The broadcast signal for WQPT-TV in Moline, Ill., is now originating from WTVP-TV in Peoria, about 90 miles to the southeast.
WQPT previously outsourced its master control operations to Westar Master Control Services in Cedar Hill, Texas. The station’s signal now travels across fiber from WTVP to WQPT’s transmitter in Orion, Ill.
The change “provides financial savings for WQPT, a new source of revenue for WTVP, valuable technological advances for both stations and an invaluable chance for the sister stations to work together,” said WTVP President Chet Tomczyk in an Aug. 8 announcement.
“This new broadcasting arrangement is a positive step forward for both stations and provides WQPT with stellar signal quality,” WQPT General Manager Mary Pruess said, adding that each station’s programming, governance and community services remain separate.
The switchover took place at 7:01 p.m. June 30. The transition went smoothly, Pruess said. The project was led by WTVP Chief Engineer Bill Porter.
WQPT, licensed to Western Illinois University, serves the Quad Cities on the banks of the Mississippi River: Davenport and Bettendorf, Iowa, and Rock Island, Moline and East Moline, Ill.