Republican Upton to FCC: No Conditions on NBC-Comcast Merger

The next House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman, Fred Upton (R-Mich.), has urged the Federal Communications Commission to remove any planned conditions on the approval of a merger between NBC Universal and Comcast. Upton sent out a letter on Friday asking the FCC not to impose net-neutrality conditions on Comcast as part of the proposed acquisition of NBC Universal. Other Democratic lawmakers have urged the opposite, but Upton chairs the committee that oversees the telecommunications industry.

"I will be troubled if it appears that the Commission is using this transaction to accomplish broader, partisan objectives that it does not have the policy support to impose industry-wide, that it might not have the authority to pursue were it not presented with a license transaction, and that the parties cannot object to without risking their propose endeavor," Upton wrote.

Upton also urged the FCC not to let third parties or groups influence the process:

"This is a time when parties come out of the woodwork seeking leverage," Upton said. "Do not let opportunistic competitors or special interest groups undermine your regulatory process by using the transaction review as a vehicle to implement their industry-wide policy wish lists or unwarranted conditions."

During the 2009 - 2010 election cycle Upton raised a total of $71,850 from the entertainment industry (TV/Movies/Music) - $11,350 from individuals and $60,500 from political action committees (according to OpenSecrets.org).

Source: The Hill