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The Nations CHANNEL 69
- Thread starter Madmansam
- Start date
...Wikipedia (for what it's worth) lists six full-power stations on Channel 69 in the United States:
KSWB San Diego (branded as "Fox 5")
WAMI Miami (TeleFutura)
WDTI Indianapolis (Daystar)
WFMZ Allentown/Philadelphia (independent)
WPXQ Providence (ion)
WUPA Atlanta (The CW)
...and, if you're a completist, there's also the following full power Channel 69 in Canada:
CJMT Toronto ("Omni.2," independent)
KSWB San Diego (branded as "Fox 5")
WAMI Miami (TeleFutura)
WDTI Indianapolis (Daystar)
WFMZ Allentown/Philadelphia (independent)
WPXQ Providence (ion)
WUPA Atlanta (The CW)
...and, if you're a completist, there's also the following full power Channel 69 in Canada:
CJMT Toronto ("Omni.2," independent)
I'm wondering if any of those old analog 70-83 translators are still operating.
I'm pretty sure there are no full-power stations above 69, or for that matter, no LPTV/Class A's that high up, but are there any stragglers in the translator department?
I'm pretty sure there are no full-power stations above 69, or for that matter, no LPTV/Class A's that high up, but are there any stragglers in the translator department?
OhioMediaWatch said:
Except for CITY-TV channel 79 in Toronto, there have been no full-power stations above channel 69 in the US or Canada in nearly 40 years. CITY's been on channel 57 for something approaching 30 years as well.
Strangely enough, there are still two translators on channel 70 in the FCC database. However, I'm pretty sure neither one is still operating on that channel.
- K70DR, Blue Earth, Minnesota: belongs to KTTC Television and presumably once relayed that channel 10 station in Rochester. CDBS says they filed an application to move to channel 16 on March 31, 2006 - but that their license expired the next day???
- K70FL, Hartsel, Colorado: belongs to a local translator association. I have information that it relays KMGH channel 7, Denver. This station has Special Temporary Authority to operate on channel 23, and has a permit to make that move permanent. Strangely enough it appears that STA was filed last September - is it possible this station was operating on channel 70 until last year? To be honest I doubt it, maybe that's just a renewal date and they've had a channel 23 STA for some years.
The last station up there I *know* to have been on the air was a channel 70 translator located in Hoisington, Kansas and relaying KAKE channel 10 from Wichita. A DXer reported seeing it sometime after 2000 - I want to say *in* 2000 but it may have been later.
I would not be surprised if on an isolated mountaintop somewhere in the West, there's one of these still running, completely forgotten by the owners, the FCC, and the viewers. (almost none of whom have a TV that will tune above channel 69 anyway...)
Kitchener, Ontario also had a full-power repeater station for CBLFT in Toronto, on Channel 76. It moved to 61 in 1982-83.
As for Channel 69, London has a full-power repeater for CFMT in Toronto on that channel. It's a pretty strong signal.
As for Channel 69, London has a full-power repeater for CFMT in Toronto on that channel. It's a pretty strong signal.
B
BobRogers
Guest
There is a MyNetwork TV affiliate in the South Bend market on Channel 69. LINK: http://www.mymichianatv.com/
B
BobRogers
Guest
You are correct. They are owned by Weigel who owns WCIU 26 in Chicago. It's my understanding that the FCC would not licence additional full service TV stations in that market.
The South Bend Ch. 69 and its Weigel LPTV sisters (ABC, CW) are being sold to Schurz, the company which already owns full-power CBS affiliate WSBT/22.
The NBC affiliate, WNDU/16, is now owned by Gray Television after years of being owned by Notre Dame. The FOX affiliate, WSJV/28, is owned by Quincy Newspapers. 28 was the ABC affiliate for years before dumping it for FOX.
All of the Weigel LPTVers have LD/digital facilities, I believe. WMYS-LP 69 has an LD on 23, though I don't know if the station (Schurz, I presume) will shut down the analog LPTV 69 voluntarily.
The NBC affiliate, WNDU/16, is now owned by Gray Television after years of being owned by Notre Dame. The FOX affiliate, WSJV/28, is owned by Quincy Newspapers. 28 was the ABC affiliate for years before dumping it for FOX.
All of the Weigel LPTVers have LD/digital facilities, I believe. WMYS-LP 69 has an LD on 23, though I don't know if the station (Schurz, I presume) will shut down the analog LPTV 69 voluntarily.
BobRogers said:
That's a low power television station, and there are still a few of those on channel 69. However, the aforementioned six stations are the only full-service stations on channel 69 licensed in the U.S.
WMYS-LP has a displacement application to move analog operations to channel 34. It has not been granted yet, and they wouldn't be able to move there anyway until after Feb. 17, then WNIT shuts off their analog operations on 34.
dhett said:
WNIT has already ended analog broadcasting due to equipment failure that they aren't going to bother to repair.
Link: WNIT South Bend
You know, there seem to have been a lot of equipment failures lately, causing stations to terminate analog operations early. Wilmington NC won't have a leg up on much of the country if this keeps up. Already, in Flagstaff AZ, full-power analog is basically dead: KNAZ is literally burning up, KCFG is MIA, and KFPH was supposed to shut off on 9/1 (although as of 9/2, they were still on). Without the numerous LPTV translators of Phoenix stations, they'd pretty much be Wilmington before Wilmington was Wilmington.
I wonder how many more "equipment failures" are going to occur within the next 5 months? (Not that I'm doubting that WNIT's was genuine.)
I wonder how many more "equipment failures" are going to occur within the next 5 months? (Not that I'm doubting that WNIT's was genuine.)
dhett said:
Equipment failures happen all the time. We never heard much about them before because stations sucked them up as a cost of doing business. If your klystron tube failed, you paid the $40k for a new one because that's what you had to do to stay on the air.
But that $40k doesn't look like a very good investment for a transmitter that will be turned off for good in just a few months, which is why many stations are deciding to go silent (or low power) early.
Having posted the Arizona TV Station Updates for a couple of years now, I actually know about the numerous failures, and as I said, I don't doubt that WNIT's situation is genuine. I was being intentionally cynical - yeah, it doesn't translate well to print. This can be a really awkward time for broadcasters because any money spent on analog facilities is basically money thrown away, so I don't think it will take much for a station to pack it in early. When I look at a station like KMCC or KSWT, where the ownership is in severe financial hardship, I have to believe that there will be at least the temptation to find an excuse to save dearly needed money.
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