Eight states asked a US judge on Friday to issue a temporary restraining order to stop a $3.5bn merger of Nexstar Media Group and Tegna.On Thursday, the local broadcast station owners received merger approval from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and the US Department of Justice and said they had closed the transaction two hours after approval, the day after the states filed their lawsuit.The states argue that the deal, which would create the largest broadcast station group in the US, would “put ...

Core Viewpoint - The media industry is experiencing significant turmoil due to ongoing negotiations and conflicts between traditional broadcasters and streaming platforms, with the FCC's involvement potentially reshaping the landscape of local broadcasting and retransmission consent rights [4][12][14]. Group 1: Industry Conflicts - Fubo TV, owned by Disney, has removed NBC and all NBCU cable networks from its service, highlighting ongoing conflicts in the media landscape [3]. - The broadcasting industry is facing fragmentation as major networks and local affiliates struggle for control over negotiations with streaming platforms, leading to a division among broadcasters [9][10]. - The Coalition for Local News, representing broadcast affiliates, is in conflict with the Preserve Viewer Choice coalition, which is controlled by major broadcast networks, over negotiation rights with streaming services [10][11]. Group 2: Regulatory Involvement - The FCC has initiated a proceeding to explore market dynamics between national programmers and their affiliates, which may influence future negotiations and the structure of local broadcasting [14]. - The FCC's inquiry addresses various issues, including the ability of local stations to negotiate directly with streaming platforms and the potential undue influence of networks over their agreements with affiliates [14][15]. Group 3: Historical Context - The broadcasting landscape has evolved from a time when local broadcasters had significant control and revenue from retransmission consent, to a current scenario where streaming platforms negotiate directly with networks, sidelining local affiliates [6][8]. - The introduction of retransmission consent in the 1990s was a response to the growing competition from cable, allowing local broadcasters to negotiate for compensation from multichannel video providers (MVPDs) [7].