WPFO

WPFO is a broadcast television station licensed to Waterville, Maine, and serving the Portland, Maine, television market. The station began broadcasting in August 1999 as WMPX-TV, using channel 23 to bring Pax programming to southern Maine. It was created after a long regulatory and ownership process surrounding the allocation of channel 23, which had originally been associated with an effort by the Passamaquoddy Tribe to establish a station serving the Waterville area. WinStar Broadcasting ultimately obtained the construction permit and transferred a minority interest to Paxson Communications Corporation, the owner of the emerging Pax television network. WMPX-TV initially operated as a Pax affiliate and provided the network with its first over-the-air coverage in southern Maine, where Pax programming had previously been available mainly through cable systems. The station’s early commercial and programming arrangements included a joint sales agreement with Portland NBC affiliate WCSH, which supplied advertising support and limited programming beginning in 2000. Although WCSH discussed the possibility of producing local news for the station, a regular newscast was not established during that period. A major change occurred after Paxson announced the sale of WMPX-TV in late 2002 to Corporate Media Consultants Group, a joint venture associated with Max Media and Power Television. The new ownership repositioned the station as a Fox affiliate at a time when the Portland market lacked a full-time local Fox station. Fox had ended its relationship with WPXT in 2001, leaving much of southern Maine dependent on Foxnet and vulnerable to programming and sports-distribution limitations. On April 15, 2003, channel 23 adopted the WPFO call sign and began carrying Fox programming. The station operated from Portland facilities on Oxford Street during this period. WPFO developed a closer relationship with WGME-TV, the Portland CBS affiliate. In 2005, it briefly carried a video simulcast of radio station WLOB’s morning program, supplemented with local headlines. In February 2007, WGME began producing a 10 p.m. newscast for WPFO. The arrangement expanded in 2010 when the evening program grew to an hour and WGME added the two-hour Good Day Maine morning newscast for WPFO. These arrangements made WPFO’s local identity increasingly dependent on shared news resources rather than a fully separate newsroom. Sinclair Broadcast Group acquired WPFO’s non-license assets from Corporate Media Consultants Group in 2013 for a reported $13.6 million. The station license was later acquired by Cunningham Broadcasting, an affiliate of Sinclair, in a transaction that received regulatory approval in 2017. Sinclair and Cunningham continued to operate WPFO in close association with WGME, including shared facilities, news production, and technical resources. In 2024, WGME adjusted the morning schedule by introducing the lifestyle program ARC Maine and shortening the WPFO-linked morning newscast, with a portion of the schedule replaced by Sinclair’s The National Desk. WPFO became Portland’s ATSC 3.0, or NextGen TV, lighthouse station in June 2024. In that configuration, WPFO’s technical role extended beyond its branded programming, helping distribute next-generation digital television services while its ATSC 1.0 programming was carried through multiplexed signals operated by other Portland-area stations. In 2025, Sinclair sought to acquire WPFO’s license directly from Cunningham after a federal appellate decision altered restrictions affecting ownership of highly rated television stations in a market. On December 8, 2025, Fox programming moved from WPFO’s primary signal to a second digital subchannel of WGME-TV. WPFO’s main channel then adopted programming from the Roar digital multicast network. The direct sale of the station to Sinclair was completed on March 1, 2026, according to the supplied reference material. WPFO therefore remains an active local broadcast asset associated with Sinclair and WGME, but its post-2025 identity is centered on Roar programming and its technical role in the Portland television market rather than on its former Fox affiliation.

Channel 23 was allocated to Waterville, Maine, in 1987 after a petition associated with the Passamaquoddy Tribe. The proposed service was intended to reach local advertisers and viewers in an area that had limited access to Portland and Bangor commercial television outlets. No applicant initially pursued the allocation. In 1996, five groups applied, including Diversified Communications, the Maine-based owner of WABI-TV. Because the applications were part of a broader backlog created by changes to Federal Communications Commission comparative-hearing procedures, the FCC permitted financial settlements in a number of mutually exclusive proceedings. WinStar Broadcasting emerged with the construction permit and transferred 49 percent of its interest to Paxson Communications Corporation. Construction proceeded in 1999, including the erection of a transmission tower on Oak Hill Road in Litchfield. The station began broadcasting on August 27, 1999, under the call sign WMPX-TV. It was affiliated with Pax and gave that network its first broadcast coverage in southern Maine. In August 2000, Portland NBC affiliate WCSH entered a joint sales agreement with WMPX-TV, supplying advertising support and limited programming. Discussions about a possible WCSH-produced newscast did not result in a regular news service at that stage. Paxson announced in November 2002 that it would sell WMPX-TV to Corporate Media Consultants Group for $10 million. The buyer was a joint venture connected with Max Media and Power Television. The transaction prompted speculation that the station would become Portland’s Fox affiliate, particularly because Fox had ended its relationship with WPXT in October 2001. Corporate Media subsequently confirmed the change. On April 15, 2003, WMPX-TV changed its call sign to WPFO and began carrying Fox programming. The station operated from office space on Oxford Street in Portland. WPFO experimented with locally oriented programming in the mid-2000s. From November 2005 through March 30, 2009, it carried a video version of WLOB radio’s morning show, with local headlines displayed on screen and the service promoted as Fox Morning News. A more durable local-news arrangement began on February 5, 2007, when WGME-TV started producing a nightly 10 p.m. newscast for WPFO. The program originated from a secondary set at WGME’s facility. In 2010, the evening newscast expanded to one hour, and WGME added Good Day Maine, a two-hour morning program running from 7 to 9 a.m. Ownership became more closely linked to Sinclair in the following decade. On October 31, 2013, Sinclair acquired WPFO’s non-license assets from Corporate Media Consultants Group for $13.6 million. Cunningham Broadcasting, an entity affiliated with Sinclair, applied to purchase the license assets for $3.4 million on November 19 of that year. Regulatory approval was not granted until June 23, 2017. WPFO and WGME continued to share facilities and operational resources, including news production. In 2024, WGME introduced ARC Maine, a lifestyle program airing at 9 a.m. The schedule change reduced Good Day Maine to one hour, replaced the former 8 a.m. hour with The National Desk, and reflected broader Sinclair programming priorities. In June of the same year, WPFO began serving as Portland’s ATSC 3.0 lighthouse station. Its technical infrastructure carried NextGen TV services, while ATSC 1.0 versions of its channels were distributed on the multiplexed signals of other local stations. The station’s transmitter is located on Brown Hill west of Raymond. Sinclair filed in August 2025 to acquire WPFO directly from Cunningham after a decision by the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit struck down restrictions concerning ownership of two of the four highest-rated television stations in a market. On December 8, 2025, Fox moved to WGME-TV’s second digital subchannel, and WPFO’s main channel switched to programming from the Roar digital multicast network. The reference material states that Sinclair completed the direct purchase on March 1, 2026. WPFO consequently remains an active Portland-market broadcast station, but its principal programming identity changed from Fox affiliation to Roar while its relationship with Sinclair and WGME continued.

• 2026

  Sinclair completes WPFO purchase

  [1]WPFOen.wikipedia.org

  The supplied reference material gives March 1 as the completion date for Sinclair’s direct acquisition.

• 2025

  Fox affiliation moves to WGME subchannel

  [1]WPFOen.wikipedia.org

  Fox programming left WPFO’s primary signal on December 8, with Roar replacing it on WPFO.

• 2024

  WPFO becomes Portland’s NextGen TV lighthouse

  [1]WPFOen.wikipedia.org

  The station began supporting ATSC 3.0 service for the Portland television market.

• 2017

  Cunningham license purchase approved

  [1]WPFOen.wikipedia.org

  Regulators approved Cunningham Broadcasting’s acquisition of WPFO’s license assets.

• 2013

  Sinclair acquires non-license assets

  [1]WPFOen.wikipedia.org

  Sinclair purchased WPFO’s non-license assets from Corporate Media Consultants Group.

• 2010

  News-sharing arrangement expands

  [1]WPFOen.wikipedia.org

  The evening newscast expanded to an hour and Good Day Maine was added in the morning.

• 2007

  WGME-produced evening news launches

  [1]WPFOen.wikipedia.org

  WGME began producing WPFO’s 10 p.m. local newscast.

• 2003

  WPFO adopts Fox affiliation

  [1]WPFOen.wikipedia.org

  The station changed its call sign from WMPX-TV to WPFO and joined Fox on April 15.

• 1999

  WMPX-TV launches

  [1]WPFOen.wikipedia.org

  The station began broadcasting on August 27 as a Pax affiliate.

• 1996

  Multiple groups apply for the channel

  [1]WPFOen.wikipedia.org

  Five applicants pursued the channel 23 construction opportunity, with WinStar Broadcasting ultimately emerging with the permit.

• 1987

  Channel 23 allocated to Waterville

  [1]WPFOen.wikipedia.org

  The FCC allocation for channel 23 followed a petition associated with the Passamaquoddy Tribe.

A Portland-area local television station with a Waterville license, historically positioned first as a Pax outlet and later as a Fox affiliate, and subsequently associated with Sinclair’s Roar digital multicast service and NextGen TV infrastructure.

• Broadcast television station · 1999

  WPFO channel 23

  WPFO is the station’s principal broadcast service, licensed to Waterville and serving viewers in the Portland, Maine, market. Its programming identity changed over time from Pax to Fox and, beginning in December 2025 according to the supplied material, Roar.

• Television news · 2007

  Local news programming

  WPFO’s local-news output has been produced through relationships with larger Portland stations, especially WGME-TV. The arrangement included a 10 p.m. newscast beginning in 2007 and the Good Day Maine morning program from 2010.

• NextGen TV transmission · 2024

  ATSC 3.0 service

  Since June 2024, WPFO has served as the Portland market’s ATSC 3.0 lighthouse station. This technical service supports next-generation digital television distribution alongside conventional ATSC 1.0 carriage arrangements.

• 2026

  Complete Sinclair’s direct acquisitionM&A

  Background

  Cunningham Broadcasting had held the station license while Sinclair controlled operational assets and maintained a close relationship with WPFO.

  Action taken

  The supplied reference material states that Sinclair completed the purchase of WPFO on March 1.

  Aftermath

  WPFO became directly owned by Sinclair according to the supplied chronology.

  Source

• 2025

  Move Fox programming to WGME’s second subchannelStrategy

  Background

  Sinclair pursued direct ownership of WPFO after a federal appellate decision changed restrictions affecting ownership of highly rated television stations.

  Action taken

  On December 8, Fox programming moved to WGME-TV’s second digital subchannel, while WPFO’s main channel switched to Roar.

  Aftermath

  WPFO’s branded programming identity changed from Fox affiliation to digital multicast programming, while its association with Sinclair and WGME continued.

  Source

• 2024

  Adopt the ATSC 3.0 lighthouse roleStrategy

  Background

  Broadcasters in the Portland market were introducing next-generation digital television transmission.

  Action taken

  WPFO began serving as the market’s ATSC 3.0 lighthouse station in June.

  Aftermath

  WPFO gained a technical distribution role while ATSC 1.0 versions of its services continued through other station multiplexes.

  Source

• 2007

  Launch WGME-produced 10 p.m. newscastProduct launch

  Background

  WPFO required a local-news offering while operating within a shared-resource television ownership environment.

  Action taken

  WGME-TV began producing a nightly 10 p.m. newscast for WPFO.

  Aftermath

  The relationship expanded in 2010 with a longer evening program and the Good Day Maine morning newscast.

  Source

• 2003

  Convert the station from Pax to FoxStrategy

  Background

  The Portland market had lacked a full-time local Fox affiliate since Fox ended its relationship with WPXT in 2001.

  Action taken

  After the sale to Corporate Media Consultants Group, WMPX-TV changed its call sign to WPFO and began carrying Fox programming on April 15.

  Aftermath

  The station became a principal Fox outlet for the Portland and southern Maine market until Fox programming moved to a WGME subchannel in 2025.

  Source

1. 1WPFOen.wikipedia.org