What Mission Broadcasting does

Mission Broadcasting is a privately-held television broadcasting company founded in 1996 by David Smith and headquartered in the United States. Following Smith's death in 2011, his wife Nancie J. Smith assumed the majority shareholder and Chairwoman roles. The company owns and operates 27-28 television stations across 26 medium-sized U.S. markets, with affiliations spanning ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, CW, and MyNetwork. It is recognized as the largest female-majority-owned local broadcasting company in the United States. Station-level operations, sales, and back-office functions are executed primarily through a Shared Services Agreement with Nexstar Media Group, under which Nexstar provides scale benefits in retransmission consent negotiations, advertising sales, and programming while Mission retains ownership of the FCC broadcast licenses.

The company generates revenue through three principal streams: (1) retransmission consent fees paid by cable, satellite, and other multichannel video programming distributors for the right to carry Mission's stations; (2) local and national advertising sales across its station portfolio; and (3) network compensation payments from affiliated networks. Customer relationships are dominated by a small number of pay-TV distributors, which has produced material concentration risk — most visibly in October 2022 when DIRECTV removed 25 Mission stations across 23 markets, and in the subsequent January 2024 multi-year distribution agreement with DISH Network that partially restored carriage.

Mission has pursued an active acquisition-led growth strategy, with notable transactions including WTVO in 2004, the VHR Broadcasting assets in 2003, the 2020 WPIX-TV New York acquisition from Scripps for $75 million, a four-station 2020 acquisition package (KWBQ/KASY Albuquerque, WLAJ Lansing, WXXA Albany, WNAC Providence), and the May 2023 WADL My38 acquisition. The company has also accumulated industry recognition, including 16 Louisiana Association of Broadcasters awards in 2022, underscoring sustained operational quality at the station level.

Name

Mission Broadcasting

Legal name

Mission Broadcasting, Inc.

Website

https://missionbroadcastinginc.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1996

Operating status

Operating

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Broadcast Television

NAICS

Television Broadcasting Stations (516120)

SIC

Television Broadcasting Stations (4833)

akta.pro primary industry

Local TV Station Groups (Owned & Operated/Station Chains) (MPABACAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Network-Affiliated Local TV Stations (ABC/CBS/NBC/FOX/CW/Telemundo/Univision, etc.) (MPABACAE)

Keywords

• Local television broadcasting
• Broadcast television stations
• Network affiliate programming
• Retransmission consent agreements
• Local broadcast advertising

Headquarters

HQ city

Wichita Falls

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain, Others

Revenue model

1. Retransmission Consent Fees: Fees paid by cable, satellite, and telco providers for the right to carry Mission's television stations. This is a key revenue stream for the company, with ongoing negotiations with distributors like DISH Network and DIRECTV.
2. Advertising Revenue: Local broadcast advertising and national spot advertising revenue generated from the company's television stations across 26 markets.
3. Network Affiliation Fees: Payments made by network partners (ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, CW, MyNetwork) to Mission Broadcasting for carrying their programming on local stations.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Mission Broadcasting acquires, develops, and operates full-power local television broadcast stations and interactive community websites in medium-sized U.S. markets. The stations carry programming under affiliation agreements with ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, The CW, and MyNetwork, supplemented by digital multicast sub-channels, and deliver local news, weather, sports, and entertainment to viewers via over-the-air, cable, and satellite reception. Revenue is generated by selling local broadcast advertising and negotiating retransmission consent fees with cable, satellite, and telco distributors.

Product overview

Mission Broadcasting is a television broadcasting company that operates a portfolio of 28 television stations across 26 U.S. markets. The company's core offering consists of broadcast television stations with primary network affiliations (ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, The CW, MyNetwork) and multicast sub-channels offering additional programming networks such as Grit, Laff, Bounce TV, ION Television, ION Mystery, Rewind TV, Antenna TV, MeTV, Court TV, Defy TV, Quest, Estrella TV, get, Cozi TV, and True Crime. The stations provide local news, weather, sports, and entertainment programming to viewers via cable, satellite, or over-the-air antenna reception. The company operates through shared services agreements with Nexstar Media Group and maintains distribution partnerships with satellite providers including DISH Network and DIRECTV.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Local Broadcast Television Station Portfolio Portfolio of 28 full-power local broadcast television stations across 26 medium-sized U.S. markets, carrying primary affiliations with ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, The CW, and MyNetwork and multicast sub-channels serving local communities with news, weather, sports, and entertainment.
• Interactive Community Websites Market-specific digital properties that accompany each broadcast television station, providing local news, weather, sports, and entertainment content to viewers online.
• Local and National Broadcast Advertising Airtime Sale of local broadcast and national spot advertising inventory across Mission's stations in 26 markets, enabling advertisers to reach geographically targeted audiences in medium-sized U.S. DMAs.
• Retransmission Consent Distribution to Cable, Satellite, and Telco Providers Negotiated retransmission consent agreements granting cable systems, satellite providers, and telco TV operators the right to carry Mission Broadcasting's television stations in exchange for recurring per-subscriber fees.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• DISH NetworkcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 23 January 2024Comprehensive multi-year distribution agreement covering 27 Mission television stations in 25 markets across the country. The agreement restored Mission stations to DISH subscribers who had been without access since January 2023. Thousands of DISH subscribers regained access to Mission's network entertainment, live sports, news programming, and local content.
• DIRECTVcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDistribution agreement expired October 2022, resulting in 25 Mission stations in 23 markets being removed from DIRECTV's distribution system. Contract negotiations failed over retransmission consent fees, leaving subscribers without access to programming including NFL and college football, local news, and network entertainment.
• Nexstar Media GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerShared Services Agreement (SSA) partner. Nexstar produces news for certain Mission stations including WPIX-TV in New York and KLRT-TV in Little Rock. Mission Broadcasting stations are SSA partners of Nexstar, which manages operations while Mission holds the license. Nexstar is also a guarantor on Mission's debt offerings.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Tegna: Tegna owns and operates local TV stations affiliated with major networks, monetizing through advertising sales and retransmission consent fees. It competes with Mission in mid-sized markets for local advertisers and distributors.
• Sinclair Broadcast Group: Sinclair is one of the largest U.S. local TV station group operators, owning ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, and CW affiliates. It shares Mission's focus on local broadcast advertising, retransmission consent fees, and network affiliations across mid-sized markets.
• Hearst Television: Hearst Television owns network-affiliated local TV stations across U.S. markets, generating revenue through advertising, retransmission, and digital — operating the same affiliate-station model as Mission.
• Nexstar Media Group: Nexstar is the largest U.S. television station operator and Mission's Shared Services Agreement (SSA) partner. Nexstar produces news for select Mission stations and guarantees Mission's debt, operating the same business model of owning/operating local TV affiliates across U.S. markets.
• Cox Media Group: Cox Media Group operates local TV stations affiliated with major networks, generating revenue from advertising and retransmission consent — closely mirroring Mission's core broadcast business model.
• Gray Television: Gray Television operates a large portfolio of local TV stations across mid-sized U.S. markets, generating revenue from advertising, retransmission consent, and network compensation — directly comparable to Mission's revenue model and market focus.
• E.W. Scripps Company: Scripps is a major U.S. local broadcaster and was the seller of WPIX-TV to Mission in 2020. It operates network-affiliated TV stations and competes for advertising and retransmission revenue under the same broadcast operating model.
• Allen Media Broadcasting: Allen Media Broadcasting owns and operates local TV stations across multiple U.S. markets, sharing Mission's focus on network-affiliated broadcasting, advertising sales, and retransmission revenue.

Emerging players

• Quincy Media: Quincy Media operates local TV stations in mid-sized U.S. markets with similar network affiliations and revenue streams to Mission, though smaller in station count and market reach.

Regional players

• Weigel Broadcasting: Weigel Broadcasting is a family-owned U.S. local TV station operator primarily serving the Midwest. It shares Mission's privately-held structure, focus on local broadcast, and network/multicast sub-channel programming approach.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Mission Broadcasting