WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Thursday declined to address whether the government still has the authority to regulate indecency on broadcast television, but it ruled in favor of two broadcasters who had faced potential fines for programs featuring cursing and nudity on narrow grounds.

The court ruled that the broadcasters had not been given fair notice of a new Federal Communications Commission policy. It left open the question of whether changes in the media landscape have undermined the rationales for limiting their free-speech rights in ways the First Amendment would not tolerate in other settings. Cable television and the Internet are not subject to government regulation of ostensibly indecent material.

The case, Federal Communications Commission v. Fox Television Stations, No. 10-1293, was making a return appearance at the court. In 2009, the justices also passed up an opportunity to examine the First Amendment issues raised by the case.

The case arose from the broadcast of fleeting expletives by celebrities on awards shows on Fox and partial nudity on the police drama “NYPD Blue” on ABC. Justice Anthony M. Kennedy, writing for seven justices, said the broadcasters must win, but only because the commission had changed the rules in the middle of the game.