Under current ownership rules, there must be at least three separately owned commercial media providers, in TV, radio and newspapers, in addition to the BBC, in a given local area.
Lord Carter now plans to kick off a review of this and other media ownership laws. He has invited interested parties to take part in an "exploratory review" across the regional media sector.
Santha Rasaiah, political, editorial and regulatory affairs director at the regional publishers' association the Newspaper Society, said: "Further reform is necessary to allow greater flexibility for newspaper transfers and mergers, ending the overly onerous, uncertain and restrictive regime, which obstructs supportive ownership changes."
Most publishers were broadly happy with Carter's plan to review rules. Carolyn McCall, chief executive, Guardian Media Group, said the company was "pleased" with the report. But Sly Bailey, chief executive, Trinity Mirror, pushed for the Government to move quickly to complete the review, warning that "time is running out" and that consolidation among local newspaper groups offers the "only chance of survival" for some players.
In response, Carter said: "We have given the industry an accelerated opportunity to make the case. We'd rather they concentrated on that than complaining about the process."
With ITV set to pull back on the majority of its local news provision in the next few years, Carter's interim Digital Britain report proposes that regional publishers, supported by public funds, could play a greater role in local news provision.
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