LocusPoint Networks

Last updated
LocusPoint Networks LLC
Company type Private
Industry Broadcast television
Founded2012
Defunct2019
Headquarters Pleasanton, California,
United States
Key people
Ravi Patharlanka, President
Owner Blackstone Group (99%)
Website locuspointnetworks.com

LocusPoint Networks LLC was an owner of television stations in the United States. The company is 99% owned by The Blackstone Group. After selling off most of their in 2017 and 2018 in the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) spectrum auction and to other broadcasters, they owned one remaining station, WLEP-LD in Erie, Pennsylvania, whose license they turned in to the FCC effective February 12, 2019.

One of the company's acquisitions, WMGM-TV, was rumored to have been purchased only to be sold in a spectrum auction in 2015. [1] When the FCC auction finally occurred LocusPoint failed to successfully win a bid to sell the station's spectrum to the FCC. On June 26, 2017, LocusPoint Networks agreed to sell WMGM-TV to Univision Communications, through its Univision Local Media subsidiary, for $6 million. [2] The deal will make WMGM-TV a sister station to WUVP-DT and WFPA-CD.

On April 12, 2017, LocusPoint Networks, hired by the San Mateo Community College District to sell KCSM-TV in the spectrum auction, claimed fiscal mismanagement by school officials and administrators to fulfill their basic duties to facilitate the sale properly. The station was to be sold in the auction due to the college's $1 million annual losses. In turn, the District counter-sued LocusPoint and its partner, PricewaterhouseCoopers, for failure to enter KCSM-TV into the FCC auction. [3] In September 2017 the San Mateo Community College District reached a deal to sell KCSM-TV to the Northern California Public Media owned KRCB. [4] On October 24, 2017, LocusPoint filed an injunction to stop the sale, citing violations of provisions in the original contract governing sale rights should the auction not go forward, while the San Mateo Community College District maintained that LocusPoint's role in the failed auction voided the entirety of the contract. [5] The lawsuits were settled in 2019, with the district receiving $5.5 million from PricewaterhouseCoopers and $4.5 million from LocusPoint, and KCSM-TV was sold to KRCB for an additional $12 million. The district did not have to pay anything to either PricewaterhouseCoopers or LocusPoint. [6]

On April 13, 2017, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced that LocusPoint's WLPH-CD and WQVC-CD were successful bidders in the spectrum auction. WLPH-CD, which had already been silent since LocusPoint acquired it in 2014, would be surrendering its license in exchange for $3,994,492 and WQVC-CD would be surrendering its license in exchange for $11,196,327. [7] LocusPoint surrendered the licenses for both stations to the FCC for cancellation on August 8, 2017.

Former stations

City of license / Market StationChannel
TV (RF)		Years ownedCurrent ownership status
San Francisco, California KCNZ-CD 28 (28)2012–2017Sold to CNZ Communications on August 14, 2017.
Miami, Florida WLPH-CD 442014–2017defunct, went off the air August 8, 2017.
Orlando, Florida WRCF-CD 29 (35)2013–2017Sold to TelevisaUnivision on August 14, 2017.
Plano, Illinois WLPD-CD 30 (35)2013–2018Sold to Trinity Broadcasting Network in 2018
Towson, Maryland WMJF-CD 392013–2018Sold to HME Equity Fund II on April 8, 2018, no longer operated by Towson University.
Detroit, Michigan WHPS-CD 33 (33)2014–2018Sold to HME Equity Fund II in 2018
WDWO-CD 18 (18)2013–2018Sold to TCT in 2018 [8]
Wildwood, New Jersey (Atlantic City) WMGM-TV 40 (36)2014–2017Sold to TelevisaUnivision on November 14, 2017
Edison, New Jersey WDVB-CD 23 (23)2013–2018Sold to Trinity Broadcasting Network in 2018
Buffalo, New York WBNF-CD 15 (15)1Sold to HME Equity Fund II on February 19, 2016.
Greensburg, Pennsylvania WQVC-CD 28 (46)2015–2017defunct, went off the air August 8, 2017.
Milwaukee, Wisconsin WMKE-CD 7 (21)2014–2018Sold to CNZ Communications in 2017
Erie, Pennsylvania WLEP-LD9 (43)2015–2019defunct; license cancelled February 12, 2019.

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References

  1. ↑ Viewers Voice Fear South Jersey NBC Station being sold for its Spectrum
  2. ↑ "APPLICATION FOR CONSENT TO ASSIGNMENT OF BROADCAST STATION CONSTRUCTION PERMIT OR LICENSE". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. July 6, 2017. Retrieved July 7, 2017.
  3. ↑ "Failed KCSM-TV sale forces lawsuits: College district and contractor point fingers over who dropped the ball on auction". San Mateo Daily Journal. April 12, 2017. Retrieved April 21, 2017.
  4. ↑ "Who will pay for KCSM in the end?". The American Federation of Teachers, Local 1493. American Federation of Teachers. October 2017. Retrieved March 15, 2021.
  5. ↑ "SPECTRUM SPECULATOR LOCUSPOINT FILES INJUNCTION TO STOP SALE OF KCSM-TV". Media Alliance. Media Alliance. November 10, 2017. Retrieved March 15, 2021.
  6. ↑ "College district gets a $10 million settlement in $140 million KCSM-TV sale fiasco". Palo Alto Daily Post. March 19, 2019. Retrieved March 15, 2021.
  7. ↑ FCC Broadcast Television Spectrum Incentive Auction — Auction 1001 Winning Bids
  8. ↑ "WDWO-CD Detroit Sells For $2 Million". TVNewsCheck. February 23, 2017. Retrieved February 23, 2017.
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