As an SBT affiliate
On February 1, 1991, now under the command of the Lobão family, TV Difusora and TV Mirante switched affiliations, with TV Mirante becoming affiliated with Rede Globo and TV Difusora with SBT, in which both are to this day.[6] The agreement between the two broadcasters initially defined renewal with each network every 6 years. For TV Difusora, it was the end of almost 19 years of partnership with Globo, and for TV Mirante, it was the beginning of its growth. With the change, TV Difusora saw a huge drop in audience ratings and also in the quality of its programming, which until then strictly followed the "Globo Quality Standard" and ended up giving way to SBT's "popular" style.
During the 1990s, MiniCom approved the creation of new TV stations in the interior of Maranhão. As a result, in 1997, the Difusora Communication System created the Difusora Network, generating through "Difu Sat" (the broadcaster's satellite signal in Brazil Sat) its programming for the entire state, and consequently replacing the microwave links with retransmitters via satellite.
From the 2000s onwards, TV Difusora began to feel the crisis that SBT was entering due to the advance of Rede Record from 1997 onwards, being retransmitted by TV São Luís, which led to the modification of several schedules on the station between morning and afternoon. Even so, local programs continued to be some of the most watched.
On November 9, 2012, the date of its 49th anniversary, TV Difusora launched, during the broadcast of Jornal da Difusora, its new logo, created especially to begin the celebrations of its 50th anniversary. A year later, on the same date, the broadcaster broadcast the first of 3 episodes of the documentary TV Difusora, 50 years in your home, which narrated its trajectory since 1963, showing the facts covered by the broadcaster, and how it contributed to the development of the state of Maranhão throughout its 50 years, in addition to showing testimonials from current and former journalists and presenters from the station. Then, an Algo Mais special was broadcast, where Paulinha Lobão welcomed former and current employees of TV Difusora to celebrate her birthday, namely José Raimundo Rodrigues, Zé Cirilo, Orquídea Santos, Messias Vilar, Mário Porto, Olavo Sampaio and Daucyana Castro. The station had also promoted on October 5 a show by the country duo Bruno & Marrone to celebrate their fiftieth anniversary.[7]
At the end of 2014 and throughout 2015, TV Difusora promoted a series of layoffs in several areas, and more than 100 employees became unemployed.[8] As a result, several programs ended up being taken off the air, and television news programs, also affected by the reduction in the number of reporters, began to have greater participation from inland stations in their content. The broadcaster entered a financial crisis and leased part of its schedule to independent programs on Saturday mornings, in addition to reducing the duration of local midday programs to include a call-in quiz show from G2P TV.
On January 12, 2016, Época magazine columnist, Leandro Loyola, published a note informing that TV Difusora was being put up for sale by Edinho Lobão.[9] Lobão initially stated that the deal would only involve TV Difusora São Luís, with the other outlets of Sistema de Comunicação Difusora being left out of a possible transition.[10][11] However, after the crisis at TV Difusora eased and there was a financial restructuring, the businessman denied that he could sell the station. Subsequently, the then federal deputy Weverton Rocha, represented by lawyer and businessman Willer Tomaz de Sousa, leased the station and Difusora FM,[12] definitively purchasing the group in March 2020.[13]
