Cox, Fox Swap TV Stations

FOX Television Stations, Inc. (FTS) and Cox Media Group (CMG) have announced they have entered into an agreement under which FTS will swap its FOX affiliated stations in the Memphis and Boston markets for two CMG stations located in the San Francisco-Bay Area market.

Jack Abernathy

As part of the agreement, FTS will acquire from CMG the FOX affiliate KTVU-TV FOX 2 as well as the independent KICU-TV, both in the San Francisco-Bay area market. In exchange, CMG will acquire FTS’ owned-and-operated WHBQ-TV FOX 13 and WFXT-TV FOX 25, located in the Memphis and Boston markets, respectively. After the deal closes, the Memphis and Boston stations will remain FOX affiliates.

“The addition of KTVU and KICU to our portfolio of owned-and-operated stations provides us with a compelling growth opportunity in a top-10 market,” said Jack Abernethy, CEO of Fox Television Stations, Inc. “Our stations group will benefit from both the strong demographics of the Bay area market as well as the alignment with our package of sports rights. I'd like to also take this opportunity to acknowledge the talented Boston and Memphis teams for the great work they do. We are confident they will be in good hands with our partners at Cox.”

Bill Hoffman

“This is the first time we have had a media presence in Boston and Memphis, and CMG is excited about the prospects that WFXT-TV and WHBQ-TV bring to our business,” said CMG President Bill Hoffman. “These new stations fit nicely into CMG's broadcast portfolio, and we look forward to having a great news presence in these two markets and competing hard with the fine local broadcasters who already reside there.”

Hoffman added, “I would like to recognize and thank the outstanding teams at KTVU and KICU. We are proud of the work they have done over the decades to superserve the San Francisco Bay community with award-winning broadcasting and sales solutions for their advertisers.”

The transaction is subject to regulatory and other customary approvals and conditions.

In 2013, KTVU Fox 2 was involved in an on-air Asiana Airlines gaffe.