WAKA Action 8 News

Name

WAKA Action 8 News

Legal name

WAKA

Website

https://waka.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1960

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Broadcast Television

NAICS

Television Broadcasting Stations (516120)

SIC

Television Broadcasting Stations (4833)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYMPABACAJ

Local News & Weather Stations

Media, Entertainment & Sports/Broadcasting (TV & Radio)/Local Broadcast Stations & Affiliates (TV & Radio)

SECONDARYMPABAIAF

Weather & Emergency Information Channels

Media, Entertainment & Sports/Broadcasting (TV & Radio)/Broadcast News & Current Affairs Channels

Keywords

• Local television news
• Broadcast television
• Weather radar coverage
• Television advertising
• Community news programming

Headquarters

HQ city

Montgomery

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Television Advertising: The station generates primary revenue through the sale of commercial advertising airtime to local businesses, regional companies, and potentially national advertisers. This includes spot advertising during news broadcasts, sports coverage, and programming.
2. Broadcast Distribution/Carriage Fees: Revenue from cable and satellite providers for carriage of WAKA's broadcast signal, CBS 8, ABC 32, CW Montgomery, and MeTV on their channel lineups.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

WAKA Action 8 News is a regional television broadcasting station operating from Montgomery, Alabama that delivers local news, weather, sports, and entertainment programming to central and south Alabama audiences. The station operates multiple network-affiliated channels including CBS 8, ABC 32, CW Montgomery, and MeTV, and monetizes its broadcast reach through local/regional television advertising sales and cable/satellite carriage fees. The station distinguishes itself through proprietary Lifesaver Radar technology providing exclusive severe weather coverage for West Alabama.

Product overview

WAKA Action 8 News is a multi-station local television broadcasting operation offering news, weather, sports, and entertainment programming. The portfolio includes five television stations (WAKA Action 8 News/CBS 8, ABC32, CW Montgomery, and MeTV) along with specialized news modules including Weather Authority with proprietary Lifesaver Radar technology, investigative unit i-Team, technology segment What The Tech, consumer advocacy feature 8 On Your Side, and sports coverage LACEUP. The station operates under parent company Bahakel Communications, serving Montgomery and surrounding Alabama regions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• WAKA Action 8 News Broadcasting Local television news broadcasting service delivering news, weather, sports, crime reports, features, and community programming to viewers across Montgomery and central Alabama via over-the-air broadcast, cable/satellite carriage, and digital streaming.
• Lifesaver Radar Systems Exclusive dual X-Band weather radar systems providing 10x the resolution of standard government radars, scanning lower atmosphere levels to detect incoming severe weather including tornadoes for first-look storm tracking across central Alabama.

Quantifiable outcome

• Provides severe weather coverage for West Alabama areas previously affected by radar gap

Named customers6 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Regional players

• WHNT News 19: CBS affiliate serving the Huntsville-Decatur DMA. Direct network peer to WAKA's CBS 8 flagship channel; competes for affiliate-driven content distribution and audience across northern Alabama.
• WVTM 13 NBC: NBC affiliate serving the Birmingham DMA. Competes with WAKA for major Alabama advertisers and SEC/college sports coverage rights, often reaching into the Montgomery market.
• WAAY 31 ABC: ABC affiliate serving the Huntsville-Decatur DMA in north Alabama. Regional broadcast peer competing for Alabama-wide advertisers and network-level audience share with WAKA's ABC 32 sub-channel.
• WBRC Fox 6 News: Fox-affiliated station based in Birmingham, Alabama. Competes with WAKA for regional Alabama advertisers and viewers across overlapping central/north Alabama coverage zones.

Direct peers

• WSFA 12 News: Direct competitor NBC affiliate serving the same Montgomery, Alabama DMA as WAKA. Operates the WSFA 12 News brand with overlapping coverage of central Alabama, competing for the same local advertisers and viewers.

Others

• Climavision: Technology partner that built and supplied WAKA's Lifesaver Radar systems. Comparable as an adjacent infrastructure provider whose X-Band radar network targets the same weather-coverage gap problem across multiple U.S. markets.
• Bahakel Communications: Parent company of WAKA Action 8 News. Owns a portfolio of regional television stations across the southeastern U.S. Directly comparable as a multi-station small-market operator providing corporate-level strategic and capital context.

Broad incumbents

• Nexstar Media Group: Largest U.S. television station owner with national scale, including Alabama properties. Operates as a national ad sales and content distribution platform that competes for the same regional advertiser dollars as WAKA.
• Gray Television: Large U.S. broadcast group with multiple Alabama stations including WVUE in the broader Gulf region. Sets M&A comparable valuations for regional broadcasters and competes indirectly via affiliated stations in overlapping markets.
• Sinclair Broadcast Group: One of the largest U.S. television broadcast operators with stations across Alabama. While not directly competing in WAKA's DMA, Sinclair's scale, national ad sales, and programming influence shape competitive dynamics for all Alabama local stations.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/waka8news
• Facebookfacebook.com/waka8news
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/waka8

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about WAKA Action 8 News