rkolsen 1675 Posted September 30, 2014 Share Posted September 30, 2014 A former video editor/producer is telling me 33/40 is gearing up to sell several of their JVC over the shoulder field cameras. Makes me wonder if we are getting upgrades or the first downsizing move by Sinclair? That's odd considering Sinclair just this spring bought 70+ cameras and they are standardizing on their platform. I would think it would be beneficial to keep some. The ones Sinclair bought are about $11000/piece so 33/40s can't be that expensive and I'm thinking they would be lucky to get half that amount. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobvick 9 Posted September 30, 2014 Share Posted September 30, 2014 A former video editor/producer is telling me 33/40 is gearing up to sell several of their JVC over the shoulder field cameras. Makes me wonder if we are getting upgrades or the first downsizing move by Sinclair? I hope they are upgrading, but with Sinclair you never know. Wouln't really surpise me if they shut down the news department, the way they have bumf**ed this whole thing. I would have thought they would have expanded news and added a 9:00 news on WABM or WTTO to compete with WBRC. Something like ABC 33/40 News at 9:00 on My68. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobvick 9 Posted September 30, 2014 Share Posted September 30, 2014 Didn't/doesn't Dish have them at channel 40? It is still channel 40 on Dish, I can confirm this as I subscribe to Dish Network. A similar situation such as this occured in Tupleo/Columbus/West Point, when WHDK 45 out of Houston shut down in 2012, ABC went to a sub-channel of WTVA. Dish kept ABC on 45 where it always was, which made sense. DirecTV however, moved it to channel 10. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mixdup 0 Posted September 30, 2014 Share Posted September 30, 2014 It is still channel 40 on Dish, I can confirm this as I subscribe to Dish Network. A similar situation such as this occured in Tupleo/Columbus/West Point, when WHDK 45 out of Houston shut down in 2012, ABC went to a sub-channel of WTVA. Dish kept ABC on 45 where it always was, which made sense. DirecTV however, moved it to channel 10. And according to Zap2it.com, it's channel 33 on U-Verse, so this is the current channel situation: OTA: 17.2, 58.1, or 68.2 Charter & Bright House (Metro Bham): 12 Comcast (Tuscaloosa): 5 DirecTV: 67 Dish: 40 U-Verse: 33 So, at most maybe 20% of viewers in the area actually get them on 33 or 40? I'd be willing to bet more people get them on channel 12 via the two largest cable companies in town than any other single channel number. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rusty Muck 4164 Posted September 30, 2014 Share Posted September 30, 2014 Wouln't really surpise me if they shut down the news department, the way they have bumf**ed this whole thing. S!nclair won't be that stupid. 33/40 may have its share of cutbacks in coming months, but the last thing they will do is cancel all newscasts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobvick 9 Posted September 30, 2014 Share Posted September 30, 2014 And according to Zap2it.com, it's channel 33 on U-Verse, so this is the current channel situation: OTA: 17.2, 58.1, or 68.2 Charter & Bright House (Metro Bham): 12 Comcast (Tuscaloosa): 5 DirecTV: 67 Dish: 40 U-Verse: 33 So, at most maybe 20% of viewers in the area actually get them on 33 or 40? I'd be willing to bet more people get them on channel 12 via the two largest cable companies in town than any other single channel number. It's on cable 12 on West Alabama Cable in Marion County and Fayette County and on all Charter that I know of. Should just brand as ABC 12. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrapmcdowell 1 Posted September 30, 2014 Share Posted September 30, 2014 That's odd considering Sinclair just this spring bought 70+ cameras and they are standardizing on their platform. I would think it would be beneficial to keep some. The ones Sinclair bought are about $11000/piece so 33/40s can't be that expensive and I'm thinking they would be lucky to get half that amount. Allbriton went all JVC spring 2011 http://pro.jvc.com/pro/pr/2011/nab/allbritton.html Giving time for cameras to be shipped to all the stations and time to integrate them into the work flow, one could conclude that the actual usage of these cameras is only 3 1/2 years old at best. That seems kinda quick to dump them. And what about their high school football show Blitz, having less cameras would certainly affect how many games they could cover each week. It's on cable 12 on West Alabama Cable in Marion County and Fayette County and on all Charter that I know of. Should just brand as ABC 12. ABC 12 does have a nice ring to it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rkolsen 1675 Posted October 1, 2014 Share Posted October 1, 2014 Allbriton went all JVC spring 2011 http://pro.jvc.com/pro/pr/2011/nab/allbritton.html Giving time for cameras to be shipped to all the stations and time to integrate them into the work flow, one could conclude that the actual usage of these cameras is only 3 1/2 years old at best. That seems kinda quick to dump them. And what about their high school football show Blitz, having less cameras would certainly affect how many games they could cover each week. ABC 12 does have a nice ring to it! WJLA didn't standardize on JVC for some reason. Maybe because they wanted better picture quality - WMAR uses those same cameras on their pedestals and the PQ is crap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DirtyHarry 718 Posted October 1, 2014 Share Posted October 1, 2014 A former video editor/producer is telling me 33/40 is gearing up to sell several of their JVC over the shoulder field cameras. Makes me wonder if we are getting upgrades or the first downsizing move by Sinclair? I think "former" is the operative word. Given all the rumor and hearsay around here, where people couldn't even grasp the concept of simply moving programming so that it gets broadcast from another stick, I can see where a "former" employee might also have bad information. WJLA didn't standardize on JVC for some reason. Maybe because they wanted better picture quality - WMAR uses those same cameras on their pedestals and the PQ is crap. I think this is your answer. Say what you want about Sinclair, but they don't seem to skimp when it comes to the technical side of things. They don't use JVC and they want to use the stuff they've already vetted. I wonder if it also might have to do with the way their workflow is designed. They've really come a long way from the days when their independent stations had pretty laughable production quality. I hope they are upgrading, but with Sinclair you never know. Wouln't really surpise me if they shut down the news department, the way they have bumf**ed this whole thing. I would have thought they would have expanded news and added a 9:00 news on WABM or WTTO to compete with WBRC. Something like ABC 33/40 News at 9:00 on My68. First, you need to get one thing clear. It's one thing to have an established news department affiliated with a "Big 3" network and it's something completely different to have a startup news operation for a Fox station. WTTE has news because it was able to piggyback onto WSYX. They did not have to start from scratch, unlike WPGH or even KDNL where they were trying to establish something new. WKEF and WNWO going, even though they are laggards in the ratings because news anchors the station and gives it an identity. So the bottom line is that Sinclair would never shutter the news departments of these stations unless they were losing a boatload of money. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rkolsen 1675 Posted October 1, 2014 Share Posted October 1, 2014 I think this is your answer. Say what you want about Sinclair, but they don't seem to skimp when it comes to the technical side of things. They don't use JVC and they want to use the stuff they've already vetted. I wonder if it also might have to do with the way their workflow is designed. They bought at least 70 JVC cameras this spring. http://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/technology/sinclair-orders-70-new-jvc-cameras/130011 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elfuego35 89 Posted October 1, 2014 Share Posted October 1, 2014 They bought at least 70 JVC cameras this spring. http://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/technology/sinclair-orders-70-new-jvc-cameras/130011 However, those are the newest cameras that JVC has available on the market, while the cameras at ABC 33/40 are older, and may not meet Sinclair's requirements. Also, I don't think it is so much the fact they were JVC cameras as the fact they have livestream technology, which means they can be paired with Sinclair's LiveU backpacks for liveshots. Look at the last line of the article for the first stations to deploy the new cameras? WOAI/KABB (which is consolidating), and WJAC in Johnstown, two of Sinclair's newest acquisitions prior to the Albritton deal. That would imply that Sinclair is upgrading rather then downsizing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sanewsguy 509 Posted October 2, 2014 Share Posted October 2, 2014 They bought at least 70 JVC cameras this spring. http://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/technology/sinclair-orders-70-new-jvc-cameras/130011 Sinclair currently uses Panasonic cameras. Interesting they're switching away. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mvcg66b3r 97 Posted October 2, 2014 Share Posted October 2, 2014 Here's how I would do it: WABM 68 68.1 ABC HD (720p) 68.2 MNT HD (720p) 68.3 Weather SD WDBB 17 / WBMA-LD 58 17.1/58.1 MNT HD (720p) 17.2/58.2 ABC HD (720p) 17.3/58.3 Heartland SD WTTO 21 21.1 CW HD (1080i) 21.2 getTV SD Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobvick 9 Posted October 2, 2014 Share Posted October 2, 2014 Here's how I would do it: WABM 68 68.1 ABC HD (720p) 68.2 MNT HD (720p) 68.3 Weather SD WDBB 17 / WBMA-LD 58 17.1/58.1 MNT HD (720p) 17.2/58.2 ABC HD (720p) 17.3/58.3 Heartland SD WTTO 21 21.1 CW HD (1080i) 21.2 getTV SD Just for the heck of it, here is how I would have did it. Because there is so much of a change already going on, anyway, I would have changed the branding to ABC 21, CW 68, and My58 and did this. I know that with the CW/My combination, you have 1080i and 720P, but they are already doing this with WDDB now. I can't speak for how the quality is since I no longer have an antenna. WTTO (ABC 21) 21.1 ABC 21.2 Weather 21.3 Heartland WBMA (My58) 58.1 MyNetwork 58.2 GetTV WABM (CW 68 or CW Birmingham) 68.1 CW 68.2 MyNetwork WDBB 17.1 CW 17.2 MyNetwork Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mixdup 0 Posted October 2, 2014 Share Posted October 2, 2014 Here's how I would do it: WABM 68 68.1 ABC HD (720p) 68.2 MNT HD (720p) 68.3 Weather SD WDBB 17 / WBMA-LD 58 17.1/58.1 MNT HD (720p) 17.2/58.2 ABC HD (720p) 17.3/58.3 Heartland SD WTTO 21 21.1 CW HD (1080i) 21.2 getTV SD The only problem with this arrangement is that West Alabama loses access to CW. WDBB has been mirroring WTTO for decades, and given the demographics and programming of WTTO vs. WABM prior to this switch, I suspect that WTTO's programming has a wider audience than WABM's in the Tuscaloosa and rural West Alabama area. Just for the heck of it, here is how I would have did it. Because there is so much of a change already going on, anyway, I would have changed the branding to ABC 21, CW 68, and My58 and did this. I know that with the CW/My combination, you have 1080i and 720P, but they are already doing this with WDDB now. I can't speak for how the quality is since I no longer have an antenna. WTTO (ABC 21) 21.1 ABC 21.2 Weather 21.3 Heartland WBMA (My58) 58.1 MyNetwork 58.2 GetTV WABM (CW 68 or CW Birmingham) 68.1 CW 68.2 MyNetwork WDBB 17.1 CW 17.2 MyNetwork Do you mean "they're already doing this with WDBB" in that ABC and WTTO are now being mirrored on WDBB? Because before this switch I believe WDBB was essentially carrying the same mux as WTTO. You're not implying that WDBB was carrying CW and MyNetwork before are you? Also, I think they wanted ABC on WDBB so that the Tuscaloosa area would continue to get OTA ABC. Tuscaloosa and West Alabama have been a major focus of ABC 33/40, whereas stations like WBRC focus on Anniston. Keeping WDBB, aside from a grandfathering issue, likely played into the fact they wanted to continue to focus on Tuscaloosa instead of the eastern side of the DMA I agree with you (bobvick) pretty much otherwise though. Essentially turn WTTO into the ABC affiliate and put all of WBMA's existing content there. Then, put all of WTTO and WABM's existing content on WABM (two HDs and one SD would be a squeeze but they could do it). Then, use WDBB to mirror ABC and CW to West Alabama. The only other thing, though, is I don't think making anything on WBMA/58 only would be a good idea, since they would lose any must-carry ability with cable companies (if they have that right with any of the subchannels anyway) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobvick 9 Posted October 2, 2014 Share Posted October 2, 2014 Do you mean "they're already doing this with WDBB" in that ABC and WTTO are now being mirrored on WDBB? What I was referring to was the fact that they have a 1080i and a 720p feed on WDBB now. Since CW is 1080 and ABC is 720. Yeah, you are right, before the change, WDBB was nothing but a mirror image of WTTO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D_Thomas 0 Posted October 11, 2014 Share Posted October 11, 2014 Sinclair first reached agreement to sell WCFT-TV to Howard Stirk Holdings. Then later, an agreement was reached to sell WJSU-TV to HSH. Currently two applications are pending with the FCC to assign station licenses to HSH. Most probably already know this. So guess WCFT and WJSU will not go dark, pending FCC approval, and whatever new programming they will have under HSH. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mixdup 0 Posted October 13, 2014 Share Posted October 13, 2014 Sinclair first reached agreement to sell WCFT-TV to Howard Stirk Holdings. Then later, an agreement was reached to sell WJSU-TV to HSH. Currently two applications are pending with the FCC to assign station licenses to HSH. Most probably already know this. So guess WCFT and WJSU will not go dark, pending FCC approval, and whatever new programming they will have under HSH. There's info about this in the corporate forum. It's interesting, I wonder if they are being sold just for the spectrum to eventually be sold to cell phone companies. HSH has agreed, in the sales agreement, that they will not seek must-carry status from cable and satellite companies, even though they would be entitled to it. With that caveat, I don't see anything exceptionally compelling going on those transmitters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrapmcdowell 1 Posted October 23, 2014 Share Posted October 23, 2014 Signs of things changing http://www.abc3340.com/clip/10752542/raita-announces-return-of-the-zone-on-my68 The sports talk show 'The Zone' Returns, but on My68. And it will compete with the 5 O'clock news. 'The Zone' will air Monday - Thursday. I guess Sinclair owning both stations really helped get this program back. I enjoyed it when it previously aired on Sunday nights and I am interested to see how the show develops from a once a week broadcast to 4 days a week. One thing about the Birmingham Market - they love some sports talk! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sanewsguy 509 Posted October 24, 2014 Share Posted October 24, 2014 So, WABM airs "Friday Night Rivals" which is Sinclair's cookie-cutter high school football broadcast. Anyway, it wouldn't surprise me if next season, they started using talent from WBMA. KMYS already aired "Thursday Night Lights" using KABB's talent, but the season after they bought WOAI, they started using talent from both stations. KABB's weather man also does the forecast for the game before he goes back to the station to do the news so it wouldn't surprise if channel 68.2's weather man also did the weather for "FNR". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrapmcdowell 1 Posted February 14, 2015 Share Posted February 14, 2015 James Spann has confirmed on twitter that the new Sinclair graphics should roll out sometime next week.WJLA has already switched over and we are seeing signs from the other former Allbriton stations that changes are coming as well. Originally we all thought that the move to ABC68/58/21?? Would happen late last year, maybe it is closer now? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheRolyPoly 1844 Posted February 14, 2015 Share Posted February 14, 2015 Originally we all thought that the move to ABC 68/58/21?? Would happen late last year, maybe it is closer now? Instead of that, why can't they just call it ABC Alabama or ABC Central Alabama? First off, that would be a terrible branding, second my branding(s) would be better and three, ABC is on digital sub channels with the exception of WBMA-LD 58.1. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LTSC1980 96 Posted February 15, 2015 Share Posted February 15, 2015 James Spann has confirmed on twitter that the new Sinclair graphics should roll out sometime next week.WJLA has already switched over and we are seeing signs from the other former Allbriton stations that changes are coming as well. Originally we all thought that the move to ABC68/58/21?? Would happen late last year, maybe it is closer now? Maybe they would use ABC Alabama instead? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mvcg66b3r 97 Posted February 15, 2015 Share Posted February 15, 2015 Maybe they would use ABC Alabama instead? And perhaps ABC Lowcountry for WCIV-DT2? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rusty Muck 4164 Posted February 15, 2015 Share Posted February 15, 2015 Don't be shocked if they keep the "ABC 33/40" brand as-is with the new graphics, for consistency and simplicity purposes. Same thing with WCIV. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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