FCC Passes CALM Act To Eliminate Loud Commercials

Have you ever been watching a television program at one volume and then a commercial comes on at a much higher volume? Responding to years of complaints, the Federal Communications Commission has taken steps to finally end this annoying practice causing us to reach for the remote control to turn down the volume every time there's a commercial break.

"The FCC today took a major step toward eliminating one of the most persistent problems of the television age -– loud commercials," the agency said in a statement.

The FCC on Tuesday passed the Commercial Advertisement Loudness Mitigation Act (CALM). The act requires commercials and entertainment and news programming to be kept at the same volume. The rules also require that the volume for promotional spots be equal to the shows around it.

Distributors such as Time Warner Cable and Comcast and broadcasters will be responsible for making sure commercial volume is not excessive. The rule goes into effect next December.