Waltham Community Access

What Waltham Community Access does

Waltham Community Access Corporation, operating as WCAC, is a nonprofit community media center founded in 1985 and headquartered at 400 Main Street, Waltham, Massachusetts. The organization operates a dual-channel cable television platform: WCAC-TV serves as the public access channel featuring original community programming, lifestyle shows, high school sports, and local events, while MAC-TV functions as the government access channel broadcasting city council meetings, school committee sessions, zoning board hearings, conservation commission proceedings, and other municipal bodies. Waltham Newswatch, a recurring local news program covering community events and city government decisions, anchors the organization's news coverage.

The underlying technology is a community access television broadcasting infrastructure with HD production capabilities, distributing content via three regional cable providers — Verizon (Ch. 47/43/2147), Comcast (Ch. 9/8), and RCN (Ch. 3/15/613) — as well as website streaming at wcac.org. A consolidated HD feed, Waltham Access HD, combines public and government content in high definition. Core technical assets include production facilities for community programming, broadcast scheduling systems, and on-demand streaming of an extensive municipal meeting archive.

As a designated Public, Educational, and Government (PEG) access channel, WCAC provides a free service to Waltham residents, with economics historically structured around cable franchise fee arrangements rather than direct consumer or advertiser revenue. The organization employs between 11 and 50 staff and is governed by a Board of Directors. There is no indication of public listing, venture backing, or ownership changes in the available data.

Name

Waltham Community Access

Legal name

Waltham Community Access Corporation

Website

https://wcac.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1985

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Waltham Community Access (WCAC) is a Waltham, Massachusetts-based nonprofit community media center operating public access (WCAC-TV) and government access (MAC-TV) cable channels, providing local news, municipal meeting coverage, and community programming to city residents.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Media Services

NAICS

Television Broadcasting Stations (51612)

SIC

Television Broadcasting Stations (4833)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYMPABAAAE

Educational/Public-Service Broadcast Networks

Media, Entertainment & Sports/Broadcasting (TV & Radio)/Broadcast Television Networks

SECONDARYMPABAIAE

Public Service News Channels

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

Keywords

• Community television
• Public access media
• Government meeting coverage
• Local news broadcasting
• Cable access programming

Headquarters

HQ city

Waltham

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Waltham Community Access (WCAC) operates a dual-channel community media platform delivering local public access and government programming to Waltham, Massachusetts residents. The organization produces and broadcasts original community shows, local news (Waltham Newswatch), government meeting coverage (city council, school committee, zoning board, and other municipal bodies), high school sports, and community event coverage through WCAC-TV and MAC-TV channels, distributed via cable providers and online streaming.

Product overview

Waltham Community Access (WCAC) operates a dual-channel community media platform comprising WCAC-TV for public access programming and MAC-TV for government content. The organization provides broadcast television services through cable providers (Verizon, Comcast, RCN) and online streaming. Core offerings include original community shows, local news (Waltham Newswatch), government meeting coverage (city council, school committee, zoning board, and various commissions), high school sports, and community event coverage. The WCAC-TV public channel features lifestyle shows like 'Around the Garden with Jimmy K,' sports commentary 'Armchair Quarterback,' and interview programming. The MAC-TV government channel broadcasts municipal meetings and government-focused shows including 'Inside the Council Chamber' and 'Your Federal Government.'

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• WCAC-TV (Public Channel)

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights2 records

Direct peers

• Lynn Community Television (LCTV): Lynn, MA community access television station providing local public, educational, and government programming. Comparable PEG access organization in Massachusetts with similar operational scope.
• Dedham Media Center (DMC): Dedham, MA community media center providing public access and government broadcasting services. Closely comparable small-scale Greater Boston PEG access operation.
• Boston Neighborhood Network (BNN): Boston's community media center operating public, government, and education access channels with similar dual-channel municipal coverage model. Directly comparable as a Massachusetts nonprofit PEG (public/educational/government) broadcaster.
• Cambridge Community Television (CCTV): Cambridge, MA nonprofit community access television organization producing local programming, government meeting coverage, and civic content. Closely comparable mission, structure, and PEG funding model.
• Newton Media Center: Newton, MA community access television center providing government and public access programming. Closely comparable suburban Boston PEG access organization with similar funding structure.
• Brookline Access Television (BATV): Brookline, MA community access television nonprofit offering public, government, and educational channels. Directly comparable PEG access model serving an adjacent Greater Boston community.
• Arlington Community Media (ACM iGlobe): Arlington, MA nonprofit community media center operating public and government access channels. Directly comparable as a Greater Boston-area PEG access broadcaster.
• Somerville Media Center (SMC): Somerville, MA community media center providing public access TV, government coverage, and media education. Operates as a comparable local PEG access organization in the Greater Boston market.
• Malden Access Television (MATV): Malden, MA nonprofit community media center producing local programming, municipal meeting coverage, and media training. Directly comparable community access PEG broadcaster.
• Framingham Community Access (FCAT): Framingham, MA community access television nonprofit operating public and government channels. Comparable suburban Massachusetts PEG access organization with similar dual-channel model.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat2 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/WalthamMACTV
• Xx.com/wcactv
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/waltham-community-access-corporation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 Waltham Community Access