With Twist on 11.4/33.6, KHOU can have the subchannels in SD 16:9 widescreen instead of 4:3.Twist launched this morning on 11.4, which is physical 33.6 (KTBU.) The original 11.4 on KHOU is gone; Quest had been simulcast on 11.4 and 55.1 for the past year.
Wouldn't surprise me if True Crime and Circle get moved over to KTBU once the contracts with VietSky (55.2) and Nacion (55.3) expire. The RF33 signal is better than RF11 so it wouldn't shock me if Tegna eventually sells off the legacy RF11 license and transmitter facility...that is the long term plan with Tegna's WFAA in DFW, which recently acquired KMPX as a simulcast.
Of course there will be further shuffling once ATSC 3.0 launches in the Houston market.
Meanwhile 13.3 is now This-TV, and QVC has popped up on 13.4. Still nothing new on 2.4.
Edit to add: Allen Media Group’s This TV Adds ABC O&Os
Also: Tegna Debuts Female-Focused Twist Multicast Network
There is no way Tegna will "turn in" the license of KTBU. They paid $10M for it, and it adds future programming capacity and is a better signal than KHOU on RF11. If RF33 becomes the primary home for the main KHOU programming, they can always swap call letters. This is the long term plan with Tegna's WFAA and KMPX in DFW.More likely KTBU's license will be turned in and KHOU will apply for a frequency change to 33 on its current license.
The ATSC 3.0 transition is moving ahead in many markets around the country. The pandemic has slowed things down a bit, but the transition is not being "cancelled". It was already a given that it would take quite a few years. Broadcasters are already looking towards increased programming capacity, and monetizing new types of media.The legacy RF11 transmitter could be used for ATSC 3.0, but interest is waning on another transition. (No TVs are on the market with ATSC 3.0 tuners and the pandemic has delayed/cancelled the transition.)
Meanwhile Shop LC, which had been on 11.8, has moved to 11.2. Bounce, which had been on 11.2, has now moved to 49.2, replacing Court TV, which is still on 39.5.11.8 says Twist is coming January 3rd