FCC Clears Modified Sinclair-Allbritton Deal

The Federal Communications Commission on Thursday approved Sinclair Broadcast Group Inc.'s $985 million purchase of TV stations owned by Allbritton Communications Co., clearing the way for the deal to close, according to wsj.com.

The FCC's approval, which comes 10 days after the Justice Department signaled its approval for the deal, followed a number of concessions made by Sinclair to resolve regulatory issues.

Sinclair had already agreed to sell Allbritton's Harrisburg, Pa., ABC affiliate to Media General resolving Justice Department concerns. Sinclair won approval from the FCC after agreeing to restructure the deal to resolve the FCC's concerns about so-called sidecar arrangements, which broadcasters use to sidestep the FCC's limit on owning one of the top-four broadcast stations in a local market. Sinclair has become the largest TV station owner and operator in the U.S. in part through the use of such arrangements.

To gain approval for the Allbritton deal, Sinclair agreed to abandon proposed sidecar arrangements with two stations in Birmingham, Ala. (WCFT and WJSU) and one in Charleston, S.C. (WCIV). The programming previously carried on those stations will be broadcast on subchannels owned by Sinclair in both markets, and the station licenses will return to the FCC.

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