WMBC-TV

WMBC-TV is an independently owned full-power television station licensed to Newton, New Jersey, and serving viewers in the New York metropolitan area. The station is owned by Mountain Broadcasting Corporation, a company established in 1985 by a group of Korean Americans led by Reverend Sun Young Joo of Wayne, New Jersey. WMBC received a Federal Communications Commission construction permit for UHF channel 63 in 1987 and began broadcasting on April 26, 1993. The station initially operated with a Christian religious format and carried a substantial amount of programming from FamilyNet. During its first year, it also broadcast public-domain films and short-form movie content associated with Main Street TV. WMBC's role changed significantly in the mid-1990s. After New York City-owned WNYC-TV was sold and discontinued much of its ethnic and foreign-language programming in 1996, WMBC acquired or accommodated a number of programs aimed at the region's diverse communities. It subsequently reduced its reliance on FamilyNet and Main Street TV, while increasing brokered programming, religious shows supplied directly by ministries, infomercials, ethnic-language programs, and locally produced material. By 1997, the station's schedule combined religious and infomercial programming during the day with ethnic programming during evening hours and on Saturdays. It also carried several hours of educational children's programming to meet the Federal Communications Commission's educational and informational programming expectations, and it began producing a local newscast. This mixture made WMBC a distinctive outlet in the New York television market: it functioned not only as a conventional broadcaster, but also as a platform for paid or brokered community, religious, and ethnic programming. WMBC's over-the-air reception in New York City was historically constrained by its transmitter location and signal limitations. Its transmission facilities were later associated with One World Trade Center in Lower Manhattan, improving visibility of the signal in the metropolitan market. The station has also been carried by major cable providers in the region, including Charter Spectrum and Optimum. DirecTV removed WMBC from its New York local-station package at the end of 2005, but restored carriage in early 2009. Following the September 11 attacks, WMBC temporarily carried programming from New York NBC affiliate WNBC, providing a temporary distribution outlet during the immediate aftermath of the attacks. The station completed the federally mandated transition from analog to digital broadcasting on February 17, 2009. Its former analog service used UHF channel 63, while its digital transmission used physical UHF channel 18 and retained virtual channel 63. WMBC's programming model later evolved again. Before its subsequent network transition, its schedule included brokered ethnic and religious shows, a weekday half-hour newscast, infomercials, and children's programming. Reference material states that, in late 2025, WMBC became a full-power high-definition affiliate of the Spanish-language Estrella TV network under a lease-management agreement involving station ownership and MediaCo Holding Inc. That change represents a move from a predominantly independently assembled schedule toward a network-affiliated format while preserving the station's role in the New York metropolitan television ecosystem.

Mountain Broadcasting Corporation was established in 1985 by a group of Korean Americans led by Reverend Sun Young Joo of Wayne, New Jersey. The group pursued a television construction permit for UHF channel 63 and obtained authorization from the Federal Communications Commission in 1987. The resulting station, WMBC-TV, began operations on April 26, 1993, from its license city of Newton, New Jersey. WMBC's first schedule was primarily Christian religious programming, much of it supplied by FamilyNet. During 1993, the station also carried public-domain movies and film shorts associated with Main Street TV. This initial schedule placed WMBC within the market's religious and low-cost independent television sector rather than in the mainstream network-affiliate model. The station's programming strategy changed during the 1990s. In 1996, WNYC-TV, then owned by New York City, was sold to private interests and discontinued much of its ethnic and foreign-language television service. WMBC responded by taking on many programs that had served those audiences. It also dropped FamilyNet and Main Street TV programming as central components of its schedule and increased the amount of infomercials and religious programming supplied directly by ministries. By 1997, WMBC had a mixed schedule: religious shows and infomercials during daytime hours, ethnic programming during evenings and Saturdays, and several hours of educational children's programming. The station also began producing a local newscast. WMBC played a temporary emergency role after the September 11 attacks, when it carried programming from WNBC, the NBC station serving New York City. The arrangement was temporary and did not convert WMBC into an NBC affiliate. The station continued to face technical and distribution challenges because its over-the-air signal was historically weak in New York City. Transmission from facilities atop One World Trade Center in Lower Manhattan improved metropolitan reception. Cable carriage by providers including Charter Spectrum and Optimum further extended its reach. DirecTV dropped WMBC from its New York local channel package on December 31, 2005, and restored the station in early 2009. WMBC completed the United States digital television transition on February 17, 2009, ending regular analog service on UHF channel 63. Its digital signal used physical channel 18 while retaining channel 63 as its virtual channel identifier. For much of its later independent period, WMBC continued to combine brokered ethnic and religious shows, a weekday half-hour local newscast, infomercials, and children's educational programming. Reference material describes a further change in late 2025, when the station became a full-power high-definition affiliate of Estrella TV under a lease-management agreement involving MediaCo Holding Inc. The transition added a Spanish-language network identity to a station whose earlier history had been defined by locally assembled, community-oriented, religious, and brokered programming.

• 2025

  Estrella TV affiliation begins

  [1]WMBC-TVen.wikipedia.org

  Reference material identifies a late-2025 transition to full-power HD Estrella TV programming under a lease-management agreement.

• 2009

  Digital television conversion completed

  [1]WMBC-TVen.wikipedia.org

  WMBC ends analog broadcasting and continues digitally on physical UHF channel 18 with virtual channel 63.

• 2001

  Temporary post-September 11 programming arrangement

  [1]WMBC-TVen.wikipedia.org

  WMBC temporarily carries WNBC programming after the September 11 attacks.

• 1997

  Mixed community-oriented schedule established

  [1]WMBC-TVen.wikipedia.org

  The station operates a combination of religious programs, infomercials, ethnic shows, children's educational programming, and a local newscast.

• 1996

  Ethnic and foreign-language programming expands

  [1]WMBC-TVen.wikipedia.org

  WMBC adds programming formerly associated with WNYC-TV and shifts away from its earlier FamilyNet and Main Street TV emphasis.

• 1993

  WMBC-TV begins operations

  [1]WMBC-TVen.wikipedia.org

  WMBC-TV launches on April 26 with a Christian religious schedule dominated by FamilyNet programming.

• 1987

  FCC construction permit secured

  [1]WMBC-TVen.wikipedia.org

  Mountain Broadcasting secures authorization to construct a television station on UHF channel 63.

• 1985

  Mountain Broadcasting Corporation is founded

  [1]WMBC-TVen.wikipedia.org

  A group of Korean Americans led by Reverend Sun Young Joo establishes Mountain Broadcasting Corporation, the future owner of WMBC-TV.

A locally owned New York metropolitan television station with a history of ethnic, religious, community, and brokered programming, later supplemented by Spanish-language Estrella TV network service.

• Broadcast television station · 1993

  WMBC-TV broadcast service

  WMBC-TV is the station's primary over-the-air service, licensed to Newton, New Jersey, and identified by virtual channel 63. It serves the New York metropolitan area through its digital terrestrial signal, cable carriage, and network or independently assembled programming.

• News programming

  Local news

  WMBC has produced a local newscast and, during its independent programming period, carried a weekday half-hour news program. The available reference material does not identify the program's title, presenters, or current schedule.

• Brokered television programming · 1996

  Ethnic and religious programming

  A major part of WMBC's historical identity has been its carriage of brokered ethnic, foreign-language, Christian, and ministry-supplied programming. The schedule was especially prominent during evening hours and on Saturdays, complementing daytime religious shows and infomercials.

• Spanish-language network television · 2025

  Estrella TV affiliation

  Reference material states that WMBC became a full-power high-definition affiliate of Estrella TV in late 2025. The affiliation supplies a Spanish-language network schedule under a lease-management arrangement involving MediaCo Holding Inc.

• 2025

  Transition to Estrella TV affiliationStrategy

  Background

  After operating for years with independently assembled ethnic, religious, news, infomercial, and children's programming, WMBC pursued a network-affiliated model.

  Action taken

  Reference material states that WMBC became a full-power HD affiliate of Spanish-language network Estrella TV through a lease-management agreement involving MediaCo Holding Inc.

  Aftermath

  The change gave WMBC a defined Spanish-language network identity, although the available material does not provide detailed terms or audience results.

  Source

• 2009

  Analog-to-digital television transitionGeneration change

  Background

  The United States federally mandated the transition of full-power television stations from analog to digital broadcasting.

  Action taken

  WMBC ended regular analog service on UHF channel 63 and continued its digital transmission on physical UHF channel 18 while keeping virtual channel 63.

  Aftermath

  WMBC continued as a digital television station and later benefited from transmission facilities associated with One World Trade Center and broader cable distribution.

  Source

• 1996

  Shift toward ethnic, religious, and brokered programmingStrategy

  Background

  The sale of WNYC-TV and the resulting reduction in its ethnic and foreign-language schedule created an opening for programming serving New York's diverse communities.

  Action taken

  WMBC reduced its reliance on FamilyNet and Main Street TV, added ethnic and foreign-language programs, and expanded religious shows, infomercials, and other brokered content.

  Aftermath

  By 1997, the station had established a mixed schedule combining community-oriented programming with religious, commercial, children's, and local-news content.

  Source

• 2025

  WMBC-TV becomes an Estrella TV affiliate[1]WMBC-TVen.wikipedia.org

  Product launch

  Reference material states that, in late 2025, WMBC-TV became a full-power HD affiliate of Spanish-language network Estrella TV through a lease-management agreement involving Mountain Broadcasting Corporation and MediaCo Holding Inc.

• 2009

  DirecTV restores WMBC-TV carriage[1]WMBC-TVen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  After WMBC-TV was removed from DirecTV's New York local-station package at the end of 2005, DirecTV resumed carriage in early 2009.

• 2009

  WMBC-TV transitions to digital broadcasting[1]WMBC-TVen.wikipedia.org

  Product generation

  The station ended regular analog broadcasting on February 17, 2009. Its digital service continued on physical UHF channel 18 using virtual channel 63.

• 2001

  WMBC-TV temporarily carries WNBC programming after September 11[1]WMBC-TVen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  In the immediate aftermath of the September 11 attacks, WMBC-TV temporarily broadcast programming from NBC's New York flagship, WNBC.

• 1996

  WMBC-TV expands ethnic and religious programming[1]WMBC-TVen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  After WNYC-TV discontinued much of its ethnic and foreign-language programming following its sale, WMBC-TV added programming serving New York's diverse communities and reduced its earlier FamilyNet and Main Street TV schedule.

• 1993

  WMBC-TV begins broadcasting on channel 63[1]WMBC-TVen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  WMBC-TV began operations on April 26, 1993, initially using a Christian religious format with substantial FamilyNet programming.

1. 1WMBC-TVen.wikipedia.org