May 2018

Some high-profile broadcast groups have been telling the Federal Communications Commission they would be OK with moving the 39% national ownership cap to 50% from 39%, rather than eliminating it altogether.  In filings at the FCC, Hearst Television, Scripps Media, Raycom Media, Gray Television, Graham Media, Quincy Media, Dispatch Broadcast Group and Morgan Murphy Media told the FCC they can support both a cap at 50% and eliminating the UHF discount for future broadcast groups, so long as current groups that would be over that 50% cap without the discount are grandfathered.  They say that "

Pirate TV boxes that falsely display the Federal Communications Commission logo should be removed from Amazon and eBay, said FCC Commissioner Michael O'Rielly.  Commissioner O'Rielly wrote a letter to the Amazon and eBay CEOs asking them to crack down on set-top boxes that violate FCC rules. Amazon quickly responded, saying that it already takes steps to prevent sale of these products but that it is willing to step up enforcement if any such devices are still for sale on Amazon.

Large internet companies are pushing back against tougher election advertising regulations, asking the Federal Election Commission (FEC) to allow for some flexibility in how they disclose funding sources for political ads. The Internet Association (IA), a trade group representing the biggest web-based technology companies, said that the same disclosure requirements imposed on television and radio ads don’t work well for the internet.