Beaumont-Port Arthur NBC Affiliation Mystery Solved

[dx7]

The mystery of which channel will carry NBC in Beaumont-Port Arthur beginning January 1, 2009 has been solved.

Ever since KBTV Channel 4 announced that it was ending its 51-year affilaition with NBC for Fox effective January 1, there was speculation about which local channel would pick up NBC.

The winner? Apparently KBMT-TV. the long-time ABC affiliate.

Although the Beaumont Enterprise article is - as usual - confusing, it appears KBMT will still air its ABC programming on its main digital channel (which it has aired in analog since 1961), it also will offer viewers the opportunity to watch NBC on its HD-2 channel.

Link: http://www.beaumontenterprise.com/n...n_to_carrying_abc_programming_11-25-2008.html

 

[azumanga]

Of course, it creates a new mystery -- what about KUIL?

 

[arnoldevns]

My question is whether or not KBMT will run HD on both networks. KXII runs HD on both CBS and Fox and an SD version of MyNetwork TV on their DTV station. I have never seen how the HD looks with two HD streams on one channel, but I'm told it can pixilate pretty bad.
Even if they don't run HD on their broadcast channel, I would hope they'll make an HD version of both networks available to the satellite and local cable outlets.

 

[intx]

KUIL will likely go the indy route ... but good luck with that in this economy. There really aren't any other options, unless they go with something obscure like RTN, .2 or This TV. My guess is they either a.) throw in the towel completely to focus all their efforts on KVHP or b.) end up with a sked full of infomercials. Either way, the revenue stream dries up Jan. 1.

 

[newsmark]

Filling the program day won't be THAT big of a deal for KUIL. Fox only programs 2 hours of their day. Of course, those are the all-important prime time hours, but that shouldn't be the end of the world.

 

[azumanga]

Though chances are that KUIL is on their own to fill the two hours, as the Big Four, CW and MNTV are already taken in the market. The only network without an affiliate here is Ion. (Apart from those that specialise in LPTVs, such as America One.)

 

[intx]

Yes, but ... those 2 hours account for a large chunk (read: almost all) of their revenue. That's a big problem. Replacing "Idol" with a judge show or sitcom reruns can't compare.

 

[bpatrick]

Someone mentioned KXII. Why doesn't that
station broadcast CBS on 12-1, Fox on 12-2,
and ABC on 12-3? I have heard of this being
done (Charlottesville, VA, for example). This
way viewers in Ada/Ardmore wouldn't need ABC
from Dallas or Oklahoma City.

And is it official that KBMT is going to put ABC
on 12-1 and NBC on 12-2? I'm a little surprised
that the FCC would allow KBMT to carry two
networks when there are enough stations in
Beaumont that each of the big four could have
an affiliate, as they already have.

 

[txchipk]

And is it official that KBMT is going to put ABC
on 12-1 and NBC on 12-2? I'm a little surprised
that the FCC would allow KBMT to carry two
networks when there are enough stations in
Beaumont that each of the big four could have
an affiliate, as they already have.

Yes, KBMT has had that on their website that ABC will be on 12.1 and NBC on 12.2. There is no FCC issue -- Beaumont/Port Arthur only had 3 full-power signals. There are numerous other TV markets where one of the "big 3" is now on a digital subchannel regardless of whether or not there are some available LPTVs:

Yuma-El Centro: KECY-DT Fox/MNTV on 48.1, ABC "ABC5" on 48.2, Telemundo KESE-LP on 48.3
Bowling Green: WNKY-DT NBC on 16.1, CBS on 16.2
Alexandria: KALB-DT NBC on 35.1, CBS "CBS Alexandria" on 35.2
Clarksburg: WBOY-DT NBC on 52.1, ABC on 52.2
Wheeling: WTRF-DT CBS on 32.1, Fox/MNTV "Fox Ohio Valley" on 32.3, ABC "ABC Ohio Valley" on 32.3
Quincy: KHQA-DT CBS on 29.1, ABC "ABC7.2" on 29.2
Elmira: WENY-DT ABC; to add a digital CBS affiliate in 2009

The list grows really large if you generated the list of all markets where Fox or the CW is on a digital subchannel...

 

[arnoldevns]

Someone mentioned KXII. Why doesn't that
station broadcast CBS on 12-1, Fox on 12-2,
and ABC on 12-3? I have heard of this being
done (Charlottesville, VA, for example). This
way viewers in Ada/Ardmore wouldn't need ABC
from Dallas or Oklahoma City.

You've kind of answered your own question. The DFW ABC affiliate has had strong viewership in the southern part of that market for decades. It's where most of the viewers are in the Ada/Ardmore/Sherman/Denison market. Prying viewers away from WFAA would be a difficult task. Just ask KTEN. They tried for years to win over some of those viewers as a dual affiliate and always got killed in the southern part of the market. They've become much stronger since they dropped down to just NBC on their main channel. I suppose KTEN could try again with a subchannel, but only if they managed to force WFAA off of the cable systems in Grayson County. That would really hack off people in the market though.

 

[TexasTom]

And is it official that KBMT is going to put ABC
on 12-1 and NBC on 12-2? I'm a little surprised
that the FCC would allow KBMT to carry two
networks when there are enough stations in
Beaumont that each of the big four could have
an affiliate, as they already have.

As already noted, there is no such rule today -- although even if there were, it wouldn't apply to the Beaumont/Port Arthur market since the outgoing Fox affiliate is a low powered station. While there is a fourth full power station in the market, that station is a religious broadcaster that isn't interested in carrying any of the major secular networks.

As an aside, a rule did once exist regarding stations affiliating with multiple networks when there were "unaffiliated" stations in the same market. The rule was put in place in the sixties in order to protect UHF stations in markets with one or two VHF stations. The rule was put in place to prevent all three networks from offering first choice to the VHF station(s), leaving the UHF station with the leftovers and rejects that the VHF(s) didn't want. The rule was eliminated as irrelevant sometime in the past fifteen years (I can't remember when) -- but if it did still exist, it would have forced NBC to offer it's programming to the UHF religious station before it could sign an affiliation agreement with KBMT. Of course, the religious station would have rejected the programming, so the end effect would still be the same as it is in the absence of this rule -- at least in Beaumount/Port Arthur.

 

[tripinva]

Actually, KITU couldn't air it. The station is licensed as a non-commercial station. Airing any NBC programming would be in violation of their license from the FCC.

- Trip

 

[fybush]

Actually, KITU couldn't air it. The station is licensed as a non-commercial station. Airing any NBC programming would be in violation of their license from the FCC.

- Trip

They can air all the NBC programming they want - just not any of the commercials within the programs.

I suspect Trip's too young to remember the days before closed captioning, when many PBS stations carried the ABC Evening News with open captions, delayed several hours (to 11:30 PM, at least in my market, back when) so the captions could be superimposed...

 

[Kent]

Just ask KTEN. They tried for years to win over some of those viewers as a dual affiliate and always got killed in the southern part of the market. They've become much stronger since they dropped down to just NBC on their main channel.

I remember KTEN from '96. Talk about confusing! At times, they seemed more like a Fox affiliate than anything else, especially during the football season! I can see why they got killed so badly trying that.

I suppose KTEN could try again with a subchannel, but only if they managed to force WFAA off of the cable systems in Grayson County. That would really hack off people in the market though.

That would probably be a pretty tough thing to do at this point anyway. Although one can achieve the same goal through retrans consent, I seem to remember hearing that the FCC decided its must-carry rule didn't apply to digital subchannels.

 

[tripinva]

They can air all the NBC programming they want - just not any of the commercials within the programs.

I suspect Trip's too young to remember the days before closed captioning, when many PBS stations carried the ABC Evening News with open captions, delayed several hours (to 11:30 PM, at least in my market, back when) so the captions could be superimposed...

I sincerely doubt NBC would allow their ads to be cut out.

Open captioning? What's that?

- Trip

 

[fybush]

They can air all the NBC programming they want - just not any of the commercials within the programs.

I suspect Trip's too young to remember the days before closed captioning, when many PBS stations carried the ABC Evening News with open captions, delayed several hours (to 11:30 PM, at least in my market, back when) so the captions could be superimposed...

I sincerely doubt NBC would allow their ads to be cut out.

Open captioning? What's that?

- Trip

Youngster! ;D

And you know, the way NBC is going these days, I half believe they'd take a noncomm clearance just to stay on the air in some markets...

 

[arnoldevns]

Just ask KTEN. They tried for years to win over some of those viewers as a dual affiliate and always got killed in the southern part of the market. They've become much stronger since they dropped down to just NBC on their main channel.

I remember KTEN from '96. Talk about confusing! At times, they seemed more like a Fox affiliate than anything else, especially during the football season! I can see why they got killed so badly trying that.

I suppose KTEN could try again with a subchannel, but only if they managed to force WFAA off of the cable systems in Grayson County. That would really hack off people in the market though.

That would probably be a pretty tough thing to do at this point anyway. Although one can achieve the same goal through retrans consent, I seem to remember hearing that the FCC decided its must-carry rule didn't apply to digital subchannels.

The triple affiliation was quite confusing. I think that's why KTEN highlighted the name "K-TEN" much more than any of their network names at the time. The biggest selling point to the triple affiliation was the fact that they aired all the Dallas Cowboys games for several seasons starting in 1994 or so. I believe they were the only station in the country to do that. It was a good time to do that because that's when the Cowboys won 3 Super Bowls.

 

[bpatrick]

I wasn't aware that the dual-affiliation prohibition was
no longer in effect. I do know it came about because
WTVD/11 Raleigh/Durham and WAPI (now WVTM)/13
Birmingham were getting first call on CBS and NBC programs,
leaving the castoffs to Channel 28 in Raleigh/Durham and
Channel 42 in Birmingham. WTVD took CBS (it's an ABC o&o
now); WAPI/WVTM took NBC, supposedly because the CEO
of then-owner Newhouse couldn't stand Bill Paley.

However, I do know that CBS afffiliated with a low-power
station in Wilmington, NC: WILM-LP/10. Its previous affiliate,
WSFX/26, had gone to Fox (I think CBS dumped it for abysmal
ratings), and when this LP came on it got the CBS affiliation.
I suppose NBC could do the same thing in Beaumont, but then
again...so it looks like KBMT will have both ABC and NBC.

 

[intx]

Has anyone seen or heard anything about the programming KBMT has lined up for the daytime hours on its new NBC subchannel? Most of the talk shows and court shows appear to be locked up, so a heavy dose of syndicated drama and sitcom reruns appears likely, unless they do double-runs of some of KBMT's talk shows or -- gag -- go heavy on infomercials.

 

[w9wi]

Open captioning? What's that?

(open captioning is the practice of putting the output of a caption decoder on the air -- broadcasting the captions to all viewers, whether they have a caption decoder or not.)