08/02/1996
The Telecommunications Act of 1996 was the first significant overhaul of U.S. telecommunications law in more than sixty years, amending the Communications Act of 1934.
The Act, signed by President Bill Clinton, represented a major change in American telecommunication law, since it was the first time that the internet was included in broadcasting and spectrum allotment. One of the most controversial titles was Title 3 ("Cable Services"), which allowed for media cross-ownership.
According to the FCC, the goal of the law was to "let anyone enter any communications business - to let any communications business compete in any market against any other." The legislation's primary goal was deregulation of the broadcasting market.