KMCC
KMCC, virtual channel 34 (UHF digital channel 32), is an Ion Plus owned-and-operated television station serving Las Vegas, Nevada, United States that is licensed to Laughlin. The station is owned by the Ion Media Networks subsidiary of the E. W. Scripps Company, as part of a duopoly with Las Vegas-licensed ABC affiliate KTNV-TV (channel 13). KMCC's main transmitter is located near Dolan Springs, Arizona, with a secondary transmitter on Mount Arden near Henderson, Nevada.
| Laughlin/Las Vegas, Nevada United States | |
|---|---|
| City | Laughlin, Nevada |
| Channels | Digital: 32 (UHF) Virtual: 34 (PSIP) |
| Programming | |
| Affiliations | 34.1: Ion Plus (O&O, 2020–present) 34.2: Qubo 34.3: Ion Television 34.4: Ion Shop 34.5: QVC 34.6: HSN |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Ion Media Networks (a subsidiary of the E. W. Scripps Company)[1] (Ion Television License, LLC) |
| KTNV-TV | |
| History | |
First air date | August 21, 2003 |
Former channel number(s) | Analog: 34 (UHF, 2003–2009) |
| |
Call sign meaning | Meridian Communications Company (original licensee) |
| Technical information | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 41237 |
| ERP | DTS1: 1,000 kW DTS2: 4.4 kW |
| HAAT | DTS1: 607 m (1,991 ft) DTS2: 557 m (1,827 ft) |
| Transmitter coordinates | DTS1: 35°39′7″N 114°18′43.8″W DTS2: 35°56′46″N 115°2′37″W |
| Links | |
Public license information | Profile LMS |
History
On May 14, 1996, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) issued a construction permit to Meridian Communications Company (later Mojave Broadcasting Company) for a full power television station on UHF channel 34 to serve Lake Havasu City, Arizona. Its original call letters were to be KAUE, adopted in February 1997, but changed to KMCC a month later.
In July 1996, while preparing to build the station, Mojave Broadcasting determined that the proposed transmitter location was inadequate for a full-power television operation and that the alternate site near Oatman, Arizona could not provide city-grade service to Lake Havasu City due to terrain. In early 1999, they requested to move the station and both the analog and digital allotments to Laughlin, Nevada, with the transmitter at the Oatman site. They later modified their proposal to specify a transmitter in Laughlin, allowing it to secure an affiliation with NBC, since the new location would not interfere with Las Vegas NBC station KVBC (channel 3, now KSNV); the children of James Rogers, chairman of KVBC owner Sunbelt Communications Company, owned Mojave Broadcasting, and Sunbelt had signed a time brokerage agreement with KMCC.
The FCC formally granted the request in June 2000[2] and Mojave Broadcasting began building the station in Laughlin. The FCC granted a construction permit for a digital companion channel, UHF 32, on January 15, 2002, and granted special temporary authority (STA) on April 6, 2004 to broadcast in digital at reduced power from the analog transmitter location.
The analog station signed on August 21, 2003 as a satellite of KVBC, and was granted a license on May 28, 2004. The arrangement was temporary, as before the station was licensed, Cranston II LLC had agreed to buy KMCC from Mojave Broadcasting. The sale was approved by the FCC in October 2004 and consummated in July 2005. Upon taking ownership, Cranston changed the station to Spanish-language programming from TeleFórmula, the cable news arm of Grupo Fórmula. In March 2006, equipment failure forced the station to reduce power significantly; in November, it switched to Multimedios Television.
KMCC had a construction permit to broadcast on UHF channel 32 from a transmitter location approximately 40 kilometers (25 mi) NNE of the analog transmitter location. The site, located near Dolan Springs, Arizona is over 1,200 meters (3,937 ft) higher in elevation than the analog site, so while the analog station served the Mohave Valley from Bullhead City, Arizona and Laughlin down to Needles, California, the digital station, when fully built and operational, would not only serve Laughlin and the Colorado River Valley, but most of central Mohave County, Arizona and would reach beyond Las Vegas.[3] As of October 2017, however, the station was broadcasting on STA from the analog site at 15 kW with coverage approximately that of the analog signal. Cranston filed a request to extend the STA until January 1, 2007.
On January 26, 2009, KMCC switched to Mega TV, an independent television network based in Florida. The station again changed affiliations on January 1, 2010, affiliating with VasalloVision.[4] KMCC then became an affiliate of MundoFox (now MundoMax) when it launched on August 13, 2012.[5] In 2015, KMCC aired a music video format 24/7 called TheCoolTV on digital channels 32.2, 32.3 with some local programming. On December 1, 2016, with the demise of MundoMax, KMCC switched to Luken Communications' The Action Channel and Heartland networks.
Entravision Communications agreed to purchase KMCC for $2.75 million on March 1, 2017; the sale created a duopoly with Univision affiliate KINC.[6] The sale was completed on January 17, 2018.[7] In April 2018, KMCC became an Azteca América affiliate.[8]
On January 27, 2020, it was announced that Ion Media Networks would purchase KMCC from Entravision for an undisclosed price.[1] The sale was completed on April 3.[9]
Sale to Scripps
On September 24, 2020, the Cincinnati-based E. W. Scripps Company (owners of ABC affiliate KTNV-TV, channel 13) announced that it would purchase Ion Media for $2.65 billion, with financing from Berkshire Hathaway. With this purchase, Scripps will divest 23 Ion-owned stations, but no announcement has been made as to which stations that Scripps will divest as part of the move. The proposed divestitures will allow the merged company to fully comply with the FCC local and national ownership regulations. Scripps has agreed to a transaction with an unnamed buyer, who has agreed to maintain Ion affiliations for the stations.[10][11][12]
Digital channels
The station's digital signal is multiplexed:
| Channel | Video | Aspect | PSIP Short Name | Programming[13] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 34.1 | 480i | 16:9 | IONPlus | Main KMCC programming / Ion Plus |
| 34.2 | qubo | Qubo | ||
| 34.3 | 720p | ION | Ion Television | |
| 34.4 | 480i | Shop | Ion Shop | |
| 34.5 | LAFF | Laff | ||
| 34.6 | 4:3 | HSN | HSN |
References
- Miller, Mark K. (January 27, 2020). "Ion Media Buys Entravision's KMCC Las Vegas". TVNewsCheck. NewsCheckMedia. Retrieved January 27, 2020.
- http://www.fcc.gov/Bureaus/Mass_Media/Orders/2000/da001448.doc
- http://www.fcc.gov/fcc-bin/FMTV-service-area?x=DT995554.html%5B%5D
- "'VasalloVision Network' in Las Vegas, Nevada" (Press release). VasalloVision Television Network. January 14, 2010. Retrieved January 15, 2010.
- Sieroty, Chris (August 14, 2012). "MundoFox joins battle for Spanish viewers". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved August 19, 2012.
- "Application for Consent to Assignment of Broadcast Station Construction Permit or License". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. Retrieved March 16, 2017.
- Miller, Mark K. (January 17, 2018). "Entravision Closes on Purchase of KMCC". TVNewsCheck. Retrieved January 17, 2018.
- Villafañe, Veronica (April 27, 2018). "Entravision's KMCC becomes Azteca América affiliate in Las Vegas". Media Moves. Retrieved May 5, 2018.
- Consummation Notice
- http://www.thefutoncritic.com/news/2020/09/24/scripps-creates-national-television-networks-business-with-acquisition-of-ion-media-395300/20200924scripps01/
- Cimilluca, Dana. "E.W. Scripps Agrees to Buy ION Media for $2.65 billion in Berkshire-Backed Deal". Retrieved September 24, 2020.
- E.W. Scripps scales up with $2.65 billion Berkshire-backed deal for ION Media
- RabbitEars TV Query for KMCC