KAZA-TV
Encyclopedia
KAZA-TV is a full-service television station
in Avalon, California
, broadcasting locally in digital
on UHF channel 47 and serving the Los Angeles
metropolitan area as an affiliate
of Azteca América
. Founded July 9, 2001, the station is jointly-owned by Pappas Telecasting of Visalia, California
(which owns a 75% interest) and Mexican
broadcaster TV Azteca
(25% interest) http://www.tvnewsday.com/articles/2008/09/24/daily.7/, and is the flagship station of the Azteca América
television network.
(owners of rivals KVEA
and KWHY) filed a petition with the Federal Communications Commission
to deny KAZA's license renewal, on basis that TV Azteca controlled 51.6% of the station (above the permitted 33% for foreign broadcasting groups) via loans and other interests. http://broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6396183.htmlhttp://www.variety.com/article/VR1117954917.html?categoryId=14&cs=1 According to the Los Angeles Times
, it is believed to be the first challenge to a license renewal sent to the FCC since 1979 (apparently forgetting some challenges to the RKO General
licenses in the early 1980s).
According to the filing, as presented in the Times article (Dec. 1, 2006, page C1), NBCU accused TV Azteca of attempting to undermine its operations in Mexico
. One example cited is the shutdown of production of a show on Telemundo
, Quinceañera
. NBCU accused TV Azteca of hiring undercover
police officers to enforce the shutdown; the show's production was moved to Miami, Florida
as a result.
Two days later, Azteca fired back. Its chairman, Luis Echarte, said this when noting he insists the local marketing agreement is legitimate and that NBC Universal's allegations "ridiculous" http://broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6396440.html?display=Breaking+News:
, located atop Mount Wilson
(see "Transmitter Coordinates" in infobox).
Television station
A television station is a business, organisation or other such as an amateur television operator that transmits content over terrestrial television. A television transmission can be by analog television signals or, more recently, by digital television. Broadcast television systems standards are...
in Avalon, California
Avalon, California
Avalon, or Avalon Bay, is the only incorporated city on Santa Catalina Island of the California Channel Islands, and the southernmost city in Los Angeles County. Besides Avalon, the only other center of population on the island is the small unincorporated town of Two Harbors...
, broadcasting locally in digital
ATSC
ATSC standards are a set of standards developed by the Advanced Television Systems Committee for digital television transmission over terrestrial, cable, and satellite networks....
on UHF channel 47 and serving the Los Angeles
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
metropolitan area as an affiliate
Affiliate
An affiliate is a commercial entity with a relationship with a peer or a larger entity.- Corporate structure :A corporation may be referred to as an affiliate of another when it is related to it but not strictly controlled by it, as with a subsidiary relationship, or when it is desired to avoid...
of Azteca América
Azteca América
Azteca América is a broadcast television network marketed toward Spanish-speaking families residing in the United States. As a rapidly-growing Spanish language network, Azteca América now reaches 89% of the Hispanic households in the U.S., operating in sixty-two markets nationwide. Wholly owned by...
. Founded July 9, 2001, the station is jointly-owned by Pappas Telecasting of Visalia, California
Visalia, California
Visalia is a Central California city situated in the heart of California’s agricultural San Joaquin Valley, approximately southeast of San Francisco and north of Los Angeles...
(which owns a 75% interest) and Mexican
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
broadcaster TV Azteca
TV Azteca
Azteca, is the second largest Mexican television entertainment. It was established in 1983 as the state-owned Instituto Mexicano de la Televisión , a holding of the national TV networks channel 13 and 7 and was privatized under its current name in 1993 and now is part of Grupo Salinas...
(25% interest) http://www.tvnewsday.com/articles/2008/09/24/daily.7/, and is the flagship station of the Azteca América
Azteca América
Azteca América is a broadcast television network marketed toward Spanish-speaking families residing in the United States. As a rapidly-growing Spanish language network, Azteca América now reaches 89% of the Hispanic households in the U.S., operating in sixty-two markets nationwide. Wholly owned by...
television network.
Petition to deny license
On November 30, 2006, NBC UniversalNBC Universal
NBCUniversal Media, LLC is a media and entertainment company engaged in the production and marketing of entertainment, news, and information products and services to a global customer base...
(owners of rivals KVEA
KVEA
KVEA is a Spanish-language television station in the Los Angeles area owned and operated by NBC Universal and the West Coast flagship station of the Telemundo network. It was the first mainland U.S. station owned by Telemundo at the network's launch in the late 1980's...
and KWHY) filed a petition with the Federal Communications Commission
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
to deny KAZA's license renewal, on basis that TV Azteca controlled 51.6% of the station (above the permitted 33% for foreign broadcasting groups) via loans and other interests. http://broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6396183.htmlhttp://www.variety.com/article/VR1117954917.html?categoryId=14&cs=1 According to the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
, it is believed to be the first challenge to a license renewal sent to the FCC since 1979 (apparently forgetting some challenges to the RKO General
RKO General
RKO General was the main holding company through 1991 for the noncore businesses of the General Tire and Rubber Company and, after General Tire's reorganization in the 1980s, GenCorp. The business was based around the consolidation of its parent company's broadcasting interests, dating to 1943, and...
licenses in the early 1980s).
According to the filing, as presented in the Times article (Dec. 1, 2006, page C1), NBCU accused TV Azteca of attempting to undermine its operations in Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
. One example cited is the shutdown of production of a show on Telemundo
Telemundo
Telemundo is an American television network that broadcasts in Spanish. The network is the second-largest Spanish-language content producer in the world, and the second-largest Spanish-language network in the United States, behind Univision....
, Quinceañera
Quinceañera (TV series)
Quinceañera is a Mexican telenovela, produced by and broadcast on Televisa in 1987. It featured the first starring role for both Adela Noriega and Thalía, a singer then member of the pop band Timbiriche....
. NBCU accused TV Azteca of hiring undercover
Undercover
Being undercover is disguising one's own identity or using an assumed identity for the purposes of gaining the trust of an individual or organization to learn secret information or to gain the trust of targeted individuals in order to gain information or evidence...
police officers to enforce the shutdown; the show's production was moved to Miami, Florida
Miami, Florida
Miami is a city located on the Atlantic coast in southeastern Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, the most populous county in Florida and the eighth-most populous county in the United States with a population of 2,500,625...
as a result.
Two days later, Azteca fired back. Its chairman, Luis Echarte, said this when noting he insists the local marketing agreement is legitimate and that NBC Universal's allegations "ridiculous" http://broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6396440.html?display=Breaking+News:
“It’s obviously a ploy to damage our image, given our strong performance in the U.S.,” he says. “KAZA is owned by Pappas. We’ve been paying rent to Pappas to operate the station for three years.”
Technical information
KAZA-TV serves a 73 mi (117 km) radius from its transmitter, covering Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino and Ventura counties. Its transmitter is located in Los AngelesLos Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
, located atop Mount Wilson
Mount Wilson (California)
Mount Wilson is one of the better known peaks in the San Gabriel Mountains, part of the Angeles National Forest in Los Angeles County, California. It is the location of the Mount Wilson Observatory and has become the astronomical center of Southern California with and telescopes, and and tall...
(see "Transmitter Coordinates" in infobox).