PCV notes that the FCC is overwhelmingly likely to side with Sinclair, having already rolled back an Obama-era rule that would have blocked the acquisition outright.
August 23, 2017
‘The future of local television is threatened unless TV station owners are allowed to bulk up to compete more effectively with MVPDs and digital competitors. That’s what Sinclair Broadcast Groupis telling the FCC in its reply to the flood of comments and petitions opposing Sinclair’s pending $3.9 billion buyout of Tribune Media.
Today is the deadline for Sinclair to respond to more than 1,000 comments that poured in to the FCC from individuals and competitors urging the commission to block the deal. The union of Sinclair and Tribune would create a broadcast TV behemoth with more than 200 stations reaching 72% of U.S. TV households.’