WBTS - Home of NBC Boston?

[broadcastfan9751 140]

I already posted this in the "Spectrum Auction Results" thread, but I'm reposting it here because we might have an answer on NBC Boston's OTA home.

 

There's a new channel-sharing agreement in Boston, and it looks like it might answer the "NBC Boston" question once and for all.

 

OTA sold the spectrum for WYCN-CD in New Hampshire in the incentive auction and OTA has now entered into a CSA with WGBX. But, the agreement states that the shared operations will not begin until NBC acquires the WYCN license from OTA. So it looks like WYCN will be the new home of "NBC Boston".

[rkolsen 1684]

I already posted this in the "Spectrum Auction Results" thread, but I'm reposting it here because we might have an answer on NBC Boston's OTA home.

 

Well there’s the answer to NBC’s low power issues in Boston.

[scrabbleship 429]

Well there’s the answer to NBC’s low power issues in Boston.

 

Do they keep the 13.1 PSIP or do we end up stepping on another Portland VC (WGME instead of WMTW)?

[JCB4TV 347]

Where's what I can see happening when WYCN moves to WGBX's stick:

 

• WYCN becomes WBTS with NBC Boston & Cozi TV with WGBX keeping the 2 SD Sub-channels, Create & PBS Kids
  
• WGBX's HD feed moving to WGBH when WFXZ moves to their sick with the latter's current programming potentially moving elsewhere
  
• The current WBTS-LD becomes a repeater of WNEU with just Telemundo and Telexitos
  

This is just a prediction on my end and hope this is not interpreted as speculation.

[Carl Youncinator 3]

WGBH is going to be useless on VHF low channel 5 (in 2009 WHDH had to abandon digital VHF high channel 7 and return to their pre-transition UHF digital channel 42). The present WBTS will go off the air on rf channel 46 as does everything above rf channel 36, by early 2020.

[Rusty Muck 4374]

I already posted this in the "Spectrum Auction Results" thread, but I'm reposting it here because we might have an answer on NBC Boston's OTA home.

Isn’t WBTS already on one of the major towers in Needham? That’s a lateral move from one low-power signal to another.

 

Unless the plan is to somehow convert WYCN-CD to a full-power signal, but is that even doable? I mean, are there any full power stations at RF 13 to even contend with? Or do they go or full-power at, say... 15?

[broadcastfan9751 140]

Isn’t WBTS already on one of the major towers in Needham? That’s a lateral move from one low-power signal to another.

 

Unless the plan is to somehow convert WYCN-CD to a full-power signal, but is that even doable? I mean, are there any full power stations at RF 13 to even contend with? Or do they go or full-power at, say... 15?

 

They're sharing with WGBX, which will give it full-market coverage.

[JCB4TV 347]

Isn’t WBTS already on one of the major towers in Needham? That’s a lateral move from one low-power signal to another.

 

Unless the plan is to somehow convert WYCN-CD to a full-power signal, but is that even doable? I mean, are there any full power stations at RF 13 to even contend with? Or do they go or full-power at, say... 15?

I believe that WYCN will be the “Guest” station to WGBX being the “Host” station, therefore, WYCN will become Full Power. As for WBTS, as a LD station, they transmit from Needham, but their ERP is only 11.2kW at 772’ while WGBX will be at 455kW at 1,273’ when they move to RF 32.

[Rusty Muck 4374]

I believe that WYCN will be the “Guest” station to WGBX being the “Host” station, therefore, WYCN will become Full Power. As for WBTS, as a LD station, they transmit from Needham, but their ERP is only 11.2kW at 772’ while WGBX will be at 455kW at 1,273’ when they move to RF 32.

If that's the case (and can retain the 13 RF number), then Comcast accomplished an absolutely brilliant hat trick.

[ColtFromGulfcoast 708]

Looks like, in a way, @Eat News was right.

[nathannah 2429]

WGBH is going to be virtually useless on VHF low channel 5 (in 2009 WHDH had to abandon digital VHF high channel 7 and return to their pre-transition UHF digital channel 42).

 

Sadly in this round we're going down to 37 channels, so they have to take channel 5 and there won't be the allowances made in the past. I wish American television stations would combine things like how Sutro Tower is owned and the British system of a consortium distributing the multicasting channels in a certain way. It would really only work in larger towns though (definitely not in a Monroe/El Dorado situation).

[JCB4TV 347]

If that's the case (and can retain the 13 RF number), then Comcast accomplished an absolutely brilliant hat trick.

I do not believe that's how channel sharing works, WYCN will be the "Guest" on RF 32 with WFBX as RF 36 was sold in the auction.

[CircleSeven 1955]

I believe that WYCN will be the “Guest” station to WGBX being the “Host” station, therefore, WYCN will become Full Power. As for WBTS, as a LD station, they transmit from Needham, but their ERP is only 11.2kW at 772’ while WGBX will be at 455kW at 1,273’ when they move to RF 32.

 

WYCN-CD will still be a Class-A station, despite sharing with a full-power station, giving them full power coverage. So the suffix of the callsign (-CD) won't change.

 

Not sure if they would move the WBTS calls, but NBC hasn't made the paperwork to acquire WYCN yet.

 

EDIT: I thought about this. Wouldn't it be wise for WGBH to place a repeater of WGBH's programming to one of WGBX's subchannels? I say this because they're moving Channel 2's signal to VHF low RF 5, and folks who rely on an OTA signal, might not get the station's signal after the repack.

[rkolsen 1684]

WYCN-CD will still be a Class-A station, despite sharing with a full-power station, giving them full power coverage. So the suffix of the callsign (-CD) won't change.

 

I’m waiting for when and if the FCC starts treating these Class A station’s that are now channel sharing with full power stations as a full power station. They could make more money for the “upgrade”.

[Rusty Muck 4374]

I do not believe that's how channel sharing works, WYCN will be the "Guest" on RF 32 with WFBX as RF 13 was sold in the auction.

Whoops, I meant a PSIP ID of 13, which was WYCN’s legacy analog dial position. (WYCN’s RF number has been 36, THAT will become 32.)

[Rusty Muck 4374]

I’m waiting for when and if the FCC starts treating these Class A station’s that are now channel sharing with full power stations as a full power station. They could make more money for the “upgrade”.

I can't believe that loophole existed in the first place... that it was possible for a low-power station to channel share with a full-power station's spectrum.

 

It was obvious this was Comcast's endgame. Bring another station into the market with a prime PSIP ID and with the shared spectrum of another station in the market.

[JCB4TV 347]

Do they keep the 13.1 PSIP or do we end up stepping on another Portland VC (WGME instead of WMTW)?

By looking at it with the naked eye, it seems that the only PSIP number available would be 3 without overlap:

 

2: WGBH

3: Is there enough space separating them from WFSB and WCAX?

4: WBZ

5: WCVB

6: WCSH & WLNE

7: WHDH

8: WMTW & WTNH

9: WMUR

10: WJAR

11: WENH

12: WPRI

13: WGME

[mre29 1519]

By looking at it with the naked eye, it seems that the only PSIP number available would be 3 without overlap:

 

That's why I keep saying they should go with 15. The closest full-power station using that PSIP is WHRO in Hampton Roads, VA.

[Rusty Muck 4374]

By looking at it with the naked eye, it seems that the only PSIP number available would be 3 without overlap:

 

2: WGBH

3: Is there enough space separating them from WFSB and WCAX?

Here's WGBX's map. And here's a map for all stations using PSIP 3. WCAX won't get in the way, but WFSB will ... especially in Worcester.

 

But HERE'S the map for all stations using PSIP 13. Looking at WGBX's map side-by-side, the only overlap I can detect with WGME will be in Portsmouth NH... and that overlap already exists with WYCN in its current form as an LP.

 

By my naked eye, Comcast may legitimately have a shot at NBC on a "full-power" OTA signal in Boston by "buying" "into" WGBX. And in time for the Super Bowl.

 

Damn. That shark was onto something...

[broadcastfan9751 140]

Here's WGBX's map. And here's a map for all stations using PSIP 3. WCAX won't get in the way, but WFSB will ... especially in Worcester.

 

But HERE'S the map for all stations using PSIP 13. Looking at WGBX's map side-by-side, the only overlap I can detect with WGME will be in Portsmouth NH... and that overlap already exists with WYCN in its current form as an LP.

 

By my naked eye, Comcast may legitimately have a shot at NBC on a "full-power" OTA signal in Boston by "buying" "into" WGBX. And in time for the Super Bowl.

 

Damn. That shark was onto something...

 

Looking at the map of WGBX and WGME, the overlap area appears to be relatively small enough that they could get by with it. The overlap also appears to be mostly in the Boston DMA, where it probably wouldn't cause that much of an issue since most probably watch CBS on WBZ.

 

However, in the event Sinclair did complain about it, a virtual channel close to VHF (like 14 or 15) could be doable.

[ColtFromGulfcoast 708]

By my naked eye, Comcast may legitimately have a shot at NBC on a "full-power" OTA signal in Boston by "buying" "into" WGBX. And in time for the Super Bowl.

 

Damn. That shark was onto something...

 

Looks like other networks may take notes from this later if some crap happens further dowm the line. But that's for another thread.

[elfuego35 90]

I was (sorta) wrong...

 

I totally forgot about the fact the Spectrum Auction made it where Commercial Stations can share with Non-Commercial Stations in the same market.

 

This shows that Desperation makes strange bedfellows. The Speculators who were stuck with stations they didn't want, NBC, who needed to improve their status for their much wanted O&O... and WGBH, who as a public broadcaster is likely willing to find alternative revenue makers for the further public broadcasting cuts.

 

That said, this is gonna to be a Neilsen nightmare (See WBMA), with confusion over who is watching on WYCN, who is watching on WBTS-LD, who's watching on WNEU-DT2, and who is watching on WMFP.

[channel99 45]

I was (sorta) wrong...

 

I totally forgot about the fact the Spectrum Auction made it where Commercial Stations can share with Non-Commercial Stations in the same market.

 

This shows that Desperation makes strange bedfellows. The Speculators who were stuck with stations they didn't want, NBC, who needed to improve their status for their much wanted O&O... and WGBH, who as a public broadcaster is likely willing to find alternative revenue makers for the further public broadcasting cuts.

 

That said, this is gonna to be a Neilsen nightmare (See WBMA), with confusion over who is watching on WYCN, who is watching on WBTS-LD, who's watching on WNEU-DT2, and who is watching on WMFP.

 

WMFP won't be on much longer, and they really don't need WBTS-LD to broadcast NBC Boston, once it is permanently on WYCN / WGBX. The WBTS call letters could be moved to WYCN.

 

Assuming the FCC does allow WYCN to use ch 13, which will now overlap Portland, they might be allowed to change to ch 8, with similar overlap. If they can keep the LD station, it could be used for Telemundo, Cozi, and TeleXo with new calls and another virtual channel.

[broadcastfan9751 140]

Assuming the FCC does allow WYCN to use ch 13, which will now overlap Portland, they might be allowed to change to ch 8, with similar overlap. If they can keep the LD station, it could be used for Telemundo, Cozi, and TeleXo with new calls and another virtual channel.

 

WMTW broadcasts from a greater height and has a larger coverage area than WGME, which would result in much greater overlap. As shown on this RabbitEars map, the overlap between WYCN/WGBX and WMTW would extend into Manchester, NH and a part of Northeast Massachusetts.

[Rusty Muck 4374]

I was (sorta) wrong...

 

I totally forgot about the fact the Spectrum Auction made it where Commercial Stations can share with Non-Commercial Stations in the same market.

 

This shows that Desperation makes strange bedfellows. The Speculators who were stuck with stations they didn't want, NBC, who needed to improve their status for their much wanted O&O... and WGBH, who as a public broadcaster is likely willing to find alternative revenue makers for the further public broadcasting cuts.

 

That said, this is gonna to be a Neilsen nightmare (See WBMA), with confusion over who is watching on WYCN, who is watching on WBTS-LD, who's watching on WNEU-DT2, and who is watching on WMFP.

See... I don’t think NBC Boston will keep the simulcast on WMFP. It’s been rendered redundant by this move. What is NBC Boston will now enjoy a full-power signal, with a good PSIP channel ID of 13 (or 14 or 15, and even THOSE are a vast improvement over the number soup that had been the current arrangement) covering the whole market.

 

WBTS-LD 8, though, is still of use as a booster for WNEU 60... at least until WNEU can be moved in. (Judging by this map of channels with PSIP 60, they could legit upgrade WNEU to Needham if the engineering is possible. Obviously it hasn’t been prior to this point, what with the spectrum auction and repack.)