History of NBC in Timeline

The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is a major American commercial broadcast television and radio network. It is the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast, and one of NBCUniversal's two namesake flagship subsidiaries alongside Universal Studios. Notably, NBC holds the distinction of being the first and oldest major broadcast network established in the United States.

1953: Official American Broadcaster of Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade

In 1953, NBC became the official American broadcaster of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, securing exclusive rights over the broadcast of Broadway and music performances featured in the parade.

1966: WMGM-TV Affiliation with NBC

From 1966, Atlantic City-based WMGM-TV was affiliated with NBC.

1986: NBC's Current Logo in Use

In 1986, NBC started using its current logo, which incorporates stylized peacock designs.

February 2, 1997: Meet the Press Broadcast in High-Definition

On February 2, 1997, Meet the Press became the first regular series on a major television network to produce a high-definition broadcast, airing in the format over WHD-TV in Washington, D.C.

April 26, 1999: Launch of NBC HD Simulcast Feed

On April 26, 1999, NBC officially began its conversion to high definition with the launch of its simulcast feed, NBC HD. The Tonight Show became the first HD program to air on the NBC network and the first regularly scheduled American network program produced and transmitted in high definition.

Loading Video...

1999: NBCi Online Venture Launched

In 1999, NBC launched NBCi (briefly changing its web address to "www.nbci.com"), a heavily advertised online venture serving as an attempt to launch a web portal. NBCi partnered with Xoom.com, e-mail.com, AllBusiness.com, and Snap.com.

April 2000: NBC Purchases GlobalBrain

In April 2000, NBC purchased GlobalBrain, a search engine company, for $32 million.

2002: Gradual Conversion to High Definition

In 2002, NBC began gradually converting much of its existing programming from standard-definition to high definition, with select shows among that season's slate of freshmen scripted series being broadcast in HD from their debuts.

2003: NBC Acquires Miss Universe Organization Pageant Rights

In 2003, NBC acquired the rights to the Miss Universe, Miss USA, and Miss Teen USA pageants as part of a deal brokered by Donald Trump, giving NBC half-ownership of the pageants.

2003: "Elf" Film Release

In 2003, the live-action film "Elf" was released. The film later inspired the 2014 stop-motion animated special "Elf: Buddy's Musical Christmas" on NBC.

Loading Video...

2005: Holiday Specials Produced Prior to 2005

Since 2005, Certain holiday specials produced prior to this year, such as its annual broadcast of "It's a Wonderful Life" continue to be presented in 4:3 SD.

Loading Video...

October 29, 2007: Hulu Launches with NBC Content

On October 29, 2007, Hulu launched in private beta testing, offering full-length episodes of most of NBC's programming through its streaming service.

2007: Acquisition of National Dog Show Rights

In 2007, NBC acquired the rights to the National Dog Show, which is broadcast annually following the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.

2007: NBC Ends Contract for Miss Teen USA

In 2007, NBC declined to renew its contract to carry the Miss Teen USA pageant, effectively discontinuing televised broadcasts of the event until 2023.

2007: NBCi Mirrors NBC.com

In mid-2007, NBCi.com began to mirror the main NBC.com website.

2008: Back Catalog of NBC Shows Provided Online

In 2008, NBC provided complete back catalogs of most of its current series as well as a limited selection of episodes of classic series from the NBCUniversal Television Distribution program library online.

2009: Rebroadcast of Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade

In 2009, NBC started airing a same-day rebroadcast of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, replacing its annual Thanksgiving afternoon airing of "Miracle on 34th Street".

Loading Video...

2009: Digital Television Transition

In 2009, after the digital television transition, signal coverage in southern areas of Canada located near the Canada–United States border was reduced due to the lower radiated power required to transmit digital signals.

May 2, 2010: Meet the Press Converts to HD

On May 2, 2010, "Meet the Press" converted to HD and became the last NBC News program to convert to HD.

2010: NBCi Redirects to NBC.com

In 2010, NBCi.com was eventually redirected to the NBC.com domain.

July 2011: Netflix Loses Rights to Newer NBC Episodes

In July 2011, Netflix lost the right to carry newer episodes of NBC programs during their current seasons, only offering cataloged episodes.

September 2012: Completion of Conversion to High Definition

In September 2012, NBC completed its conversion to high definition with the launch of NBC Kids, a new Saturday morning children's block programmed by PBS Kids Sprout. All the network's programming has been presented in full HD since then.

2012: Macy's Parade Rerouted

In 2012, Macy's rerouted the Thanksgiving Day Parade to avoid CBS' cameras, as NBC held exclusive broadcasting rights for the parade.

2013: Live Musical Adaptations Aired

Since 2013, NBC has been airing live musical adaptations featuring major stars in lead roles, which have proven to be both rating successes and a nostalgic tribute to early television.

2014: WMGM-TV Ends NBC Affiliation

In 2014, Atlantic City-based WMGM-TV ended its affiliation with NBC.

2014: Christmas Specials Debut

In 2014, NBC debuted two live-action and animated Christmas specials: "How Murray Saved Christmas," an animated musical adaptation of the children's book of the same name, and "Elf: Buddy's Musical Christmas," a stop-motion animated special based on the 2003 live-action film "Elf".

Loading Video...

2014: NBC Holds Rights to Miss Universe Organization Pageants

In 2014, NBC held rights to two of the three pageants organized by the Miss Universe Organization: the Miss Universe and Miss USA pageants

February 18, 2015: Live Programming Streams of Local NBC Stations

On February 18, 2015, NBC began providing live programming streams of local NBC stations in select markets, available to authenticated subscribers of participating pay television providers.

June 29, 2015: NBCUniversal Relinquishes Rights to Miss Universe and Miss USA

On June 29, 2015, NBCUniversal relinquished the rights to Miss Universe and Miss USA as part of its decision to cut business ties with Donald Trump and the Miss Universe Organization due to controversial remarks about Mexican immigrants.

February 2016: WRAL-TV Re-joins NBC

In February 2016, WRAL-TV in Raleigh, North Carolina, re-joined NBC and began broadcasting at 1080p via WNGT-CD.

2016: Donald Trump's Campaign

In 2016, Donald Trump launched his campaign for the Republican presidential nomination, which led to NBCUniversal cutting ties with him and the Miss Universe Organization.

2018: WRAL-EX Goes Off-Air

In 2018, WRAL-EX, NBC's experimental station that transmitted limited NBC programming in UHD, went off-air as part of the FCC's repacking process.

2018: NFL Games Streamed on NBC

In 2018, a change to the NFL's mobile rights agreement allowed NBC's NFL game telecasts to be streamed through network websites and apps.

2018: NBC Purchases Nashua Station

In early 2018, NBC purchased the Nashua station (formerly WYCN-CD) after the FCC spectrum auction.

2019: WYCN-LD Relocated to Providence

In 2019, NBC relocated WYCN-LD to Providence, Rhode Island, to serve as a Telemundo station for that market.

January 24, 2022: WBKB-TV Affiliation with NBC

On January 24, 2022, CBS affiliate WBKB-TV in Alpena, Michigan, affiliated its DT2 subchannel with NBC.

2023: Televised Broadcasts of Miss Teen USA

In 2023, Televised broadcasts of Miss Teen USA were effectively discontinued until this year after NBC declined to renew its contract to carry the Miss Teen USA pageant in 2007.