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| |
|---|---|
| Channels | |
| Branding | Palm Springs CW 5 (cable channel) |
| Programming | |
| Affiliations | |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
|
| KESQ-TV,KPSP-CD,KDFX-CD,KUNA-LD,KYAV-LD,KUNA-FM | |
| History | |
Former call signs | "KCWB" (until 2006) |
Former channel number(s) |
|
| The WB (viaThe WB 100+, until 2006) | |
Call sign meaning | The CW KESQ |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 167761 |
| Class | LD |
| ERP | 0.325 kW |
| HAAT | 196.9 m (646 ft) |
| Transmitter coordinates | 33°51′58.1″N116°26′5″W / 33.866139°N 116.43472°W /33.866139; -116.43472 |
| Translator(s) | KESQ-TV 42.7 (UHF)Palm Springs |
| Links | |
Public license information | LMS |
KCWQ-LD (channel 2) is alow-power television station licensed toPalm Springs, California, United States, serving theCoachella Valley as an affiliate ofThe CW Plus. It is owned by theNews-Press & Gazette Company alongsideABC affiliateKESQ-TV (channel 42) and four other low-power stations:Class ACBS affiliateKPSP-CD (channel 38), Class AFox affiliateKDFX-CD (channel 33),Telemundo affiliateKUNA-LD (channel 15), andindependent stationKYAV-LD (channel 12). The six stations share studios on Dunham Way inThousand Palms; KCWQ-LD's transmitter is located onEdom Hill northeast of Cathedral City andI-10.
Along with other major Coachella Valley television stations, KCWQ identifies itself on-air using itscable designation (Palm Springs CW 5) rather than its over-the-air channel position. The unusual practice stems in part from the area's exceptionally high cablepenetration rate of 80.5% which is one of the highest in the United States.
In addition to its own digital signal, KCWQ issimulcast inwidescreenstandard definition on KESQ's seventhdigital subchannel from the same Edom Hill transmitter facility.
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Originally, the station was aWB affiliate as part of the cable-onlyWB 100+ operation until September 18, 2006. As such, it used the "KCWB" call sign in a fictional manner.
Between The CW's launch on September 18, 2006, and April 21, 2007, KCWQ (and the network) was not available toTime Warner Cable systems in the Coachella Valley due to a carriage dispute. As the station was launched over-the-air, the News-Press & Gazette Company explained that they had requested the station be assigned KCWB's cable designation (channel 5) and came to several agreements to that effect with the local Time Warner Cable office. They were then all successively vetoed by the cable company's head office inStamford, Connecticut.
The CW was half owned by the cable system's then-parent company,Time Warner. (Time Warner Cable was later spun off from Time Warner in 2009). Thus, by blocking cable carriage for the network in thismarket, the company was ostensibly hurting itself. Without an agreement in place, News-Press & Gazette was suggesting cable subscribers wishing to watch The CW use anover-the-air antenna and tune to VHF channel 2. The company also pointed out that the channel is available onDish Network. Instead of KCWQ and The CW, Time Warner Cable substitutedClassic Arts Showcase on channel 5. In the early days of the dispute, Time Warner also ran a ticker that explained the problem:
In April 2007, News-Press & Gazette and Time Warner reached an agreement that would finally add KCWQ to the cable line-up on channel 5 effective at 12:01 a.m. on April 21.
The station's signal ismultiplexed:
| Channel | Res. | Aspect | Short name | Programming |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2.1 | 720p | 16:9 | KCWQ-LD | The CW Plus |
| 33.3 | KDFX-LD | Fox (KDFX-CD) |