Within their first year, the station was losing money, and on the verge of bankruptcy. By November 1954, Hudson Valley's shareholders sold controlling interest to a New York City-based syndicate group led by legendary radio broadcaster/author Lowell Thomas and his manager/business partner Frank Smith, who also became president of the company upon completion of the sale. After the sale, the station switched its affiliation to CBS on February 1, 1955. In the spring of 1956, the station's call letters were changed to WCDA (for Capital District-Albany) and a satellite station, WCDB (channel 29) in nearby Hagaman, New York was launched to reach areas in the northern portion of the market where the main signal didn't penetrate. In December 1957, Hudson Valley merged with Durham Broadcasting Enterprises, the owners of WTVD in Durham to form Capital Cities Television Corporation (predecessor of Capital Cities Communications) with WTEN as its flagship station.