HARTFORD, CONN.: The TV station business may be tough all over, but the NBC affiliate in this Northeastern market is about to finish a new 20,000-quare-foot studio, the Hartford Courantreports. WVIT-TV started the project about 18 months ago, and a lot has happened since then. NBC, for one, put the station up for sale. The economic collapse put local broadcasting in a tailspin, and the digital transition deadline shifted from a hard date of Feb. 17 to a window through June 12.
The Courant frames the studio project as a forward strategy for the station, enabling it to “generate content from about 25 or 30 different locations,” WVIT general manager, David Doebler, said. The idea is also to create content for other companies, and possibly qualify for a state tax credit toward entertainment.
NBC put the station up for sale a year ago. Doebler said it remained for sale, but the station continued to operate par usual. The new studio, reported to cost less than a $20 million figure originally reported, is targeted for 2Q completion. It follows another local network affiliate in the move to new digs. WFSB-TV, the CBS affiliate owned by Meredith, moved to a new $25 million studio last year.
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