KCEC
KCEC is a Spanish-language Univision television station serving the Denver, Colorado market.
Last updated August 31, 2026
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Overview
KCEC is a full-power Spanish-language television station licensed to Boulder, Colorado, and serving the Denver metropolitan area. The station carries programming from the Univision network and is identified with virtual channel 14. Although its license community is Boulder, its principal operating facilities are in Denver, where it shares studios on Mile High Stadium West Circle in the Jefferson Park area with sister station KTFD-TV, a UniMás affiliate. KCEC's transmitter is located on Mount Morrison in western Jefferson County, giving the station coverage across the Denver region. The station began broadcasting on February 22, 1996, under the call sign KTVJ. It was established by Roberts Broadcasting and initially carried Home Shopping Network programming. In January 2003, Roberts Broadcasting sold the station to Univision Communications. The transaction was followed by a change in call sign to KTFD-TV on March 10, 2003, and the station became an owned-and-operated outlet of TeleFutura, Univision's secondary Spanish-language network, which was later rebranded as UniMás. The call sign was modified to KTFD-DT in June 2009 as part of the broader adoption of digital-television call-sign suffixes by Univision-owned stations. A major identity change occurred in December 2017, when the programming and call signs associated with KTFD and KCEC were exchanged as part of a multi-market realignment. The facility using digital channel 15 and virtual channel 14 became KCEC and began carrying Univision programming, while UniMás programming and the KTFD identity moved to the Entravision-owned facility associated with digital channel 26 and virtual channel 50. Under the resulting arrangement, KCEC is owned by TelevisaUnivision and operated by Entravision Communications through a local marketing agreement. The relationship makes KCEC and KTFD sister stations in day-to-day market operations while preserving their separate network identities. KCEC's principal service is the distribution of national Univision programming, supplemented by locally produced Spanish-language news and community-oriented coverage. Its local newscasts are branded Noticias Univision Colorado. The station also serves as the operational base for KVSN-DT, channel 48, in Pueblo. KVSN functions as a semi-satellite of KCEC: it retransmits Univision programming and KCEC-produced local newscasts into South-Central Colorado, while inserting its own commercials and legal identifications. KVSN does not maintain separate facilities in Pueblo or Colorado Springs; master control and internal operations are handled through KCEC's Denver-area operation. KCEC completed the federally mandated shutdown of its analog signal on June 12, 2009. Its post-transition digital operation initially used UHF channel 15 while retaining virtual channel 14. As part of the Federal Communications Commission's spectrum-auction repack, the station moved its digital transmission from channel 15 to channel 32 on April 29, 2020. The station's history therefore reflects several phases of U.S. Spanish-language television: an initial home-shopping operation, a TeleFutura/UniMás affiliation under Univision ownership, and its later role as a Denver Univision outlet with regional news and semi-satellite distribution.
History
KCEC began service on February 22, 1996, as KTVJ, a station founded by Roberts Broadcasting and initially programmed by the Home Shopping Network. In January 2003, Roberts sold the station to Univision Communications. Two months later, on March 10, the call sign became KTFD-TV and the station joined TeleFutura, Univision's secondary Spanish-language network. The call sign changed to KTFD-DT in June 2009 during the transition to digital broadcasting. The station's technical and network identity changed substantially in December 2017. As part of a broader multi-market realignment, the programming and call signs of KTFD and KCEC were exchanged. The facility using digital channel 15 and virtual channel 14 became KCEC and carried Univision, while the UniMás service and KTFD identity moved to an Entravision-owned facility using digital channel 26 and virtual channel 50. KCEC is owned by TelevisaUnivision and operated by Entravision Communications under a local marketing agreement. It operates as a sister station to KTFD-TV, and both stations share Denver studios. KCEC is licensed to Boulder, but its studios are located on Mile High Stadium West Circle in Denver's Jefferson Park area. Its transmitter is on Mount Morrison in western Jefferson County. The station's local news operation is branded Noticias Univision Colorado. Those newscasts are also simulcast by KVSN-DT, channel 48 in Pueblo, which operates as a semi-satellite of KCEC. KVSN carries the network and local programming supplied through KCEC, while retaining separate commercial inserts and legal identifications. It has no independent facilities in Pueblo or Colorado Springs; operational functions are based at KCEC's studios. KCEC shut down its analog transmission on June 12, 2009, the federally established date for the full-power U.S. digital television transition. Its initial post-transition digital signal remained on UHF channel 15 while using virtual channel 14. On April 29, 2020, it completed a move to digital channel 32 under the FCC spectrum-auction repack. Today, KCEC's principal role is to provide Univision's Spanish-language network service, local Colorado news, and related digital content to the Denver market and to extend that service into South-Central Colorado through KVSN-DT.
- 2020
Digital channel changes to 32
[1]KCEC completes its FCC spectrum-repack migration from digital channel 15 to channel 32 while retaining virtual channel 14.
- 2017
KCEC becomes the Denver Univision facility
[1]A market realignment transfers the KCEC identity and Univision programming to the virtual-channel-14 facility, while KTFD and UniMás move to the channel-50 facility.
- 2009
Analog transmission ends
[1]The station ends analog broadcasting on June 12 as part of the nationwide U.S. digital television transition.
- 2003
Univision acquires the station
[1]Roberts Broadcasting sells the station to Univision Communications in January. The call sign changes to KTFD-TV in March, and the station becomes a TeleFutura owned-and-operated affiliate.
- 1996
KTVJ begins broadcasting
[1]The station signs on February 22 under the KTVJ call sign, initially carrying Home Shopping Network programming.
Products and positioning
A Spanish-language Univision broadcast outlet focused on Denver-area audiences, local Colorado news, national Hispanic television programming, and regional advertiser reach.
Spanish-language broadcast television · 2017
Univision network service
KCEC's core offering is the over-the-air distribution of Univision's Spanish-language television schedule in the Denver market. The station combines network programming with local station identification, advertising, technical transmission, and market-specific digital distribution.
Local television news
Noticias Univision Colorado
Noticias Univision Colorado is KCEC's locally produced Spanish-language news service. It provides Colorado-focused reporting and is also simulcast on KVSN-DT in Pueblo, allowing the same local news operation to serve both the Denver area and South-Central Colorado.
Regional television distribution
KVSN-DT semi-satellite service
KVSN-DT channel 48 extends KCEC's Univision service into South-Central Colorado. It retransmits network and KCEC-produced local programming but maintains separate commercial inserts and legal identifications. Master control and internal operations are handled through KCEC.
Brand decisions
2020
FCC spectrum-repack migrationOtherBackground
The station was required to change its digital broadcast frequency as part of the U.S. Federal Communications Commission's spectrum-auction repack.
Action taken
KCEC moved its digital signal from UHF channel 15 to UHF channel 32 on April 29, 2020, while continuing to identify over the air as virtual channel 14.
Aftermath
The station continued its Univision service on the new post-repack digital channel.
2017
Denver facility and network identity realignmentStrategyBackground
Univision and Entravision conducted a multi-market realignment involving the KCEC and KTFD facilities, programming, and call signs.
Action taken
Univision programming and the KCEC identity moved to the virtual-channel-14 facility, while UniMás programming and KTFD moved to the virtual-channel-50 facility operated by Entravision.
Aftermath
KCEC became the Denver Univision outlet, while KTFD continued as the market's UniMás sister station under a shared-studio operating arrangement.
2003
Sale to Univision CommunicationsM&ABackground
Roberts Broadcasting transferred ownership of the station to Univision Communications in January 2003.
Action taken
Univision acquired the station, changed its call sign to KTFD-TV, and placed it with the TeleFutura network.
Aftermath
The station became part of Univision's Spanish-language network portfolio and remained associated with the company through subsequent network and ownership changes.
Recent events
- 2020
KCEC completes FCC spectrum-repack channel migration[1]
Regulation
The station moved its digital transmission from UHF channel 15 to channel 32 on April 29, 2020, as part of the United States television spectrum-auction repack.
- 2017
KCEC and KTFD identities and programming are exchanged[1]
Product generation
A multi-market realignment moved Univision programming and the KCEC identity to the facility using digital channel 15 and virtual channel 14, while UniMás programming and KTFD moved to the Entravision-owned channel 26 facility.
- 2003
Univision Communications acquires the station[1]
M&A · Leadership change
Roberts Broadcasting sold the station to Univision Communications in January 2003. The station changed its call sign to KTFD-TV in March and joined TeleFutura as an owned-and-operated outlet.
- 1996
KTVJ signs on as a Denver-area television station[1]
Other
The station began broadcasting on February 22, 1996, under the KTVJ call sign with Home Shopping Network programming.
Sources2 sources
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