Earlier this week, the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) adopted a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (“NPRM”) that proposes to clarify existing definitions in the FCC’s foreign ownership rules and codify certain practices regarding the filing requirements for, and the agency’s processing of, foreign ownership petitions (Petitions for Declaratory Ruling, or “PDRs”). These changes generally seek to provide filers with additional guidance when seeking FCC approval for complex foreign ownership structures and include several updates that, if adopted, would modify the standard filing practices for foreign ownership-related PDRs.
The FCC’s filing requirements for approval of foreign ownership in certain FCC licensees are nuanced and typically result in a challenging filing process, particularly when the proposed ownership structure of a licensee is complex. The following is a high-level summary of the FCC’s current foreign ownership rules and filing requirements and what the NPRM proposes to change.Continue Reading FCC Proposes Changes to Foreign Ownership Rules and Related Filings Processes