Tribune to buy Local TV

[fybush]

Not if KFCT is used as a satellite station for either KWGN 2 or KDVR 31 (Which it is - For KDVR 31). Doubtful FCC will force Tribune to sell it (Doing that would make Ft. Collins its own TV market - With only ONE station - KFCT)

No, that's not how markets work. If KFCT were to be sold and its satellite status were to end, it would still be a Denver-market station because Larimer County is part of the Denver market. That makes it potentially a fairly valuable property; even if it doesn't have a useful OTA signal in the core of Denver, it would still be able to assert must-carry across the market, just as other outlying stations like channel 3 in Sterling have done.

 

[bpatrick]

Yesterday's Greensboro News & Record had a rather lengthy article
about the Tribune buyout of Local TV (WGHP/FOX8 is owned by Local TV),
and in it there was a mention of WTVR Richmond being bought by Tribune,
while Media General (former owner of the Winston-Salem Journal-Sentinel)
buys WRIC in the same market.

Now for my question: when Media General bought the Park stations, it
was forced to sell WTVR because it already owns the Richmond Times-Dispatch.
Now Media General is buying another station in the same market. The only explanation
I can come up with is that WRIC is licensed to Petersburg and I don't know how much
circulation the Times-Dispatch has in Petersburg. But WRIC is the de facto ABC affiliate
for Richmond, so why doesn't the crossownership rule come into play as it did with WTVR?

Also, is Media General buying any of these former Young Broadcasting stations: WATE
Knoxville, WKRN Nashville, and/or WBAY Green Bay?

 

[KeithE4]

In the past, WTTV & WTTK had little overlap in the market, that it made sense for a simulcast. Since Tribune moved WTTK's transmission to Marion County, WTTK covers nearly all the same areas as most other Indianapolis stations (it mainly lost some far northern counties when their antenna moved to the immediate Indianapolis area). There's too much overlap in coverage between WTTV & WTTK, that I believe this duo should be split.

I'm still surprised that the FCC allowed WTTK to move into the city, given that Kokomo is as far north of Indy as Bloomington is southwest. Does it still give a city-grade signal into Kokomo?

One station that WTTV could be paired with is WNDY Marion, IN, since WNDY only covers the northern part of the market, & can not move their transmitter any further south than it can now. Just like WTTV can't move any further north, since WTTV is licensed to Bloomington, IN. For now, I don't see WTTV & WTTK being split, despite having too much overlap in coverage.

WTTV is owned by Tribune. WNDY is owned by LIN, who also owns WISH-TV. Tribune can't buy WNDY and LIN can't buy WTTV, even if Tribune was willing to sell it.

 

[wasass]

Now for my question: when Media General bought the Park stations, it
was forced to sell WTVR because it already owns the Richmond Times-Dispatch.
Now Media General is buying another station in the same market. The only explanation
I can come up with is that WRIC is licensed to Petersburg and I don't know how much
circulation the Times-Dispatch has in Petersburg. But WRIC is the de facto ABC affiliate
for Richmond, so why doesn't the crossownership rule come into play as it did with WTVR?

MG doesn't own the Times-Dispatch anymore; they sold the paper off to Berkshire Hathaway last year in a major deal.

 

[tripinva]

LIN could theoretically buy WTTV if they called it a satellite station for WNDY, but I doubt Tribune would sell it anyway.

- Trip

 

[Kent]

If St Louis is a nine station market and is allowed one duopoly, won't the KSDK and KMOV duopoly supersede the KPLR and KTVI duopoly, assuming the Gannett- Belo deal closes first? It sounds like one of these groups will be responsible for selling a station.

No. KSDK and KMOV won't be counted as a duopoly because the two already can't combine. It may be an SSA. As Michael has mentioned, the services shared in Phoenix and St. Louis will be few if any. The FCC filings only show SSA's for the markets where Gannett owns newspapers.

 

[neomedia]

In my area in Ohio the channel bought by Tribune is Local TV affiliate WJW FOX8. I hope that Tribune does a good job because FOX 8 has high rated daytime and off-net programming, along with one of the most news intensive schedules in the state of Ohio, the news by the way is number 1 in nearly all periods. I just hope that they maintain the#1 quality of the news and the high rated syndicated/off-net programming on WJW.

 

[Iowan]

Here's my question: If Tribune is buying Local TV, LLC and half of This TV AND This Chicago will move to WGN 9.3, what will this mean for the Quad Cities area?

Here, Tribune would be buying WQAD, which already carries Antenna TV on 8.2. Will KGCW have to eventually give up This Quad Cities to WQAD?

 

[tripinva]

I would have to imagine two things:

1) Tribune knows that if KGCW drops This TV, that means something else (Movies! or other) moves into that space. As long as KGCW is airing This TV, it's not airing a competitor. I can't see Tribune wanting that to happen.

2) Weigel and others will begin pressing KGCW to drop This TV. If it does, then I would imagine Tribune will pick it up to replace the lost affiliate.

- Trip

 

[Markxxx]

Larry Potash and the morning crew on WGN News are great. Highly informative and equally entertaining. Tribune should think about using them as a national morning slot IF (and only IF) the other stations have weak news in the mornings.

 

[tmanokc]

I would have to imagine two things:

1) Tribune knows that if KGCW drops This TV, that means something else (Movies! or other) moves into that space. As long as KGCW is airing This TV, it's not airing a competitor. I can't see Tribune wanting that to happen.

2) Weigel and others will begin pressing KGCW to drop This TV. If it does, then I would imagine Tribune will pick it up to replace the lost affiliate.

- Trip

It may be possible that once affiliation agreements for This TV lapse, Tribune actually might start moving the network to its newly acquired stations. In most markets where Tribune has a duopoly (virtual or legal), Antenna TV and This TV are split between the two stations (like in Indianapolis, WTTV/WTTK carries This on 4.2/29.2, while Antenna is carried on WXIN 59.2), I think Seattle is the only Tribune duopoly market where this is not the case (since This is on KOMO, while Antenna is on KZJO, and KCPQ does not have a functioning subchannel anymore since its AccuWeather service was dropped). The standalones (like WPIX, KRCW and KDAF) carry both networks, with This on the .3 channel and Antenna on the .2 channel.

Local TV's duopolies usually have one station that does not carry a subchannel (here in OKC, KFOR carries Antenna TV on 4.2, while KAUT has never had a subchannel).

In the Quad Cities, there is a roadblock. WQAD 8.3 carries MyNetworkTV, and presumably, runs a schedule of syndicated programs during MyNet's off-hours. That subchannel used to relay WBQD-LP (which no longer exists as a standalone station); the MyNet affiliation would have to move to KGCW, WHBF, KWQC or KLJB in order for This TV to move to 8.3, I don't see that happening in the short term.

 

[tmanokc]

[Accidental double post redacted]

 

[JeeperOne]

Not if KFCT is used as a satellite station for either KWGN 2 or KDVR 31 (Which it is - For KDVR 31). Doubtful FCC will force Tribune to sell it (Doing that would make Ft. Collins its own TV market - With only ONE station - KFCT)

No, that's not how markets work. If KFCT were to be sold and its satellite status were to end, it would still be a Denver-market station because Larimer County is part of the Denver market. That makes it potentially a fairly valuable property; even if it doesn't have a useful OTA signal in the core of Denver, it would still be able to assert must-carry across the market, just as other outlying stations like channel 3 in Sterling have done.

Even so Scott, as long as KFCT is relaying KDVR, it's still part of the package. You can't seperate the two unless Tribune/Local TV feels as though it's not needed as a satellite/relay station to either KWGN 2 or KDVR 31

And even then, there's still the other stations out there who might decide they could use it

Finally, KCDO 3 was a satellite/relay station for Channel 5 in Cheyenne, WY (Call escapes me at the moment) before it became an RTV affiliate with a 9:00 PM newscast produced by Channel 5 (This resulted in being a sub on 5.2 for those folks in Cheyenne). It's now a newsless Indie targeted at Denver & Northern Colorado (Not sure what, if any, kind of viewership it gets up in WY or how it's carried up there now)

Unless Tribune/Local TV decides to do what the owners of Channel 5 in Cheyenne did & pull the plug (Which could prove to be MORE SUICIDAL than they might think), my guess is they'll leave well enough alone & try to get a waiver from the FCC. If they can't get that, then folks in Ft. Collins can blame the FCC if access to Fox is cut off to those who don't have cable or satelllite

Cheers & 73 ;D

 

[JeeperOne]

In my area in Ohio the channel bought by Tribune is Local TV affiliate WJW FOX8. I hope that Tribune does a good job because FOX 8 has high rated daytime and off-net programming, along with one of the most news intensive schedules in the state of Ohio, the news by the way is number 1 in nearly all periods. I just hope that they maintain the#1 quality of the news and the high rated syndicated/off-net programming on WJW.

You will hardly notice the difference. Trust me

Cheers & 73 ;D

 

[bpatrick]

Not if KFCT is used as a satellite station for either KWGN 2 or KDVR 31 (Which it is - For KDVR 31). Doubtful FCC will force Tribune to sell it (Doing that would make Ft. Collins its own TV market - With only ONE station - KFCT)

No, that's not how markets work. If KFCT were to be sold and its satellite status were to end, it would still be a Denver-market station because Larimer County is part of the Denver market. That makes it potentially a fairly valuable property; even if it doesn't have a useful OTA signal in the core of Denver, it would still be able to assert must-carry across the market, just as other outlying stations like channel 3 in Sterling have done.

Even so Scott, as long as KFCT is relaying KDVR, it's still part of the package. You can't seperate the two unless Tribune/Local TV feels as though it's not needed as a satellite/relay station to either KWGN 2 or KDVR 31

And even then, there's still the other stations out there who might decide they could use it

Finally, KCDO 3 was a satellite/relay station for Channel 5 in Cheyenne, WY (Call escapes me at the moment) before it became an RTV affiliate with a 9:00 PM newscast produced by Channel 5 (This resulted in being a sub on 5.2 for those folks in Cheyenne). It's now a newsless Indie targeted at Denver & Northern Colorado (Not sure what, if any, kind of viewership it gets up in WY or how it's carried up there now)

Unless Tribune/Local TV decides to do what the owners of Channel 5 in Cheyenne did & pull the plug (Which could prove to be MORE SUICIDAL than they might think), my guess is they'll leave well enough alone & try to get a waiver from the FCC. If they can't get that, then folks in Ft. Collins can blame the FCC if access to Fox is cut off to those who don't have cable or satelllite

Cheers & 73 ;D

KGWN is Channel 5 in Cheyenne, a CBS affiliate on 5-1; it also has the CW (I think on 5-2 or 5-3). I'm not clear on how Ft. Collins could lose Fox if, as I understand it, KFCT is a satellite of KDVR. I thought KDVR was a Fox o&o, although they may have sold it.

 

[Kent]

KDVR was a Fox O&O until they sold it to Local along with several other markets, including Kansas City, St. Louis, Memphis, Cleveland, Birmingham and Greensboro/High Point/Winston-Salem. I don't remember exactly why Fox sold the stations, though most were in AFC football markets if they had football at all, and it seems like Fox was trying to raise cash to buy something else, maybe Internet related.

 

[mavtv]

KDVR was a Fox O&O until they sold it to Local along with several other markets, including Kansas City, St. Louis, Memphis, Cleveland, Birmingham and Greensboro/High Point/Winston-Salem. I don't remember exactly why Fox sold the stations, though most were in AFC football markets if they had football at all, and it seems like Fox was trying to raise cash to buy something else, maybe Internet related.

They were sold to raise money for the wall street journal something fox would end up regretting as they wanted there stations back and was one of the unsuccessful bidders.

For tribune to get the foxco stations is a huge move as they are highly rated and are $$$ makers. The stations fit right in with tribune's culture and belief of local content.

 

[Mr. X]

KDVR was a Fox O&O until they sold it to Local along with several other markets, including Kansas City, St. Louis, Memphis, Cleveland, Birmingham and Greensboro/High Point/Winston-Salem. I don't remember exactly why Fox sold the stations, though most were in AFC football markets if they had football at all, and it seems like Fox was trying to raise cash to buy something else, maybe Internet related.

Fox didn't sell it's Memphis O&O to Local. Local owns CBS affiliate WREG, therefore it couldn't buy WHBQ. Fox couldn't find another buyer, pulled the station off the market and still owns it.

 

[nomadcowatbk]

KDVR was a Fox O&O until they sold it to Local along with several other markets, including Kansas City, St. Louis, Memphis, Cleveland, Birmingham and Greensboro/High Point/Winston-Salem. I don't remember exactly why Fox sold the stations, though most were in AFC football markets if they had football at all, and it seems like Fox was trying to raise cash to buy something else, maybe Internet related.

St. Louis is an NFC football market, at least for now

 

[JeeperOne]

KGWN is Channel 5 in Cheyenne, a CBS affiliate on 5-1; it also has the CW (I think on 5-2 or 5-3). I'm not clear on how Ft. Collins could lose Fox if, as I understand it, KFCT is a satellite of KDVR. I thought KDVR was a Fox o&o, although they may have sold it.

KCDO 3 was also a part of KGWN for a short time too. Sources - KCDO 3 Wiki & KGWN 5 Wiki

It's a short blurb on both pages but it's there

Cheers & 73 ;D