In telecommunications, frequency sharing or channel sharing is the assignment to or use of the same radio frequency by two or more stations that are separated geographically or that use the frequency at different times. It reduces the potential for mutual interference where the assignment of different frequencies to each user is not practical or possible.
U.S. mobile data usage in 2017 was 40 times that in 2010, forcing frequencies to be reallocated. [1] [2] [3] The FCC's 2016 auction allowed two or more stations to share a single 6 MHz television channel while retaining their licenses and all rights. [4] [5] [6]
NBC sold the spectrum of three of its stations in the 2017 FCC auction: WNBC New York, Telemundo WSNS-TV Chicago and WWSI Philadelphia. Other NBC stations in the market would begin channel sharing with those stations; for instance, Comcast moved Channel 28 WNBC onto Telemundo's Channel 35 WNJU, broadcasting both stations from WNJU's antenna. [7] [8] [9] [10] Stations had to either channel-share with another TV station in this way or go off the air by Jan. 23, 2018. [11]
Ultra high frequency (UHF) is the ITU designation for radio frequencies in the range between 300 megahertz (MHz) and 3 gigahertz (GHz), also known as the decimetre band as the wavelengths range from one meter to one tenth of a meter. Radio waves with frequencies above the UHF band fall into the super-high frequency (SHF) or microwave frequency range. Lower frequency signals fall into the VHF or lower bands. UHF radio waves propagate mainly by line of sight; they are blocked by hills and large buildings although the transmission through building walls is strong enough for indoor reception. They are used for television broadcasting, cell phones, satellite communication including GPS, personal radio services including Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, walkie-talkies, cordless phones, satellite phones, and numerous other applications.
WTTW is a PBS member television station in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Owned by not-for-profit broadcaster Window to the World Communications, Inc., it is sister to commercial classical music radio station WFMT. The two stations share studios in the Renée Crown Public Media Center, located at 5400 North Saint Louis Avenue in the city's North Park neighborhood; its transmitter facility is atop the Willis Tower on South Wacker Drive in the Chicago Loop. WTTW also owns and operates The Chicago Production Center, a video production and editing facility that is operated alongside the two stations.
WNBC is a television station in New York City that serves as the flagship of the NBC network. It is owned and operated by the network's NBC Owned Television Stations division alongside Linden, New Jersey–licensed Telemundo station WNJU. WNBC's studios and offices are co-located with NBC's corporate headquarters at 30 Rockefeller Plaza in Midtown Manhattan; WNJU's facilities in Fort Lee, New Jersey, also serve as WNBC's New Jersey news bureau. Through a channel sharing agreement with WNJU, the two stations transmit using WNJU's spectrum from an antenna atop One World Trade Center.
WIFR-LD is a low-power television station in Rockford, Illinois, United States, affiliated with CBS and The CW Plus. The station is owned by Gray Television, and maintains studios and transmitter facilities on North Meridian Road in Rockford.
WNJU is a television station licensed to Linden, New Jersey, United States, serving as the Telemundo outlet for the New York City area. It is one of two flagship stations of the Spanish-language network. WNJU is owned and operated by NBCUniversal's Telemundo Station Group alongside NBC flagship WNBC. WNJU's studios are located on Fletcher Avenue in Fort Lee, New Jersey. Through a channel sharing agreement with WNBC, the two stations transmit using WNJU's spectrum from an antenna atop One World Trade Center.
WYCC was a public television station in Chicago, Illinois, United States. It was last owned by not-for-profit broadcasting entity Window to the World Communications, Inc., alongside PBS member station WTTW and classical music radio station WFMT. WYCC's operations were housed with WTTW and WFMT in the Renée Crown Public Media Center, located at 5400 North Saint Louis Avenue in the city's North Park neighborhood; WYCC and WTTW shared transmitter facilities atop the Willis Tower on South Wacker Drive in the Chicago Loop. WYCC previously maintained studios at Kennedy–King College on South Union Avenue and Halsted Parkway in the Englewood neighborhood.
WZDC-CD is a Class A television station in Washington, D.C., serving as the market's outlet for the Spanish-language network Telemundo. It is owned and operated by NBCUniversal's Telemundo Station Group alongside NBC outlet WRC-TV. WZDC-CD and WRC-TV share studios and transmitter facilities on Nebraska Avenue in the Tenleytown neighborhood of northwest Washington.
WXFT-DT is a television station licensed to Aurora, Illinois, United States, serving as the Chicago-area outlet for the Spanish-language network UniMás. It is owned and operated by TelevisaUnivision alongside Joliet-licensed Univision station WGBO-DT. The two stations share studios on Fairbanks Court in the Streeterville neighborhood. Through a channel sharing agreement with ABC owned-and-operated station WLS-TV, WXFT-DT transmits using WLS-TV's spectrum from an antenna atop the Willis Tower.
WVIT is a television station licensed to New Britain, Connecticut, United States, serving as the NBC outlet for the Hartford–New Haven market. It is owned and operated by the network's NBC Owned Television Stations division alongside Class A Telemundo outlet WRDM-CD. The two stations share studios on New Britain Avenue in West Hartford and transmitter facilities on Rattlesnake Mountain in Farmington, Connecticut.
WKOI-TV is a television station licensed to Richmond, Indiana, United States, broadcasting the Ion Television network to the Dayton, Ohio, area. The station is owned and operated by the Ion Media subsidiary of the E. W. Scripps Company. Transmission facilities are provided by unrelated NBC affiliate WDTN, which shares its digital channel with WKOI-TV through a channel sharing agreement, along with WDTN's sister station, Springfield, Ohio–licensed CW affiliate WBDT ; the transmitter is located on Frytown Road in southwest Dayton. For the purposes of its FCC correspondence, WKOI's official 'studio' facility is located at Scripps Center in downtown Cincinnati.
WYCN-LD is a low-power television station in Providence, Rhode Island, United States, broadcasting the Spanish-language network Telemundo. Owned and operated by NBCUniversal's Telemundo Station Group, the station has studios on Kenney Drive in Cranston, Rhode Island, and its transmitter is located on East Main Street in Norton, Massachusetts.
WRDM-CD is a Class A television station licensed to Hartford, Connecticut, United States, serving as the Hartford–New Haven market's outlet for the Spanish-language network Telemundo. It is owned and operated by NBCUniversal's Telemundo Station Group alongside NBC outlet WVIT. The two stations share studios on New Britain Avenue in West Hartford and transmitter facilities on Rattlesnake Mountain in Farmington, Connecticut. Despite WRDM-CD legally holding a low-power Class A license, it transmits using WVIT's full-power spectrum. This ensures complete reception across the Hartford–New Haven market.
WAGT-CD is a low-power, Class A television station in Augusta, Georgia, United States, affiliated with NBC and The CW Plus. It is owned by Gray Television alongside dual CBS/MyNetworkTV affiliate WRDW-TV and low-power Telemundo affiliate WGAT-LD. The three stations share studios at The Village at Riverwatch development in Augusta; WAGT-CD's transmitter is located in Beech Island, South Carolina.
WBTS-CD, known as NBC10 Boston, is a Class A television station licensed to Nashua, New Hampshire, United States, serving as the NBC outlet for the Boston area. It is owned and operated by the network's NBC Owned Television Stations division alongside Merrimack, New Hampshire–licensed Telemundo station WNEU ; it is also sister to regional cable news channel New England Cable News (NECN) and regional sports network NBC Sports Boston. The four outlets share studios at the NBCU Boston Media Center on B Street in Needham, Massachusetts. WBTS-CD is broadcast by full-power WGBX-TV from its transmitter site on Cedar Street, also in Needham, giving it full coverage of the Boston television market. It is branded as channel 10 owing to its primary cable channel position.
The digital transition in the United States was the switchover from analog to exclusively digital broadcasting of terrestrial television programming. According to David Rehr, then president and CEO of the National Association of Broadcasters, this transition represented "the most significant advancement of television technology since color TV was introduced." For full-power TV stations, the transition went into effect on June 12, 2009, with stations ending regular programming on their analog signals no later than 11:59 p.m. local time that day.
WSNS-TV is a television station in Chicago, Illinois, United States, serving as the local outlet for the Spanish-language network Telemundo. It is owned and operated by NBCUniversal's Telemundo Station Group alongside NBC outlet WMAQ-TV ; it is also sister to regional sports network NBC Sports Chicago. WSNS-TV and WMAQ-TV share studios at the NBC Tower on North Columbus Drive in the city's Streeterville neighborhood; both stations are broadcast from the same transmitter atop the Willis Tower in the Chicago Loop.
NBC Owned Television Stations is the division of NBCUniversal Owned TV Stations (NBCUniversal), a subsidiary of Comcast that oversees the NBC owned-and-operated television stations, Cozi TV network, LXTV and Skycastle Entertainment, its in-house marketing and promotion company. NBCUniversal's Telemundo owned-and-operated stations are held in the separate Telemundo Station Group.
The 2016 United States wireless spectrum auction, officially known as Auction 1001, allocated approximately 100 MHz of the United States Ultra High Frequency (UHF) spectrum formerly allocated to UHF television in the 600 MHz band. The spectrum auction and subsequent reallocations were authorized by Title VI of the payroll tax cut extension passed by the United States Congress on February 17, 2012.
Telemundo Station Group is the division of NBCUniversal Owned TV Stations (NBCUniversal), a subsidiary of Comcast that oversees their Telemundo owned-and-operated television stations and the TeleXitos network. The NBC owned-and-operated stations are held in the separate NBC Owned Television Stations division.
The following are lists of changes to American television networks, including changes of station affiliations, that occurred in 2018.
This article incorporates public domain material from Federal Standard 1037C. General Services Administration. Archived from the original on 2022-01-22.