Editing WTTO (section)

====Secondary ABC affiliation====
On July 29, 2013, Allbritton Communications announced that it would sell its seven television stations—including the trimulcast operation involving WBMA-LD and satellites WCFT-TV and WJSU-TV—to Sinclair Broadcast Group (which would purchase the stations for $985 million), in order to focus on running its co-owned political news website, [[Politico]].<ref name=wp-allbrittonsinclair>{{cite news|title=Allbritton to sell 7 TV stations, including WJLA, to Sinclair for $985 million|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/allbritton-to-sell-stations-to-sinclair-broadcast-group/2013/07/29/0ee746f2-f858-11e2-afc1-c850c6ee5af8_story.html|first=Thomas|last=Heath|first2=Debbi|last2=Wilgoren|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=July 29, 2013|access-date=July 29, 2013}}</ref><ref name=tvnc-wabmwttosale>{{cite web|title=Sinclair Buying Allbritton Stations For $985M|url=http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/69268/sinclair-buying-allbritton-stations-for-985m|website=TVNewsCheck|publisher=NewsCheck Media|date=July 29, 2013|access-date=July 29, 2013}}</ref> As part of the deal, Sinclair had intended to sell the license assets of WTTO and WABM to [[Deerfield Media]], and retain operational responsibilities for those stations through shared services and joint sales agreements.<ref name=fcc-saletodeerfield>{{cite web|title=APPLICATION FOR CONSENT TO ASSIGNMENT OF BROADCAST STATION CONSTRUCTION PERMIT OR LICENSE|url=http://licensing.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/forms/prod/prefill_and_display.pl?Application_id=1568383&Service=DT&Form_id=314&Facility_id=74138|work=CDBS Public Access|publisher=[[Federal Communications Commission]]|access-date=August 30, 2013|date=August 9, 2013}}</ref>

On December 6, 2013, the FCC informed Sinclair that applications related to the deal need to be "amended or withdrawn", as Sinclair would retain the existing time brokerage agreement between WTTO and WDBB; this would, in effect, create a new LMA between WBMA+ and WDBB, even though the commission had ruled in 1999 that such agreements made after November 5, 1996, covering the programming of more than 15% of a station's broadcast day would count toward the ownership limits for the brokering station's owner.<ref name=fcc-sinclairallbrittonlmas>{{cite web|title=Letter to Sinclair and Allbritton legal counsel|url=https://cdbs.recnet.com/corres/?doc=45252|first=Barbara A.|last=Kreisman|website=CDBS Public Access|publisher=[[Federal Communications Commission]]|access-date=December 8, 2013|format=PDF|date=December 6, 2013}}</ref> On March 20, 2014, as part of a restructuring of the Sinclair-Allbritton deal in order to address these ownership conflicts as well as to expedite approval of the Allbritton acquisition that was delayed due to the FCC's increased scrutiny of outsourcing agreements (such as those maintained by Sinclair) used to circumvent in-market ownership caps, Sinclair announced that it would retain ownership of WTTO (under which WDBB would continue operating as its satellite under the existing LMA), and form a new duopoly between it and WBMA+ (which would mark the first known instance in which the senior partner in one duopoly became the junior partner in another, as well as the first instance involving a duopoly that was broken up legally terminating all operational ties with the junior partner); WABM was to be sold to a third-party buyer with which Sinclair would not enter into an operational outsourcing arrangement or maintain any contingent interest, other than a possible transitional shared facilities agreement until WTTO was able to move its operations from its Beacon Parkway studios to WBMA's facility in [[Hoover, Alabama|Hoover]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Sinclair Offers to Sell Stations Ahead of FCC Decision|url=http://www.mediabistro.com/tvspy/sinclair-offers-to-sell-stations-ahead-of-fcc-decision_b117802|first=Kevin|last=Eck|website=[[Mediabistro.com|TVSpy]]|publisher=[[Prometheus Global Media]]|date=March 21, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite press release|title=Sinclair Proposes Restructuring Of Allbritton Transaction In Order To Meet Objections Of The Federal Communications Commission|url=https://online.wsj.com/article/PR-CO-20140320-913206.html|agency=[[PRNewswire]]|newspaper=[[The Wall Street Journal]]|publisher=[[News Corp (2013–present)|News Corp.]]|date=March 20, 2014}}</ref>

On May 29, 2014, after informing the FCC that it had not found a buyer for WABM (even among the respective owners of WBRC, WVTM and WIAT that did not operate an existing duopoly in Birmingham, [[Raycom Media]], [[Media General]] and [[LIN Media]], the latter two of which were in the process of merging at the time), Sinclair stated that it would propose a surrendering of the WJSU and WCFT licenses, and migrate the WBMA simulcast to WABM's second digital subchannel on the basis that the latter's transmission facilities are superior to those of WCFT and WJSU (as a low-power station, WBMA-LD would not be affected as the FCC does not apply in-market ownership caps to low-power stations owned alongside any full-power station).<ref name="b&c-wcftwjsuclosing?">{{cite news|title=Sinclair Proposes Surrendering Three Licenses to Get Allbritton Deal Done|url=http://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/washington/sinclair-proposes-surrendering-three-licenses-get-allbritton-deal-done/131458|first=John|last=Eggerton|periodical=Broadcasting & Cable|publisher=[[NewBay Media]]|date=May 29, 2014|access-date=May 30, 2014}}</ref><ref name="tvnc-wcftwjsuclosing?">{{cite news|title=Sinclair Giving Up 3 Stations To Appease FCC|url=http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/76663/sinclair-giving-up-3-stations-to-appease-fcc|first=Harry A.|last=Jessell|website=TVNewsCheck|publisher=NewsCheck Media|date=May 29, 2014|access-date=May 30, 2014}}</ref> After nearly a year of delays, Sinclair's acquisition of Allbritton was approved by the FCC on July 24, 2014,<ref name="bandc-allbrittonapproved">{{cite web|title=FCC Approves Sinclair/Allbritton Deal|url=http://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/washington/fcc-approves-sinclairallbritton-deal/132692|first=John|last=Eggerton|periodical=Broadcasting & Cable|publisher=NewBay Media|date=July 24, 2014|access-date=July 24, 2014}}</ref> and completed one week later on August 1.<ref>{{cite web|title=Sinclair's Deal For Allbritton Closes|url=http://broadcastingcable.com/news/local-tv/sinclair-s-deal-allbritton-closes/132894|first=Michael|last=Malone|periodical=Broadcasting & Cable|publisher=NewBay Media|date=August 1, 2014|access-date=August 4, 2014}}</ref>

On September 18, 2014, in preparation for the planned shutdown of WCFT and WJSU eleven days later on September 29 (the transaction would be suspended on Sinclair's asking by the FCC days prior to the shutdown after the group agreed to sell both stations to [[Howard Stirk Holdings]], on the agreement that Sinclair would not enter into any operational arrangements with HSH for either station), WDBB added a simulcast feed of WBMA-LD on digital subchannel 17.2, replacing WCFT (which became a [[Heartland (TV network)|Heartland]] affiliate) as WBMA's Tuscaloosa repeater; WABM also added a simulcast of the WBMA on its 68.2 subchannel.<ref name=wbma-movetowabm>{{cite news|title=Use an antenna to pick up ABC 33/40? Important info here|url=http://www.abc3340.com/story/26506234/use-an-antenna-to-pick-up-abc-3340-important-info-here|website=WBMA-LD|publisher=Sinclair Broadcast Group|access-date=September 30, 2014}}</ref>