WRBW
Encyclopedia
WRBW is the MyNetworkTV
owned and operated station serving the Orlando
/Daytona Beach
/Melbourne
, Florida
television market. It is owned by the Fox Television Stations Group
, along with Fox station WOFL
Channel 35. Known on-air as "My65", the station offers sitcoms, cartoons, court shows, and talk/reality shows. Its transmitter is located in Christmas, Florida
. WRBW can be seen on Bright House Networks channel 6 where the area's location WKMG-TV
is seen on cable channel 5.
in June 1994, airing vintage sitcoms, cartoons, and old movies. It was owned by Rainbow Media
, a subsidiary of Cablevision. In January 1995 it affiliated with the newly-launched UPN. Since UPN only provided limited network programming, WRBW still programmed as an independent station.
Chris-Craft Industries
, part owner of UPN (through its United Television unit) bought WRBW in 1998, making WRBW the first network-owned station in Orlando. Fox acquired most of Chris-Craft's television stations in 2001, including WRBW. Fox did not consider moving its affiliation from WOFL to WRBW, however; not only was WOFL one of Fox's strongest affiliates, but WRBW was located on a very high channel number. A few months after the Chris-Craft deal closed, Fox traded KPTV
in Portland
to Meredith Corporation
in return for WOFL, giving itself a duopoly in the Orlando market. Both stations are also the only ones in the market to be O&Os of any major network, with WRBW being the first under United as a UPN affiliate. Fox subsequently moved WRBW's operations to the WOFL studios in Lake Mary
.
In the 1990s, the station aired a 10pm newscast produced by WFTV
; the newscast later moved to WRDQ
. In this period, especially during the wildfire plagued summer of 1998, there were occasions to which ABC Sports programming was moved to channel 65 in order for WFTV to provide wall to wall coverage. Some ABC Saturday morning programs also aired on WRBW until WRDQ was put on the air in 2000.
There continues to be speculations that a 10pm newscast may return to WRBW. Station officials have not ruled out that possibility, even though it would place WRBW in direct competition against its sister station, WOFL. However, that may not be the case if WOFL moves its newscast to 11 PM (as many Fox O&Os are doing).
In January 2006 UPN and The WB
announced that they would merge into a new network, The CW
. The new network did not include any of Fox's UPN affiliates. As a result, Fox scrubbed all UPN branding from its UPN affiliates, and stopped promoting UPN programming. Accordingly, WRBW began branding itself as WRBW 65. WRBW's website, however, retained the "UPN 65" logo until more than a week after this change. On March 1, 2006, WB affiliate WKCF
was announced as the CW affiliate for Orlando. It was very unlikely, however, that WRBW would have been selected in any event. Officials with The CW were on record as preferring the "strongest" UPN and WB affiliates for their network, and WKCF had been The WB's strongest affiliate for virtually all of The WB's run.
On February 22, 2006, Fox announced that WRBW would be part of a new primetime network called MyNetworkTV
to launch September 5, 2006. The new network is operated by Fox Television Stations, Inc. and Twentieth Television. Accordingly, the station has now rebranded to my65, reflecting the naming conventions of the new network. The website has also changed in keeping with the new name.
Occasionally, WRBW may now air Fox network programming whenever WOFL cannot in the event of an emergency. WRBW has normally broadcast just a color bar test pattern and tone on its digital sub-channel (65.2). However, the subchannel has also been used occasionally to provide a standard definition (480i) feed of the signals of co-owned WOFL (Orlando), WOGX (Ocala), or even WRBW's own programming at times. There appears to be no rationale for these sporadic and irregular changes apart from possibly using these video sources for testing purposes.
, digital television receivers display WRBW's virtual channel
as 65.
MyNetworkTV
MyNetworkTV is a television broadcast syndication service in the United States, owned by the Fox Entertainment Group, a division of News Corporation...
owned and operated station serving the Orlando
Orlando, Florida
Orlando is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County, and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. According to the 2010 US Census, the city had a population of 238,300, making Orlando the 79th largest city in the United States...
/Daytona Beach
Daytona Beach, Florida
Daytona Beach is a city in Volusia County, Florida, USA. According to 2008 U.S. Census Bureau estimates, the city has a population of 64,211. Daytona Beach is a principal city of the Deltona – Daytona Beach – Ormond Beach, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area, which the census bureau estimated had...
/Melbourne
Melbourne, Florida
Melbourne is a city in Brevard County, Florida, United States. As of 2009, the population estimated by the U.S. Census Bureau is 78,323. The municipal area is the second largest by size and by population in the county. Melbourne is a principal city of the Palm Bay – Melbourne – Titusville, Florida...
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
television market. It is owned by the Fox Television Stations Group
Fox Television Stations Group
Fox Television Stations, Inc. is a group of television stations located within the United States which are owned-and-operated by the Fox Broadcasting Company, a subsidiary of the Fox Entertainment Group, part of News Corporation...
, along with Fox station WOFL
WOFL
WOFL, channel 35, is the Fox owned-and-operated television station serving the Orlando, Florida metropolitan area. It is licensed to Orlando, with studios located in Lake Mary. It broadcasts its digital signal on UHF channel 22. On cable, WOFL-TV is currently seen on channel 3 for subscribers of...
Channel 35. Known on-air as "My65", the station offers sitcoms, cartoons, court shows, and talk/reality shows. Its transmitter is located in Christmas, Florida
Christmas, Florida
Christmas is a census-designated place and an unincorporated area in Orange County, Florida, United States. It is part of the Orlando–Kissimmee Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,162 at the 2000 census. Christmas is home to the world's largest alligator shaped building,...
. WRBW can be seen on Bright House Networks channel 6 where the area's location WKMG-TV
WKMG-TV
WKMG-TV channel 6 is the CBS network affiliate for Central Florida . WKMG is licensed to Orlando and is owned and operated by Post-Newsweek Stations, Inc., a subsidiary of the Washington Post Company. The station refers to itself as "Local6". WKMG's transmitter is located in Bithlo, Florida...
is seen on cable channel 5.
History
The station began operation as a locally owned independent stationIndependent station
An independent station is in the category of television terminology used to describe a television station broadcasting in the United States or Canada that is not affiliated with any television network....
in June 1994, airing vintage sitcoms, cartoons, and old movies. It was owned by Rainbow Media
Rainbow Media
AMC Networks is an entertainment company in the United States that owns the national cable channels AMC, IFC, WE tv, and Sundance Channel; the regional News 12 Networks, the art house movie theater IFC Center in New York, New York, and the film company IFC Films.The company was originally launched...
, a subsidiary of Cablevision. In January 1995 it affiliated with the newly-launched UPN. Since UPN only provided limited network programming, WRBW still programmed as an independent station.
Chris-Craft Industries
Chris-Craft Industries
Chris-Craft Industries, Inc., formerly National Automotive Fibers, Inc., was a publicly-held American corporation traded on the New York and Pacific Stock Exchanges. It later took on the name of one of its acquisitions, Chris-Craft Boats...
, part owner of UPN (through its United Television unit) bought WRBW in 1998, making WRBW the first network-owned station in Orlando. Fox acquired most of Chris-Craft's television stations in 2001, including WRBW. Fox did not consider moving its affiliation from WOFL to WRBW, however; not only was WOFL one of Fox's strongest affiliates, but WRBW was located on a very high channel number. A few months after the Chris-Craft deal closed, Fox traded KPTV
KPTV
KPTV is the Fox-affiliated television station serving the Portland, Oregon market, which includes most of the state of Oregon and portions of Southwest Washington. KPTV is owned by the Meredith Corporation in a duopoly with MyNetworkTV affiliate KPDX , with its studios located in Beaverton and...
in Portland
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
to Meredith Corporation
Meredith Corporation
The Meredith Corporation is a media conglomerate based in Des Moines, Iowa, USA. The company has two divisions, National Media and Local Media.-History:...
in return for WOFL, giving itself a duopoly in the Orlando market. Both stations are also the only ones in the market to be O&Os of any major network, with WRBW being the first under United as a UPN affiliate. Fox subsequently moved WRBW's operations to the WOFL studios in Lake Mary
Lake Mary, Florida
Lake Mary is a city in Seminole County, Florida, United States. The population was 11,456 at the 2000 census. As of 2009, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau is 15,230...
.
In the 1990s, the station aired a 10pm newscast produced by WFTV
WFTV
WFTV, channel 9, is the ABC-affiliated television station for Central Florida that is licensed to Orlando. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 39 from a transmitter between Bithlo and Christmas. Owned by Cox Enterprises, WFTV is sister to Independent WRDQ. The two stations...
; the newscast later moved to WRDQ
WRDQ
WRDQ is an Independent television station in Orlando, Florida. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 27 from a transmitter in Christmas. Owned by Cox Enterprises, the station is sister to ABC affiliate WFTV. The two share studios on East South Street in downtown Orlando....
. In this period, especially during the wildfire plagued summer of 1998, there were occasions to which ABC Sports programming was moved to channel 65 in order for WFTV to provide wall to wall coverage. Some ABC Saturday morning programs also aired on WRBW until WRDQ was put on the air in 2000.
There continues to be speculations that a 10pm newscast may return to WRBW. Station officials have not ruled out that possibility, even though it would place WRBW in direct competition against its sister station, WOFL. However, that may not be the case if WOFL moves its newscast to 11 PM (as many Fox O&Os are doing).
In January 2006 UPN and The WB
The WB Television Network
The WB Television Network is a former television network in the United States that was launched on January 11, 1995 as a joint venture between Warner Bros. and Tribune Broadcasting. On January 24, 2006, CBS Corporation and Warner Bros...
announced that they would merge into a new network, The CW
The CW Television Network
The CW Television Network is a television network in the United States launched at the beginning of the 2006–2007 television season. It is a joint venture between CBS Corporation, the former owners of United Paramount Network , and Time Warner's Warner Bros., former majority owner of The WB...
. The new network did not include any of Fox's UPN affiliates. As a result, Fox scrubbed all UPN branding from its UPN affiliates, and stopped promoting UPN programming. Accordingly, WRBW began branding itself as WRBW 65. WRBW's website, however, retained the "UPN 65" logo until more than a week after this change. On March 1, 2006, WB affiliate WKCF
WKCF
WKCF is the CW-affiliated television station for Central Florida licensed to Clermont. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 17 from a transmitter in unincorporated Bithlo. The station can also be seen on Bright House Networks channel 8 and Comcast channel 13...
was announced as the CW affiliate for Orlando. It was very unlikely, however, that WRBW would have been selected in any event. Officials with The CW were on record as preferring the "strongest" UPN and WB affiliates for their network, and WKCF had been The WB's strongest affiliate for virtually all of The WB's run.
On February 22, 2006, Fox announced that WRBW would be part of a new primetime network called MyNetworkTV
MyNetworkTV
MyNetworkTV is a television broadcast syndication service in the United States, owned by the Fox Entertainment Group, a division of News Corporation...
to launch September 5, 2006. The new network is operated by Fox Television Stations, Inc. and Twentieth Television. Accordingly, the station has now rebranded to my65, reflecting the naming conventions of the new network. The website has also changed in keeping with the new name.
Occasionally, WRBW may now air Fox network programming whenever WOFL cannot in the event of an emergency. WRBW has normally broadcast just a color bar test pattern and tone on its digital sub-channel (65.2). However, the subchannel has also been used occasionally to provide a standard definition (480i) feed of the signals of co-owned WOFL (Orlando), WOGX (Ocala), or even WRBW's own programming at times. There appears to be no rationale for these sporadic and irregular changes apart from possibly using these video sources for testing purposes.
Digital television
WRBW shut down its analog TV transmitter on June 12, 2009 as mandated by the FCC, and continued to broadcast on its pre-transition digital channel 41. However, through the use of PSIPProgram and System Information Protocol
The Program and System Information Protocol is the protocol used in the ATSC digital television system for carrying metadata about each channel in the broadcast MPEG transport stream of a TV station and for publishing information about television programs so that viewers can select what to watch...
, digital television receivers display WRBW's virtual channel
Virtual channel
In telecommunications, a logical channel number , also known as virtual channel, is a channel designation which differs from that of the actual radio channel on which the signal travels....
as 65.