Hawaiian Telcom has renewed its retransmission deal with Allen Media Group that covers two broadcast television channels and multiple cable networks, the companies announced on Thursday.
The deal will allow Hawaiian Telcom to continue offerin Honolulu-based KITV (Channel 4, ABC) and independent station KIKU (Channel 20) to its TV subscribers. The agreement also covers continued distribution of seven Allen Media-owned TV networks — JusticeCentral.TV, Comedy.TV, Recipe.TV, Cars.TV, MyDestination.TV, ES.TV, and Pets.TV — with Hawaiian Telcom agreeing to carry The Grio and HBCU Go in the future.
“We are delighted to renew and expand our relationship with Hawaiian Telcom,” Byron Allen, the founder and CEO of Allen Media, said in a statement. “Hawaiian Telcom has been an extraordinary partner and recognizes the tremendous value our television stations and cable television networks bring to their subscribers.”
Allen Media acquired KITV in August 2020 as part of a $30 million deal with SJL Broadcasting. That deal also saw Allen Media acquire several translator stations on other Hawaiian islands, including KHVO (Channel 13) in Hilo and KMAU (Channel 12) in Wailuku.
One year later, Allen Media spent $4 million to buy KIKU from the owners of New York-based WRNN-TV (Channel 48). Under Allen Media’s ownership, KIKU began airing shows targeting Japanese and Filipino viewers on the islands, similar to the programming the station offered before WRNN acquired it in 2019.
The acquisitions of KITV and KIKU were part of a broader strategy to spend $10 billion acquiring local television stations across the country. The purchase of KITV brought Allen Media’s local TV station count to 16; today, Allen Media owns nearly three dozen full-power, low-power and translator TV stations in key markets like Eugene, Oregon; Chico, California; Tucson, Arizona; Flint, Michigan; and Madison, Wisconsin.
