How the Department of Justice, Federal Trade Commission and Federal Communications Commission Regulate Media Company Acquisitions

[Commentary] Regulating concentration of control in the mass media and related technology companies is a never-ending chore for the Department of Justice (DOJ), the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). This is the first of a two-part discussion of the regulation of media ownership. It will deal with the way in which the three agencies deal with proposed acquisition of media properties. (This blog previously visited this question here.) The second part will address the FCC’s specific rules establishing limits on how many broadcast properties one owner can control and the ongoing (and seemingly endless) litigation surrounding those rules. Industries within the FCC’s jurisdiction and their Congressional supporters frequently object to the fact that they are subject to two different enforcement schemes. They argue that the antitrust laws provide sufficient protection for the public and that the FCC’s review of media transactions is burdensome and duplicative, and thus should be repealed or circumscribed. However, given the important impact of these companies on the diversity of voices in the media, the pace of broadband deployment and the evolution of digital technologies, it seems unlikely that the FCC’s role will be limited in the foreseeable future.