June 2004

ONTARIO:
The Thunder Bay Chronicle-Journal reports that Newcap broadcasting, owner of CJLB/105.3, is buying CJUK/99.9. CJLB is currently run by Dougall Media, but Newcap has given notice that the agreement will end. No changes are planned to the Adult Contemporary format of "Magic 99.9" or the Contemporary Hits format of "Hot 105." Dougall Media owns the city's other two commercial radio stations and the city's two commercial TV stations. (6/22/2004)

ALL STATES:
The long-awaited date for bidding on hundreds of unused allotments has been announced: November 3. On that day, the FCC will accept bids for 290 new FM stations across the country, including dozens of allotments in the Upper Midwest.

Among the dozens of allotments to be auctioned in the Upper Midwest are new stations that would serve Omaha, Mason City, Mankato, Rapid City, Sioux Falls, Manitowoc, and Marquette, and allotments that would provide partial coverage of Cedar Rapids and Des Moines. Many markets could see multiple new stations come from the process: three allotments are up for grabs in the Bismarck, Dickinson, Jamestown, and North Platte markets, and two allotments are up in the Minot, Kearney, and Scottsbluff markets.

A complete list of allotments up for auction is listed in this FCC document. Information on markets that would be served by the allotments is on this site's list of vacant allotments. Minimum opening bids range from $1500 for allotments in Murdo and Presho, SD, to $200,000 for an allotment in suburban Omaha. Interested parties will have to make upfront payments by September 24 in order to participate in the process. More information is available in this FCC Public Notice. (6/20/2004)

ALL STATES:
The approval process for new stations in the non-commercial portion of the FM band (88-92 MHz) is moving forward following a court ruling last month which upheld the FCC's comparative selection standards. However, the FCC has given competing applicants another opportunity to reach settlement agreements or make technical amendments before using the comparative selection process to determine which groups will receive construction permits. The FCC is waiving a reimbursement limitation until August 13 in an effort to spark agreements. 26 new non-commercial stations could eventually result from the settlement and selection process in the Upper Midwest, including new stations in the Cedar Rapids, Duluth, Fargo, Quad Cities, and Sioux Falls areas. The complete list can be seen in this FCC document. (6/20/2004)

MICHIGAN/MINNESOTA/NORTH DAKOTA/WISCONSIN:
DirecTV launched its Duluth-Superior and Fargo locals packages on Thursday (6/17), two months after DISH Network added the channels. However, DirecTV is carrying more channels than DISH. In Fargo, DISH has not reached an agreement with ABC affiliate WDAY and is not carrying the network, but DirecTV is carrying both of the market's ABC affiliates, WDAY (Fargo) and WDAZ (Devils Lake-Grand Forks). The stations have been running promos promoting the fact that DirecTV will be the only satellite provider carrying WDAY/WDAZ. In Duluth, DirecTV is carrying Iron Range NBC affiliate KRII, in addition to Duluth NBC affiliate KBJR, which is also carried by DISH. (6/20/2004)

NORTH DAKOTA:
Prairie Public Television has applied for a new digital TV station in Devils Lake to cover areas that will not be served once the transition of KGFE (Grand Forks) to digital is complete. The DTV station on channel 25 would use 134kW from a tower west of Devils Lake. PPT has already signed on KCGE-DT/16 (Crookston, MN) to cover areas to the east which KGFE-DT will not serve. (As reported earlier, KGFE/2 is expected to be off the air for most of the summer due to transmitter damage. This application is unrelated to that problem.) (6/20/2004)

SOUTH DAKOTA:
The FCC has approved Laramie Mountain Broadcasting's purchase of KFMH/102.1 (Belle Fourche) from Mark A. Swendson for $250,000. The 7kW station has been off the air since July 2003 due to technical problems. KFMH must resume broadcasting by September 11, 2004, or it will lose its license. (6/20/2004)

SOUTH DAKOTA:
Translator K300AX/107.9 (Rapid City) has signed on, relaying KSLT/107.3 (Spearfish). KSLT is still also heard on K289AI/105.7 (Rapid City). (6/20/2004)

WISCONSIN:
WisconsinBroadcasting.com reports that WDKM/106.1 (Adams) has dropped its Oldies/Country mix for Classic Hits, and still uses the slogan "K106." (6/20/2004)

THIS WEEK'S NEW FM TRANSLATOR CONSTRUCTION PERMITS (6/14-6/18):

THIS WEEK'S NEW FM TRANSLATOR CONSTRUCTION PERMITS (6/7-6/10):

NEBRASKA/IOWA:
DirecTV added its Omaha package a little over a week ago, competing with the previously-launched DISH Network package. The DirecTV package includes KETV-ABC, KMTV-CBS, KPTM-FOX, WOWT-NBC, ETV-PBS, IPTV-PBS, and KXVO-WB. It's offered in Cass, Crawford, Fremont, Harrison, Mills, Montgomery, Page, Pottawattamie, and Shelby counties in Iowa, Atchison County in Missouri, and Burt, Butler, Cass, Colfax, Cuming, Dodge, Douglas, Fremont, Johnson, Nemaha, Otoe, Pawneee, Platte, Richardson, Sarpy, Saunders, and Washington counties in Nebraska. (6/12/2004)

MANITOBA:
The Winnipeg Sun reports that Golden West Broadcasting is buying CHVN/95.1 (Winnipeg) from the group of investors that started the station. Company president Elmer Hildebrand told the paper that CHVN's Contemporary Christian format will fit well with its other southern Manitoba stations, and that management and staff at the station would be maintained. (6/11/2004)

NEBRASKA:
The Grand Island Independent reports that KMMJ/750 was knocked off the air by vandalism on Sunday, and remained off the air at last report. (6/11/2004)

WISCONSIN:
DirecTV launched its Madison locals package on Thursday (6/10). The package is available to residents of Columbia, Dane, Iowa, Grant, Green, Juneau, Lafayette, Marquette, Richland, Rock, and Sauk counties, and includes WKOW-ABC, WISC-CBS, WMSN-FOX, WMTV-NBC, WHA-PBS, WBUW-WB, and WISC's secondary UPN affiliate, UPN14. DISH Network already has a Madison package, but does not carry UPN14. (6/11/2004)

IOWA:
University of Northern Iowa stations KHKE/89.5 and KUNI/90.9 (Cedar Falls) have announced partial format changes, to take place July 5. KHKE will drop its daytime Jazz programming and carry Classical music 24 hours per day. KUNI will drop the Classical and Folk programming that currently airs from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. in favor of syndicated talk programming, including "The Connection" and "Fresh Air." KUNI will continue to carry music programming from 6 p.m. to 4 a.m. and on weekends. (6/11/2004)

WISCONSIN:
Midwest Communications is expanding its Wausau group with the purchase of Donald Seehafer's two stations, WXCO/1230 and WLRK/107.9, for $3.7 million. Seehafer had reached an earlier agreement to sell the stations to Badger Communications for $3.4 million, but the deal fell through. Midwest owns six other Wausau-based stations. (6/10/2004)

MINNESOTA/IOWA:
SagamoreHill of Minnesota is purchasing FOX47 (KXLT Rochester) from Shockley Broadcasting for $2.05 million. There will likely be little change in the day-to-day operations of the station, since NBC affiliate KTTC and KXLT have a shared services agreement which will be continued under the new owners. SagamoreHill is owned by Louis Wall of Augusta, Georgia, through several limited liability corporations. Wall also holds an interest in three stations in Alabama, Nebraska (KSTF), and Wyoming; KXLT was Shockley's only remaining station. (6/10/2004)

NORTH DAKOTA:
KNDK Inc., owned by Diane and Robert Simmons, are purchasing KYTZ/106.7 (Walhalla) from the Ingstad family's Two Rivers Broadcasting for $1. The Simmons had already been running KYTZ through a joint sales agreement, which came with their purchase of KAOC/105.1 (Cavalier) and their assumption of the LMA to run KXPO/1340 and KAUJ/100.9 (Grafton). KYTZ was purchased after the FCC determined that the sale would not constitute a monopoly. (6/10/2004)

IOWA/ILLINOIS/MISSOURI:
DISH Network has launched the Quincy-Hannibal package, which is available in Lee County, Iowa. The package includes KHQA-CBS, WGEM-NBC, WMEC-PBS, and WGEM's secondary FOX affiliate. There is no ABC affiliate in the market. (6/10/2004)

IOWA:
KILR/1070 (Estherville) has added nighttime operation, using 48W directional. (6/10/2004)

NORTH DAKOTA:
KQDJ-FM/101.1 (Valley City) has applied for an upgrade from class C2 to C1. Currently, the station uses 12kW/305m from a tower northeast of Valley City; the new facility would be 100kW/202m from a tower west of Valley City. The upgrade would improve KQDJ-FM's signal to Jamestown. However, it's not clear whether the application is for a facility change or simply a backup: the application says "main" facility, but the FCC has the application marked under the "auxiliary" category. (6/10/2004)

SOUTH DAKOTA:
KDLT (NBC) translator K42FI (Watertown) has signed on. (6/10/2004)

THIS WEEK'S NEW FM TRANSLATOR CONSTRUCTION PERMITS:

MINNESOTA:
KBEW-FM/98.1 (Blue Earth) has applied to increase its power from 25kW to 50kW. The station is currently class C3, using 25kW at 100m from a tower near Blue Earth; the new facility would be class C2, using 50kW at 150m from a tower near Northrop (north of Fairmont). With the move, KBEW-FM would expand its main coverage area to include St. James, MN, and Estherville, IA. (6/3/2004)

MINNESOTA:
KSTP-TV reports that KMOJ/89.9 (Minneapolis) was off the air for 16 hours at the end of the Memorial Day weekend due to vandalism. A 9-year-old and and 11-year-old comandeered heavy machinery at a nearby construction site and caused thousands of dollars in damage at the site, which included knocking over the line that powers KMOJ. (6/1/2004)

NORTH DAKOTA:
The FCC has approved Vision Media's plan to upgrade KVMI/103.9 (Arthur-Fargo) from class C3 to C1. The station will be able to improve its signal to Fargo with the upgrade to class C1, though the existence of other stations will prevent the station from having a full class C1 facility of 100kW/299m from a tower in the immediate Fargo area. The change so far is just to the table of allotments; KVMI will still have to apply for new facilities before it can upgrade. In order to make the change, the vacant allotment for a class C station in Hazelton (Bismarck) was moved from 103.9 to 103.3. (6/1/2004)

NEBRASKA:
McCook Radio Group has asked the FCC to make a table of allotments change that would move its construction permit for a new station to the North Platte market. The CP for KRKU/98.5 (McCook) would be moved to Maxwell, remaining at class C1 (100kW/299m). The Maxwell-licensed station would provide a strong signal to about 48,000 people, compared to about 20,000 if licensed to McCook. To make room for the move, KBBN/98.3 (Broken Bow) would be moved to 95.3, and remain class C3 (25kW). KBBN has agreed to the change; the FCC will accept comments on the proposal through July 19. (6/1/2004)

WISCONSIN:
Results Broadcasting of Rhinelander has asked the FCC to allot 100.9 to Tomahawk to serve as a future class C3 (25kW/100m) station. The potential station would have to locate its transmitter 8.5km WNW of Tomahawk, and would provide a good signal to Rhinelander and Merrill. The FCC will accept comments on the proposal through July 19. (6/1/2004)