Though doomsayers have long insisted that traditional TV stations are headed for a die-off, it’s surprising to see them sprinting towards the grave, and so suddenly. Just a few weeks after Leonard Asper told investors that Canwest might shut down its five-station E! network, came word that CTV is killing two of its A stations in southern Ontario and, possibly, CKX-TV in Manitoba.

Barring a last-minute reprieve, these will have the distinction of being among the very few over-the-air stations to be shut down in Canada since the first licence was issued on Sept. 6, 1952, to CBFT in Montreal. There are currently 99 such stations, according to the CRTC.

But as any policy wonk will tell you, it takes years of regulatory wrangling to set up a conventional station – to say nothing of the complications that underlie network affiliations, channel placement on the cable and satellite systems, collective agreements, third-party productions, local news, and deals with syndication outfits and other distributors. It’s like building a bridge that’s connected to 98 other bridges.

Which raises the question, are they as hard to tear down as they are to set up?

Surprisingly, no. The owner simply doesn’t apply for a licence renewal – CKX’s will expire on Aug. 31 – and then runs out the clock. Or, a less patient owner can ask the CRTC to revoke its licence immediately, in which case a station can go dark in as little as one day. The commission can’t force a station to stay on the air.

Once closed, all that’s left is to liquidate the station’s assets – selling off the office chairs, cameras and such. According to one insider, the cash would probably be used to cover severance payments to the staff.

Don’t sell the transmitter, though. Those can be used, and likely will be by Canwest or CTVgm, to bring in the signal of an affiliated channel. The A channel in London is expected to be piped through the transmitter currently used by CHWI in Windsor if it goes dark. The London station will also replace its sister on the UHF dial.

A shutdown would also likely trigger a round of channel reassignments at the cable and satellite companies – often a contentious process.

The CRTC could try to replace a station by calling for new licence applications, but – given the market these days – likely wouldn’t get many takers. More likely is that, regarding the Es and the As, the commission would work out a compromise during upcoming licence hearings, looking to keep the stations on the air.

Employees at CHCH want to take over the E! station and run it on a community-based model supported by Hamilton-area residents and the CRTC’s local programming improvement fund. However, the station’s licence would have to be completely changed, notes TV host Donna Skelly, who is leading the initiative. The proposal calls for all-local news, and CHCH would have to drop its priority programming commitments.

‘We’re being proactive. We are putting together a strategic plan, and every day we’re meeting with lawyers, politicians and others. We want to secure this licence,’ Skelly adds.