Nexstar and Sinclair have announced a new agreement, which not only extends their current The CW Network affiliation partnership, but also adds two new affiliate stations in the process.
At the beginning of August, The CW Network extended its network affiliation agreement with Hearst Television, which included an expansion to Sacramento, California. Even more recently, The CW Network and Gray Television announced an extension and expansion of their affiliation partnership.
Now, it is the turn of Sinclair, who has agreed a multi-year deal that renews affiliations across 35 markets. This includes 10 markets where Sinclair provides sales and other services to a CW-affiliated station.
In terms of the new affiliate stations, Sinclair will launch The CW on KOMO-TV in Seattle, Washington, and WPNT-TV in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
According to the announcement, both stations already carried some CW programming. However, beginning September 1st, both will expand carriage to include the entire CW programming offering.
“With The CW’s first-ever ACC college football game featuring the Pittsburgh Panthers and the Cincinnati Bearcats in primetime on September 9, we are pleased to be adding WPNT-TV in Pittsburgh and KOMO-TV in Seattle to our affiliate group,” said Dennis Miller, President of The CW Network. “We appreciate that Sinclair values their partnership with The CW as we remake the network with our significant investment in sports, combined with a smart entertainment programming strategy that will further expand viewership on a local and national level.”
In a separate announcement, Nexstar also confirmed that KAUT-TV in Oklahoma City is also set to become a CW Network affiliate on September 1st.
Unlike the Sinclair stations, KAUT-TV is a Nexstar owned and operated television station, so this will just be a matter of the station switching over to carrying The CW’s primetime entertainment and live sports programming.
“KAUT-TV has a legacy of providing their viewers, advertisers, and the community with outstanding service, and we are very pleased to be bringing The CW’s new programming line-up to the station this Fall,” said Andrew Alford, president of Nexstar’s broadcasting division. “Adding ACC college football and basketball, NASCAR Xfinity Series racing, ‘INSIDE THE NFL,’ and a full slate of new primetime entertainment programming to the station will drive viewership and increase opportunities for advertisers.”
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