• B&C, Thursday, December 3, 2009 10:55 PM

The proposed Comcast-NBC merger faces lots of criticism in Washington. First from the Free Press, the Consumer Federation of America, and unions worried about job losses, but also potential competitors, including smaller and midsized cable operators. It will be the first media merger to come under scrutiny by the new Democratic majority of the FCC, a Federal Trade Commission under Democratic management, and a Justice Department with a charter from the Obama administration for more muscular merger reviews.

The FCC has a self-imposed 180-day shot clock on merger reviews, but that is only a target, not a deadline. It could stretch beyond that, particularly if the FCC is planning any media ownership rule modifications--as part of its quadrennial review--that could implicate the deal.

Some of the concerns: preservation and enrichment of the output of local news, local public affairs, and other public interest programming; an expanded commitment to children's programming, content ratings information for parents; and at least 75% of Comcast's On Demand programming will be available at no extra charge.

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