Generally speaking, "TV deregulation" refers to the major shift in the federal government's ideology and policy regarding regulatory control of the television industry that occurred from the 1970's through the '90s. Before deregulation, broadcasters were considered "public trustees" of the nation's airwaves, charged with providing a wide selection of programming in the "public interest." Proponents of deregulation, however, saw the industry as a purely commercial enterprise in which government had a minimal role in broadcasting's chief goal: the maximization of profits. With the removal of many FCC rules for the TV industry, the highly lucrative business became somewhat self-regulated.
The most significant areas of deregulation included the extending of TV license terms from three years to five (1981); increasing the number of television stations held by any one owner from seven in 1981 to 12 (1985); the end of federal guidelines for the percentage of non-entertainment programming (1985); the end of license guidelines for the amount of advertising carried (1985); abolishing the political "equal time" mandate of the "fairness doctrine" (1987); and the gradual deregulation of cable TV, which began in 1983 and continued through the following decade.
TV deregulation in the United States has inspired similar moves in other countries. As the costs of television rise, many developing and developed countries have supplemented state television services with competing cable and traditional TV outlets that operate on the commercial sponsorship model. Though advertising dollars have expanded TV programming in these countries, the commercial programming tends to be more entertainment-oriented than of the public service type. As in the United States, public programming now must compete with commercial stations by opting for more entertainment-oriented shows and less news and analysis.
The trend toward increased commercialization of TV because of deregulation in global markets has proved to be a mixed bag for the U.S. television industry. According to the "Canadian Journal of Communication," as the world's appetite for commercial, entertainment-type programming grows, home-grown productions are increasingly replacing U.S. shows on the world's TV sets. New cable and satellite distribution technologies have helped to develop new regional markets where domestically produced programs have supplanted U.S. shows in popularity.