KREG-TV

Not to be confused with WREG-TV.
KREG-TV
CityGlenwood Springs, Colorado
Channels
BrandingMeTV Denver
Programming
Affiliations
Ownership
Owner
History
First air date
January 28, 1984 (40 years ago) (1984-01-28)
Former call signs
KCWS (1984–1987)
Former channel number(s)
  • Analog: 3 (VHF, 1984–2009)
  • Virtual: 3 (until 2018), 32 (2018–2020)
  • Independent (January−July 1984)
  • Dark (July 1984–1987, January–July 2017)
  • CBS (via KREX-TV, 1987–January 2017)
  • NBC (secondary, 1987–1996)
  • Fox (secondary, early 1990s–1997)
  • Heroes & Icons (July 2017–2020; now on DT2)
Call sign meaning
KREX Glenwood Springs (former satellite of KREX-TV)
Technical information[1]
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID70578
ERP16.1 kW
HAAT774 m (2,539 ft)
Transmitter coordinates39°25′7″N 107°22′8″W / 39.41861°N 107.36889°W / 39.41861; -107.36889 (KREG-TV)
Translator(s)KCNC-TV 4.4 Denver
Links
Public license information
Websitemetv.com/kreg

KREG-TV (channel 3) is a television station in Glenwood Springs, Colorado, United States, broadcasting the classic television network MeTV. It is owned and operated by Weigel Broadcasting, and has a transmitter atop Sunlight Peak.

Since its purchase in 2020 by Weigel, and given KREG-TV has no signal penetration into the Denver metropolitan area, KREG-TV has been positioned as a station serving the entire Denver media market via cable and satellite, rather than its history as a repeater of stations based in Grand Junction.

History

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KCWS

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KREG-TV was launched January 28, 1984, by Western Slope Communications, a group of investors, as independent station KCWS[2] on VHF channel 3.[3] It promised the best selection of off-network and first-run syndicated programming available; plus an aggressive regional news operation that pioneered the first long-form morning newscast on Western Slope television.

At its launch, KCWS stated it had "one of the highest shares ever received by an independent station at sign-on". However, the station's construction was hindered by what it said was "one of the worst winters in Colorado history", as well as equipment that was either delayed or damaged; in addition, the station fought with commissioners in Garfield County to locate its transmitter at the Sunlight Peak transmitter site used by its translator system. Mesa County's commissioners refused to allow KCWS to be carried on its translators; this prevented the station from being seen in Grand Junction, the largest community in the Western Slope, until the station was added to United Cable's lineup.[2] In addition, the small size of the Glenwood Springs area meant that advertising dollars were scarce;[4] it did not help matters that KWGN-TV in Denver had been available on cable for decades in the area. The station underwent three rounds of layoffs, and filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on June 27, 1984.[2] News was eventually eliminated, and after only five months, KCWS went dark on July 2, 1984,[2] following a Taxi rerun.

Satellite of KREX-TV

[edit]

In 1987, W. Russell Withers Jr., owner of KREX-TV, the CBS and NBC affiliate in Grand Junction, bought KCWS;[4] it returned to the air September 16, 1987, as KREG-TV, a satellite of KREX.[5] As a satellite of KREX, KREG had no local news inserts but did have a small office in Carbondale, near Glenwood Springs.

Withers sold KREG-TV, along with KREX-TV, to Hoak Media in 2003. On December 19, 2013, Gray Television, who a month earlier announced its purchase of Hoak Media,[6][7] sold KREG and its sister stations in Grand Junction (as part of Gray's divestment to comply with FCC rules because it was the owner of KKCO and operator of KJCT in the Grand Junction market) to Nexstar Broadcasting Group for $33.5 million.[8] The sale was completed on June 13, 2014.[9]

Sale to Marquee Broadcasting

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On May 10, 2016, Nexstar agreed to sell KREG-TV to Marquee Broadcasting for $350,000;[10] the sale is part of a series of divestitures required following Nexstar's acquisition of Media General due to Federal Communications Commission (FCC) ownership caps.[11] Following the sale, KREG, which is considered to be part of the Denver market, ceased to be a satellite of KREX.[11] KREG went dark on January 5, 2017, saying that ice and snow accumulation and the risk of avalanches had rendered the station's transmitter inaccessible, preventing repairs.[12] On July 1, 2017, KREG-TV returned to the air broadcasting Heroes & Icons programming.

Sale to Weigel Broadcasting

[edit]

Marquee Broadcasting agreed to sell KREG-TV to Weigel Broadcasting for $2 million on May 30, 2019.[13] The sale was completed on January 2, 2020, making KREG an H&I owned-and-operated station.[14] Later in 2020, MeTV was added on DT1, pushing Heroes & Icons to DT2.

Subchannels

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The station's signal is multiplexed:

Subchannels of KREG-TV[15]
Channel Res. Aspect Short name Programming
3.1 720p 16:9 KREG-HD MeTV
3.2 480i H&I Heroes & Icons
3.3 StartTV Start TV
3.4 Decades Catchy Comedy
3.5 Movies! Movies!
3.6 MeTV+ MeTV Plus
3.7 Story Story Television
3.8 4:3 TOONS MeTV Toons

As of 2021, Movies! and Decades (now Catchy Comedy) on DT4 and DT5 have switched their subchannel locations, with the networks on DT5 and DT4, respectively.

References

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  1. ^ "Facility Technical Data for KREG-TV". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
  2. ^ a b c d "TV station closes in Glenwood Springs". Colorado Springs Gazette Telegraph. Associated Press. July 3, 1984. Retrieved September 26, 2018.
  3. ^ "TV universe expands" (PDF). Broadcasting. December 19, 1983. p. 85. Retrieved September 26, 2018.
  4. ^ a b "By Direction Letter". Federal Communications Commission. June 10, 1987. Retrieved September 26, 2018.
  5. ^ Television & Cable Factbook 1993 Edition (PDF). 1993. p. A-254. Retrieved September 26, 2018.
  6. ^ "Gray Buying Hoak, Prime Stations For $342.5M". TVNewsCheck. Retrieved November 20, 2013.
  7. ^ Malone, Michael (November 20, 2013). "Gray TV/Excalibur To Acquire Hoak Media, Parker Broadcasting Stations For $335 Million". Broadcasting & Cable. Retrieved November 20, 2013.
  8. ^ Gray Sells Grand Junction Duop To Nexstar, TVNewsCheck, December 19, 2013
  9. ^ Nexstar Completes Purchase Of Gray Stations, TVNewsCheck, Retrieved June 13, 2014.
  10. ^ "Application For Consent To Assignment Of Broadcast Station Construction Permit Or License". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. May 17, 2016. Retrieved May 18, 2016.
  11. ^ a b Miller, Mark K. (May 27, 2016). "Nexstar Selling Five Stations in Four Markets". TVNewsCheck. Retrieved May 27, 2016.
  12. ^ "Notice of Discontinued Operations" (PDF). Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission. January 17, 2017. Retrieved January 18, 2017.
  13. ^ "Application for Consent to Assignment of Broadcast Station Construction Permit or License". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. June 6, 2019. Retrieved June 10, 2019.
  14. ^ "Consummation Notice" CDBS Public Access, Federal Communications Commission, January 3, 2020, Retrieved January 3, 2020.
  15. ^ RabbitEars TV Query for KREG-TV
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