ASHINGTON, Sept. 12 (AP) — Federal regulators started a review today of media ownership rules that could lead to major changes for newspapers and radio and television stations.
The Federal Communications Commission voted 4 to 0 to begin reviewing rules to make them more consistent and able to survive legal challenges.
The chairman, Michael K. Powell, called the examination "the most comprehensive undertaking in the area of media ownership in the commission's history." Mr. Powell said the agency had failed to keep up with changes in technology and the media marketplace. An overhaul was "long overdue," he said.
Earlier this year, a federal appeals court rejected two rules, sending them back to the government. The rules involved restrictions on the national reach of companies that own multiple television stations and companies that want to own two television stations in the same market.
Two other rules to be examined concern the number of television and radio stations a company can own in one market and a ban on mergers among the four major television networks.
"The deeper you dig into our rules, the more confused you become," a commissioner, Kathleen Q. Abernathy, said. "We have an obligation to reconcile our ownership rules."
The agency is already looking at a restriction that prohibits one company from owning a broadcast station and a newspaper in the same market, as well as a rule that limits radio station ownership. It has said its combined study and any potential changes to the rules are expected to be completed by spring.
In addition to the review, the agency announced that it was seeking public comment on how to proceed with bidding for wireless licenses.
Under one proposal offered by regulators, several major wireless carriers could avoid paying $16.3 billion that they bid for airwaves licenses — deals now snarled in legal challenges.
The options being considered include allowing the companies to cancel some or all of their applications for the licenses and refunding about $490 million held by the government as a deposit. The agency has already refunded about $2.8 billion in down payments.
The proposal came after many requests from wireless carriers, who said the hampered bids were making things worse amid the struggling economy.
The F.C.C. also decided to begin reviewing its policies on telemarketing, including whether to create a national "do not call" list of people who do not want to receive sales calls. The agency last considered creating such a list a decade ago.
