Keeping Islanders Tuned In

LKK Supplies Broadcast TV Feeds to the Caribbean from HCS

There is perhaps nothing unusual in noting that one of Puerto Rico's largest broadcast television companies is located on a palm tree-lined street—except to say that this particular street runs through Hollywood.

LKK Group operates three television stations in Puerto Rico and three more in the Virgin Islands and it does it all from a vantage point more than 3000 miles away on the lot at Hollywood Center Studios. The stations include affiliates of ABC,CBS, NBC, UPN and WB. It also runs an NPR-affiliated FM radio station.

LKK became involved in Caribbean broadcasting three years ago when it learned that  Puerto Rico lacked a National Public Radio station, according to Keith Bass, the company's president. It quickly established a radio station on the island set up to receive NPR's national feed. Upon noting the Puerto Rico and its neighbors also were not served by television stations affiliated with the major  U.S. networks, LKK sensed a unique business opportunity.

Today, LKK takes network television feeds from  New York and sends them via satellite to receiving sites on the two islands. Syndicated and local programming is also inserted in  Hollywood.  On the islands themselves, the company maintains relatively small operations with sales and service staffs. Everything else is done from  Hollywood.

Bass investigated a number of sites in looking for a place to locate his company's  Hollywood headquarters. A traditional office location wouldn't do, he says, due to LKK's special needs. The company had to have a place that would allow operations to continue 24/7 and would be able to accommodate a phalanx of large satellite dishes.

One day, Bass happened to drive by Hollywood Center Studios and he quickly realized he had found his home. "It's the perfect situation for us," he said. "The studio has excellent security and it understands our business. If we need assistance with an electrical problem or other issue, the studio's staff is available around the clock. They understand the urgency of broadcast. They also have plenty of room on the rooftop for our satellite dishes."

LKK has ambitious plans for its continued growth. There are many other islands in the  Caribbean that are underserved by broadcast television, Bass observes. It also plans to increase the amount of local programming that it produces.

That "local" programming will likely be produced at HCS, explains Bass, where gear, crew and all the other production necessities are readily available. "Everyone here bends over backwards for us," Bass says. "It's unbelievable."