KVMD
Twentynine Palms/Los Angeles, California United States | |
---|---|
City | Twentynine Palms, California |
Channels |
Digital: 23 (UHF) Virtual: 31 (UHF) |
Affiliations | Armenian-Russian Television Network |
Owner | KVMD TV, LLC. (Ronald Ulloa) |
First air date | December 1, 1997 |
Sister station(s) | KXLA, KJLA |
Former channel number(s) |
Analog: 31 (UHF, 1997-2003) |
Former affiliations |
America One (1997-2003) Independent (2003-2008) |
Transmitter power | 150 kW ERP |
Height | 784 m |
Facility ID | 16729 |
Transmitter coordinates | 34°2′16.8″N 116°48′49.9″W / 34.038000°N 116.813861°W |
KVMD is an Armenian programming station as an ARTN-Shant affiliate licensed to Twentynine Palms, California, USA. The broadcast signal covers all the Greater Los Angeles Area on digital UHF channel 23. KVMD-DT is also available on DirecTV and Dish Network on channel 31, its former analog channel. The station is also seen throughout the Los Angeles media market on various cable TV systems.
The station broadcasts digitally on nine subchannels. KVMD is dedicated to providing free over-the-air programming to minority groups in southern California. Currently programming is offered in Spanish. Mandarin Chinese, Vietnamese, English, and Armenian. KVMD's owner, Ronald Ulloa, is also president and majority owner of KXLA.
KVMD's transmitter is located atop Snow Peak in the San Bernardino Mountains north of Banning, California.
KVMD has subchannels in other languages serving the region's Asian American community.
History
On December 1, 1997 on analog channel 31, KVMD signed on. While its analog signal was rather weak and could not generally be received beyond Twentynine Palms and Yucca Valley, it sought and obtained carriage on many cable television systems throughout Southern California, as well as satellite TV, due to its fortuitous location in the outskirts of the Los Angeles DMA and Federal Communications Commission (FCC) must-carry rules. KVMD started out broadcasting America One programming. On July 29, 2002, its digital signal went on the air on channel 23. This signal is much stronger, potentially reaching 80 times as many viewers over the air as its analog signal, and reaching most of the Inland Empire. It also reaches a good portion of Los Angeles, Orange and part of San Diego counties.
On June 1, 2003, KVMD became the first station in the country to shut off its analog channel and go digital-only, in support of the government-mandated digital transition.
On June 1, 2008, KVMD started to air ARTN Armenian programming every night.
DirecTV Carriage
KVMD ceased programming on DirecTV's local standard-definition coverage on December 19, 2007 but returned on October 31, 2008.
Digital channels
Channel | Programming |
---|---|
31.1 | Armenian-Russian Television Network (Armenian) |
31.2 | Televisión de la Universidad de Guadalajara |
31.3/31.7 | OnTV4U (English) |
31.4 | GDTV World American Edition (Cantonese/Mandarin) |
31.5 | Creation TV USA (Cantonese/Mandarin) |
31.6 | OnTV4U (Spanish) |
31.8 | WCETV / CCTV-4 (Mandarin) |
31.9 | CCTV News (English) |
31.10 | Spanish infomercials |
References
External links
- Official site
- Query the FCC's TV station database for KVMD
- BIAfn's Media Web Database -- Information on KVMD-TV
- "L.A. DTV Spat Could be a Test Case", Multichannel News, December 16, 2002
- 2006 FCC petition requesting mandatory carriage under "must-carry" rules