WTLE-LP

WTLE-LP

Fort Myers–Naples, Florida United States
Channels	Analog: 18 (UHF)
Programming
Affiliations	defunct
Ownership
Owner	Silver Point Capital (SP Ft. Myers LLC)
History
Former call signs	W57CJ (1995-1999) WDPX-LP (1999-2005)
Former channel number(s)	Analog: 57 (UHF, 1995-2000)
Former affiliations	Pax Univision Telefutura (until 2009)
Call sign meaning	"Telefutura"
Technical information[1]
Licensing authority	FCC
Facility ID	36967
Class	LP
ERP	50 kW
Transmitter coordinates	26°30′19″N 81°51′13″W
Links
Public license information	LMS

WTLE-LP, UHF analog channel 18, was a low-power Telefutura-affiliated television station licensed to Fort Myers, Florida, United States. The station was owned by Silver Point Capital. The station has, in the past, carried programming from the Pax network;[2] it has also been a repeater for sister Univision affiliate WUVF-LP.

WTLE has previously been owned by Paxson Communications,[3] Tiger Eye Broadcasting,[2][3] and Equity Media Holdings.[2]

On April 4, 2008, Equity announced the sale of all five of its Southwest Florida stations (including WTLE) to Luken Communications, LLC for $8 million. Equity has cited corporate financial losses as a reason for the sale.[4]

Equity Media Holdings has been in chapter 11 bankruptcy since December 2008[5] and offers by Luken Communications to acquire Equity-owned stations in six markets have since been withdrawn.[6]

Silver Point Capital acquired WTLE at auction on April 16, 2009.[7] The sale closed on August 17, 2009.[8]

Three days before the completion of the sale to Silver Point, WTLE was taken silent.[9] On March 10, 2011, its license was cancelled by the FCC, and its call sign was deleted from the FCC's database.^[citation needed]

After the stations sign-off, the Fort Myers market could only receive Telefutura/UniMas programming via the network's national feed until 2014, when WUVF-LP (channel 2) signed on a second digital sub-channel affiliated with the network.

References

1. "Facility Technical Data for WTLE-LP". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
2. BIA Financial Networks (2004-08-02). "Changing Hands". Broadcasting and Cable. Retrieved 2008-03-16.
3. "APPLICATION FOR CONSENT TO ASSIGN CONSTRUCTION PERMIT OR LICENSE FOR TV OR FM TRANSLATOR STATION OR LOW POWER TELEVISION STATION OR TO TRANSFER CONTROL OF ENTITY HOLDING TV OR FM TRANSLATOR OR LOW POWER TELEVISION STATION". Federal Communications Commission. 1999-11-18. Retrieved 2008-03-16.
4. Malone, Michael (April 4, 2008). "Equity Media Holdings Selling Five Stations". Broadcasting & Cable.
5. Larson, Erik (December 8, 2008). "Equity Media, U.S. TV Station Owner, Seeks Bankruptcy". Bloomberg News. Retrieved December 9, 2008.
6. Hengel, Mark (February 2, 2009). "Equity's Management Cause of Downfall, Former CEO Asserts". Arkansas Business.
7. "Takers found for 60 Equity stations". Television Business Report. April 18, 2009. Archived from the original on April 24, 2009. Retrieved April 20, 2009.
8. "Consummation Notice". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. August 19, 2009. Retrieved August 25, 2009.
9. "Notification of Suspension of Operations / Request for Silent STA". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. September 22, 2009. Retrieved November 20, 2009.