WZTD-LD

WZTD-LD, virtual channel 45 (UHF digital channel 34), is a low-powered, Telemundo owned-and-operated television station licensed to Richmond, Virginia, United States. The station is owned by the Telemundo Station Group subsidiary of NBCUniversal, which is itself a subsidiary of Comcast. WZTD-LD's transmitter is located in Bon Air, Virginia.

WZTD-LD
Richmond, Virginia
United States
ChannelsDigital: 34 (UHF)
Virtual: 45 (PSIP)
BrandingTelemundo Richmond
Programming
Affiliations45.1: Telemundo (O&O)
45.2: Lx
Ownership
OwnerTelemundo Station Group
(a subsidiary of NBCUniversal)
(NBC Telemundo License LLC)
History
FoundedDecember 9, 1991 (1991-12-09)
Former call signs
W61BZ (1991–2000)
WKYV-LP (2000–2008)
WZTD-LP (2008–2012)
Former channel number(s)
Analog:
61 (UHF, 1991–2000)
45 (UHF, 2000–2012)
Digital:
45 (UHF, 2012–2019)
America's Store (2000–2006)
Dark (2006–2007)
Call sign meaning
W
ZGS TelemunDo
Technical information
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID68490
ClassLD
ERP15 kW
HAAT189.2 m (621 ft)
Transmitter coordinates37°30′45″N 77°36′4.9″W
Links
Public license information
Profile
LMS

History

The station was originally founded on December 9, 1991, as W61BZ, on channel 61, owned by TV Broadcasters of Central Virginia. On February 22, 2000, the station's call sign was changed to WKYV-LP to reflect the original location of license and then moved to channel 45. On July 21, 2000, Tiger Eye Broadcasting acquired the station and license. It became an affiliate of America's Store (a defunct shopping network owned by the Home Shopping Network) after the sale.

On August 15, 2006, the station officially signed off for technical reasons. In October 2006, ZGS Communications purchased WKYV-LP and five other stations from Tiger Eye Broadcasting for $2.15 million.[1][2] In mid-November 2007, the station returned to the air as a Telemundo affiliate[3] and changed its call sign to WZTD-LP on January 16, 2008.

During the morning of January 12, 2009, the station discontinued regular programming due to technical difficulties with its satellite system and service provider, Dish Network, caused by adverse weather conditions (showers and thunderstorms) the day before. That afternoon, the station temporarily switched to an English format from OnTV4U, a 24/7 infomercial network, and returned to Telemundo programming on January 20, 2009, sometime after 2:00 p.m.

On January 16, 2010, the station aired the inauguration of Governor Robert "Bob" McDonnell live from the State Capitol in Spanish.[4] On April 25, 2010, the station began airing a limited number of locally produced programs ranging from real estate, to religion, to legal advice (none produced by WZTD-LD).

On December 4, 2017, NBCUniversal's Telemundo Station Group announced its purchase of ZGS' 13 television stations, including WZTD-LD.[5] The sale was completed on February 1, 2018.[6]

WZTD-LD today

WZTD-LD is the first Hispanic television station in Central Virginia. Unlike some Telemundo affiliates, WZTD-LD does not broadcast local news. The station does not have a website and was not listed on the ZGS corporate website for some time after its acquisition. In fact, ZGS did not formally announce the station's launch until December 2009. Aside from its Telemundo programming, the station began airing a few local shows beginning on April 25, 2010. Telemundo Richmond is available over-the-air on channel 45, Comcast Cable channels 71 & 600 and Verizon Fios channel 20. On October 2012, WZTD became available in the nearby Tri-Cities area on Comcast Cable channel 151. Until December 2009, the station had no logo, so it used the station's ID on top of the hour moving from right to left across the top of the screen. It was discontinued as of November 2008, then brought back a little over year later in January 2010.

  • WKYV/WZTD Station ID (November 2007-November 2008).

Digital television

Digital channels

The station's digital signal is multiplexed:

Channel Video Aspect PSIP Short Name Programming[7]
45.11080i16:9WZTDMain WZTD-LD programming / Telemundo
45.2480iNBC-LXLx

On September 5, 2012, WZTD-LP officially went to a low-power digital signal in HD on 45.1.

References
  1. "ZGS Communications TV stations deals". broadcastingcable.com. October 21, 2006. Retrieved August 24, 2011.
  2. "ZGS Communications acquires new TV stations". HispanicAd.com. November 20, 2006. Retrieved December 2, 2006.
  3. "Local TV Station to Air in Spanish / Telemundo Affiliate Set to Start By Next Year on Channel 45". Redorbit.com. December 11, 2007. Retrieved August 31, 2008.
  4. "The official announcement of Telemundo affiliate launches in Richmond, Virginia". www.rbr.com. December 10, 2009. Retrieved December 10, 2009.
  5. Miller, Mark K. (December 4, 2017). "NBCU Adding ZGS Stations To Telemundo". TVNewsCheck. Retrieved December 4, 2017.
  6. Tsoflias Siegel, Stephanie (February 1, 2018). "Telemundo Completes Acquisition of ZGS Communications". TVSpy. Retrieved February 1, 2018.
  7. RabbitEars TV Query for WZTD-LD
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