On paper, Baton Rouge had been large enough to support three full network affiliates since at least the 1950s. However, the Federal Communications Commission only assigned two VHF allocations to Baton Rouge, channels 2 and 9–occupied by WBRZ and WAFB. With Baton Rouge sandwiched between New Orleans to the east, Lafayette to the west, and south, Jackson to the north, and Alexandria to the north, it is not likely there would have been enough room to drop in a third VHF allocation for Baton Rouge. The FCC did not mandate all-channel tuning until 1964. Before then, UHF stations could only viewable with an expensive converter, and picture quality was marginal at best even with one. By the late 1960s, however, all-channel sets had gained enough penetration to make a commercial UHF station in Baton Rouge viable.