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|---|---|
| City | Bradenton, Florida |
| Channels | |
| Branding | The Spot Tampa Bay 66 |
| Programming | |
| Affiliations |
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| Ownership | |
| Owner | |
| WFTS-TV | |
| History | |
First air date | August 1, 1994 (31 years ago) (1994-08-01) |
Former call signs | WFCT (1994–1998) |
Former channel numbers |
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Call sign meaning | Pax TV (former affiliation) |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 6601 |
| ERP | 218kW |
| HAAT | 475 m (1,558 ft) |
| Transmitter coordinates | 27°49′10.8″N82°15′38″W / 27.819667°N 82.26056°W /27.819667; -82.26056 |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Website | tampabay66 |
WXPX-TV (channel 66), brandedThe Spot Tampa Bay 66, is anindependent television station licensed toBradenton, Florida, United States, serving theTampa Bay area. Its second subchannel serves as anowned-and-operated station ofIon Television. WXPX-TV is owned by theE. W. Scripps Company alongsideTampa-licensedABC affiliateWFTS-TV (channel 28). The two stations share studios on North Himes Avenue on Tampa's northwest side; WXPX-TV's transmitter is located inRiverview, Florida.
Channel 66 went on the air as WFCT on August 1, 1994. It broadcast programming fromThe Worship Network and infomercials. Programmed from the start by Paxson Communications Corporation, forerunner toIon Media, it changed its call sign to WXPX in 1998 as part of the launch of Pax TV, laterIon Television. Scripps acquired Ion Media in 2020 and, upon gaining television rights to theTampa Bay Lightning hockey team in 2025, split WXPX off as an independent station.
In 1987, a group filed to build a station on the unused channel 66 allocation atBradenton, Florida, just before theFederal Communications Commission (FCC) froze most licensing activity in top-30 markets to study digital television channel needs.[2] Eleven applicants filed,[3] and seven remained in the running when FCCadministrative law judge Richard Sippel selected Bradenton Broadcast Television Co. Ltd., run by Anita F. Rogers, in an initial decision handed down in April 1989.[4]
Channel 66 received its permit as WTGB in 1992. Rogers was introduced toLowell Paxson, who had left theHome Shopping Network to found Christian Network, Inc. This firm funded channel 66, which would air programming from the Paxson-ownedThe Worship Network.[5] Christian Network formed part of a strategy by Paxson to have commercial and Christian stations in each of Orlando, Tampa, and Miami.[6] When channel 66 began broadcasting as WFCT on August 1, 1994, it airedinfomercials for 12 hours a day, two hours of Worship programming in prime time, and overnight sacred music.[7] When Paxson Communications Corporation launched its Infomall TV infomercial network the next year, WFCT was one of its first stations.[8]
Paxson Communications Corporation exercised its options to directly acquire Christian Network–owned WFCT andWCTD in Miami in August 1997.[9] On August 31, 1998, under new WXPX-TV call letters, the station became a launch outlet for the new Pax TV network.[10] In 2000, WXPX signed ajoint sales agreement with TampaNBC affiliateWFLA-TV (channel 8) that included WFLA selling WXPX advertising and WXPX sharing WFLA newscasts.[11] Initially, WFLA produced live 7 and 10 p.m. newscasts for WXPX, which was the only station in the network to rebroadcastNBC Nightly News and one of three to offer live news. The 7 p.m. news was scrapped and changed to a rebroadcast in October 2001,[12] while the 10 p.m. followed in early 2002 after Pax opted not to keep paying to produce it.[13] Beginning in 2003, WXPX was the television home ofTampa Bay Devil Rays baseball, airing 65 to 67 games a season between 2003 and 2008.[14][15] Two cable-onlyregional sports networks,Fox Sports Florida andSun Sports, split rights beginning in 2009.[16]
After changing its name to i: Independent Television in 2005, the network became known as Ion Television in 2007.[17] TheE. W. Scripps Company, owner in Tampa Bay ofABC affiliateWFTS-TV (channel 28), acquired Ion Media in 2020.[18][19]
On May 14, 2025, it was announced that WXPX would become anindependent station, branded as "The Spot, Tampa Bay 66", on July 1. The new format will be anchored byScripps Sports's acquisition of regional rights to theTampa Bay Lightning hockey team, whose games will air on WXPX.[20]
WXPX-TV's transmitter is located inRiverview, Florida.[1] The station's signal ismultiplexed:
| Channel | Res. | Aspect | Short name | Programming |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 66.1 | 720p | 16:9 | WXPX-HD | Independent |
| 66.2 | 480i | ION | Ion Television | |
| 66.3 | CourtTV | Court TV | ||
| 66.4 | Laff | Laff | ||
| 66.5 | IONPlus | Ion Plus | ||
| 66.6 | BUSTED | Busted | ||
| 66.7 | GameSho | Game Show Central | ||
| 66.8 | QVC | QVC |
WXPX-TV shut down its analog signal, overUHF channel 66, on June 12, 2009, as part of thefederally mandated transition from analog to digital television.[22] The station's digital signal remained on its pre-transition UHF channel 42, usingvirtual channel 66.
Includes English-language stations in out-of-state TV markets, but reaching a portion of Florida | ||
| ABC | ||
| CBS | ||
| Fox | ||
| NBC | ||
| The CW | ||
| Ion Television | ||
| Independent | ||
| PBS | ||
| Religious | ||
| Other | ||
| ATSC 3.0 | ||
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