Ten Network boss Hamish McLennan wants all media ownership laws scrapped and has warned against piecemeal reform in the sector.
Speaking after the struggling broadcaster unveiled a $264 million half year loss, Mr McLennan said the government should urgently consider overhauling media reform laws, which he said were outdated and ineffective.
But he said any changes to the law should abolish all ownership restrictions and that a partial reform would only make the situation worse for media companies.
Current laws prevent media groups from reaching more than 75 per cent of the population and from owning a radio station, newspaper and TV station in the same city.
"Piecemeal reform, such as only removing the 75 per cent reach rule, will make the situation worse," he said.
"Giving some companies the opportunity to pursue consolidation while continuing to restrain others will exacerbate the impact of existing rules."
Mr McLennan also called on the government to cut television licence fees, which he said were among the highest in the world.
He said TV networks were currently forced to pay out 4.5 per cent of their gross revenue in licence fees, which put them at a disadvantage when competing for advertising revenue against multinationals earning advertising revenue in Australia, such as Google and Facebook.
"(It) is simply unreasonable and puts Australia's free to air networks at a competitive disadvantage compared to the global behemoths that we are now operating against and fighting for advertising revenue."
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