FCC conducts its 2022 Quadrennial Regulatory Review, which includes consideration of the Local Radio Ownership Rule. The Commission opened the current proceeding to determine whether its broadcast ownership rules remain necessary in the public interest because of competition and whether they should be retained, modified or repealed.

Cumulus Executive Vice President of Corporate Strategy & Development Collin Jones met September 9 with advisors to FCC Chairman Brendan Carr and Commissioner Olivia Trusty, and September 11 with Commissioner Anna Gomez's Chief of Staff and Legal Advisor Deena Shetler. Jones told the Commission there is an "urgent need" to eliminate the local radio ownership rule.

Cumulus argued that while ownership caps have remained unchanged for 30 years, broadcasters now compete with streaming music, podcasts, satellite radio, social media and digital advertising platforms that did not exist when the current limits were established. The company said the restrictions hamper stations' ability to compete for audiences and advertising revenue and to maintain local service.

The broadcaster said allowing groups to achieve greater local scale would provide economies of scale, enabling them to spread operating and local programming costs across more stations while offering a broader range of programming. Cumulus also argued that current limits discourage investment in radio and called on the FCC to complete the review and eliminate the caps "as quickly as possible."

Zimmer Radio President John P. Zimmer made a similar case during September 9 meetings with Carr and his Legal Advisor Allison Howell, Trusty Senior Legal Advisor Marcus Maher and, separately, Shetler in a meeting accompanied by NAB representatives Rick Kaplan and Jerianne Timmerman. Zimmer urged the Commission to repeal the local radio ownership rules.

Zimmer, which owns ten stations in four Missouri markets, argued that competitive changes have particularly affected small and mid-sized markets. He cited competition from Spotify, YouTube, SiriusXM, Pandora, Amazon Music and Apple Music for listening, along with the shift of local advertising dollars toward digital platforms.

Zimmer also maintained that greater local scale would allow smaller broadcasters to spread programming costs across additional outlets and use those stations to offer different formats rather than duplicate existing programming. He said that could increase both programming variety and broadcasters' ability to attract listeners and advertisers.

Supporting materials submitted by Zimmer included a BIA Advisory Services study examining radio format diversity following the Telecommunications Act of 1996. The study's 2024 regression analysis found a statistically significant positive relationship between greater local ownership concentration and programming variety.

The BIA report concluded that programming variety increased substantially following the 1996 ownership changes, particularly in small and medium markets, but that growth slowed or reversed in some markets after 2006. The study argued that further relaxation of the ownership rules could lead to additional programming choices for listeners.