KTES-LD

KTES-LD is a low-power television station licensed to serve the Abilene, Texas, market. The station originated as K40DX, a low-power outlet associated with Telemundo that began operating in 1995. In 2000, Lamco Communications acquired the facility and changed its call sign to KTES-LP. The station was operated in conjunction with KTXS-TV, the long-established ABC affiliate serving Abilene and surrounding communities, and its local news briefs were produced by the KTXS news department. KTES-LD's programming identity has changed as ownership and network strategies evolved. During its early years it served as a Spanish-language outlet, providing Telemundo programming to the Abilene area. The Telemundo service was discontinued in 2010 after the station's owner concluded that its ratings performance was comparatively weak, particularly when measured against the market's CW service. The station then carried This TV programming, which explains the continued association between the facility and the Abilene This TV website supplied in historical station materials. Later references identify the station with multicast entertainment programming, including MeTV; other station-group descriptions have associated channel 40 with the Roar digital network. These differing descriptions reflect changes in its digital-subchannel affiliations rather than a change of subject. The station passed through the same broad ownership history as KTXS-TV. Lamco placed its television properties on the market in the early 2000s, and the portfolio was sold to BlueStone Television in 2004. BlueStone sold the group to Bonten Media Group in 2007, in a transaction reported at $230 million. Sinclair Broadcast Group acquired Bonten's stations in 2017 in a transaction reported at $240 million, bringing KTES-LD into Sinclair's station portfolio. KTES-LD operates alongside KTXS-TV and KTXE-LD, the latter serving the San Angelo area through a rebroadcast of KTXS-TV. KTES-LD's role is primarily that of a local digital television outlet rather than a separately staffed full-service news station. Its connection with KTXS-TV provides access to shared technical, sales, and operational resources, while KTXS supplies the principal local-news operation for the Abilene station group. The facility's programming has consequently been shaped by the economics of small-market broadcasting, the availability of digital multicast networks, and the strategic decisions of successive owners. Publicly available reference material provides limited information about its separate staffing, launch date beyond the predecessor facility's 1995 start, transmitter specifications, and current programming schedule.

KTES-LD traces its history to K40DX, a low-power television facility established in the Abilene, Texas, market in 1995 in association with Telemundo. Unlike KTXS-TV, the market's full-power ABC station, the facility was designed as a specialized low-power outlet. Its early identity centered on Spanish-language network programming, giving viewers in and around Abilene access to Telemundo content that was not otherwise provided by the principal local stations. In 2000, Lamco Communications acquired the facility from Telemundo-related ownership and renamed it KTES-LP. Lamco also owned KTXS-TV, and the two operations were integrated. KTES carried the Telemundo schedule while receiving locally produced news briefs from the KTXS news department. This arrangement gave the low-power station a local connection without requiring it to maintain a full independent newsroom. The station's programming and operational model reflected the economics of small-market television, where low-power outlets often depend on shared facilities and staff. Lamco placed its station portfolio on the market in 2003. A proposed transaction involving Larry Wilson, a former Citadel Broadcasting executive, did not close, and the group was instead sold to BlueStone Television in 2004. BlueStone subsequently sold the stations to Bonten Media Group in 2007. The Bonten transaction included KTXS-TV and associated low-power facilities serving the Abilene area. During this period, KTXS-TV's digital-subchannel strategy also expanded, including the addition of The CW on a subchannel in 2006. In 2010, Bonten discontinued the Telemundo feed on KTES after assessing that it was not performing as well as the station group's other multicast offerings, especially The CW. This ended the facility's principal Spanish-language-network phase and it began carrying This TV programming instead. The continued presence of an Abilene This TV website in station references reflects that period of operation. Later descriptions associate the channel with other multicast entertainment services, including MeTV, while some station-group material identifies a Roar digital-network service. Because affiliations can change over time and the available references are not fully consistent about the current schedule, the station's affiliation history is better understood as a sequence of programming changes than as a single permanent brand identity. Sinclair Broadcast Group acquired Bonten Media Group in 2017. Following the transaction, KTES-LD remained part of a station group centered on KTXS-TV, with shared studios and technical resources in Abilene. KTXS-TV's broader operation also includes KTXE-LD, which rebroadcasts KTXS-TV into the San Angelo market. KTES-LD's separate public history is comparatively limited, and available sources do not establish a detailed list of its general managers, news staff, transmitter upgrades, or exact dates for all later affiliation changes. The facility is therefore best characterized as an active low-power digital television brand whose principal functions are distributing multicast or network programming and selling local-market advertising. Its history illustrates the evolution of small-market television from specialized network outlets toward digital multicast services, as well as the consolidation of local station ownership into larger broadcast groups.

• 2017

  Sinclair Broadcast Group acquires Bonten

  [1]KTXS-TVen.wikipedia.org

  Sinclair acquires Bonten Media Group's television properties in a reported $240 million transaction.

• 2010

  Programming changes from Telemundo to This TV

  [1]KTXS-TVen.wikipedia.org

  The station discontinues its Telemundo service and adopts This TV programming.

• 2007

  Bonten Media Group acquires the station group

  [1]KTXS-TVen.wikipedia.org

  BlueStone sells its stations to Bonten Media Group in a reported $230 million transaction.

• 2004

  BlueStone Television acquires Lamco stations

  [1]KTXS-TVen.wikipedia.org

  After an earlier proposed sale failed to close, Lamco's station portfolio is sold to BlueStone Television.

• 2000

  Facility becomes KTES-LP

  [1]KTXS-TVen.wikipedia.org

  Lamco Communications acquires the former K40DX and changes its call sign to KTES-LP, operating it alongside KTXS-TV.

• 1995

  K40DX begins operation

  [1]KTXS-TVen.wikipedia.org

  The predecessor facility to KTES-LD begins operating as a low-power television outlet associated with Telemundo in the Abilene market.

A small-market digital television outlet serving Abilene through network and multicast programming, with operations linked to the KTXS-TV station group.

• Broadcast television · 1995

  KTES-LD digital television service

  The station's core offering is a low-power digital television signal serving Abilene and nearby communities. Its programming has changed over time as the facility moved from a Spanish-language network role to multicast entertainment services. The service is operated with shared resources from the KTXS-TV station group rather than as a fully independent full-power newsroom operation.

• Spanish-language network programming · 1995

  Telemundo service

  KTES's original major programming identity was as a Telemundo outlet. The service supplied Spanish-language network programming to the Abilene market and was supplemented by short local news briefs produced through KTXS-TV. This offering ended when the station changed to This TV programming in 2010.

• Multicast entertainment programming · 2010

  This TV service

  Following the discontinuation of Telemundo, the station carried This TV, a multicast entertainment service. This period is reflected in the station website supplied in historical materials, although the available references do not establish how long the affiliation lasted or provide a complete schedule.

• Digital multicast television

  MeTV or other multicast entertainment service

  Later reference material identifies KTES-LD with MeTV programming, while another station description associates channel 40 with the Roar digital network. The available sources do not resolve the precise current affiliation and effective date, so this entry records the later multicast role without presenting one affiliation as definitively current.

• 2010

  Replace Telemundo with This TVStrategy

  Background

  The station group determined that the Telemundo service had weak ratings compared with other multicast offerings, particularly The CW.

  Action taken

  Bonten Media Group discontinued the Telemundo feed and replaced it with This TV programming.

  Aftermath

  KTES moved away from its original Spanish-language-network positioning and became a general entertainment multicast outlet.

  Source

• 2000

  Lamco acquires and integrates the low-power stationM&A

  Background

  The former K40DX facility was acquired as part of Lamco's strategy for operating television outlets in the Abilene market.

  Action taken

  Lamco renamed the facility KTES-LP and linked its operations to KTXS-TV, including production of local news briefs.

  Aftermath

  The station continued as a Telemundo outlet under shared local ownership and resources.

  Source

1. 1KTXS-TVen.wikipedia.org
2. 2KTES-LD facility informationfcc.gov