History of NBC in Timeline
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is a major American commercial broadcast television and radio network. It operates as the flagship property of NBC Entertainment, a division of NBCUniversal, which is itself a subsidiary of Comcast. NBC is one of NBCUniversal's two primary flagship subsidiaries, the other being Universal Studios. In essence, NBC is a cornerstone of the American media landscape, providing television and radio programming to a wide audience.
1953: Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade Broadcast
In 1953, NBC became the official American broadcaster of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.
1954: Tonight Starring Steve Allen Debuts
In 1954, Weaver created Tonight Starring Steve Allen, the first program in the Tonight Show franchise. He also created Home in 1954.
1955: Wide Wide World Debuts and NBC Monitor Developed
In 1955, Weaver created Wide Wide World for NBC. He also developed NBC Monitor, a weekend-long magazine-style block featuring news, music, comedy, drama, and sports.
1956: KUAM-TV Becomes NBC Affiliate
In 1956, KUAM-TV in Guam became an NBC affiliate, carrying the entire NBC programming lineup.
1966: WMGM-TV Affiliation
From 1966 to 2014, WMGM-TV, based in Atlantic City, was an NBC affiliate.
1975: NBC's Saturday Night Created
By 1975 Michaels had assembled a talented cast for NBC's Saturday Night.
1975: NBC Monitor ends
NBC Monitor, a weekend-long magazine-style block featuring news, music, comedy, drama, and sports ended in 1975.
1976: NBC Purchases Rights to Saturday Night Live Name
In 1976, NBC purchased the rights to the name Saturday Night Live from ABC.
March 26, 1977: NBC Adopts Saturday Night Live Title
On March 26, 1977, NBC officially adopted the title Saturday Night Live for its show.
1979: Real People Debuts
In 1979, Silverman pioneered the reality television genre with the debut of Real People.
1979: Peacock Reintroduced as NBC's Corporate Logo
In 1979, Silverman reintroduced the peacock as NBC's corporate logo.
1981: Animated Series The Smurfs Launched
In 1981, Silverman oversaw the development of an animated series based on The Smurfs.
1982: Grant Tinker and Brandon Tartikoff begin turning around NBC's fortunes
By 1982, network president Grant Tinker and President of Entertainment Brandon Tartikoff gradually turned the network's fortunes around. Tartikoff pursued actor-comedian Bill Cosby to create a comedy pilot which resulted in The Cosby Show, the 1980s drama Miami Vice inspired by a brainstorming memo that simply read "MTV cops", and Knight Rider which was inspired by a perceived lack of leading men who could act.
1985: Brandon Tartikoff helps NBC get back on top
By 1985, Brandon Tartikoff as President of Entertainment, would help get NBC back on top.
1986: Current Logo in Use
Since 1986, the current version of NBC's logo, which incorporates stylized peacock designs, has been in use.
1989: Animated Series The Smurfs Ended
In 1989, the animated series The Smurfs ended, well after Silverman's departure.
February 1991: Johnny Carson Announces Retirement to Brandon Tartikoff
In February 1991, Johnny Carson broke the news of his retirement to Tartikoff during a lunch meeting.
1993: Canal de Noticias NBC Launched
In 1993, NBC launched Canal de Noticias NBC, a 24-hour Spanish-language news channel serving Latin America. It based its news schedule around the "wheel" format conceived at CNN.
1993: General Electric Acquires Super Channel
In 1993, then-NBC parent General Electric acquired Super Channel, relaunching the Pan-European cable network as NBC Super Channel.
1994: NBC Asia Launched
In 1994, NBC Asia launched, distributed to multiple countries including India, Japan, and South Korea. It featured NBC's news programs, The Tonight Show, Late Night, and Saturday Night Live.
1996: NBC Europe Renamed
In 1996, the channel was renamed NBC Europe, though it was almost always referred to as simply "NBC" on-air.
February 2, 1997: Meet the Press HD Broadcast
On February 2, 1997, Meet the Press was 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.
July 1998: NBC Asia Replaced by National Geographic Channel
In July 1998, NBC Asia was replaced by a regional version of the National Geographic Channel.
April 26, 1999: Launch of NBC HD
On April 26, 1999, NBC officially began its conversion to high definition with the launch of its simulcast feed, NBC HD, with The Tonight Show as the first HD program.
1999: Canal de Noticias NBC Shut Down
In 1999, Canal de Noticias NBC shut down due to the channel's inability to generate sustainable advertising revenue.
1999: NBC Europe Ceases Broadcasting
In 1999, NBC Europe ceased broadcasting in most of Europe outside of Germany. The network was relaunched as a German-language technology channel aimed at a younger demographic, with the new series NBC GIGA as its flagship program.
1999: Launch of NBCi
In 1999, NBC launched NBCi, a heavily advertised online venture serving as an attempt to launch a web portal, partnering with various companies to provide a multi-faceted internet portal.
April 2000: Purchase of GlobalBrain
In April 2000, NBC purchased GlobalBrain, a company specializing in search engines that learned from searches initiated by its users, for $32 million.
2002: Conversion to HD
Beginning with the 2002-03 season, NBC gradually converted 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: Acquisition of 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 Miss Universe Organization owner Donald Trump, giving NBC half-ownership of the pageants.
2004: NBC Programming Available in the U.S. Virgin Islands
Since 2004, NBC programming has been available in the U.S. Virgin Islands on WVGN-LD in Charlotte Amalie. Telemundo owned-and-operated station WKAQ-TV in San Juan, Puerto Rico carries the WNBC feed on a digital subchannel.
2005: Exceptions to Full HD Presentation
As of 2005, certain holiday specials produced prior to 2005, such as its annual broadcast of It's a Wonderful Life, continue to be presented in 4:3 SD, although some have been remastered for HD broadcast. Full HD presentation happened after September 2012.
2005: NBC Affiliated with KKHJ-LP in American Samoa
From 2005, NBC was affiliated with KKHJ-LP in Pago Pago, American Samoa.
2005: NBC GIGA relaunched as Das Vierte
In 2005, the channel NBC GIGA was relaunched again as the free-to-air movie channel Das Vierte.
February 2007: Reilly Signs New Contract with NBC
In February 2007, Reilly signed a new three-year contract with NBC.
May 2007: Reilly Terminated as President of NBC
In late May 2007, Reilly was terminated as president of NBC.
October 29, 2007: Hulu Launch
On October 29, 2007, Hulu launched in private beta testing, offering full-length episodes of most of NBC's programming through the streaming service.
2007: Acquisition of National Dog Show Rights
In 2007, NBC acquired the rights to the National Dog Show, which airs following the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade each year.
2007: Discontinuation of Miss Teen USA Broadcasts
In 2007, NBC declined to renew its contract to carry Miss Teen USA, effectively discontinuing televised broadcasts of that event until 2023.
2007: NBCi Mirrors NBC.com
In mid-2007, NBCi.com began to mirror the main NBC.com website.
2008: Availability of Complete Back Catalogs
In 2008, NBC.com and certain other partner websites, including Hulu, provided complete back catalogs of most of its current series as well as a limited selection of episodes of classic series.
2009: Solar TV Broadcasts The Jay Leno Show
From 2009, Solar TV broadcast The Jay Leno Show in the Philippines.
2009: GIGA Television Shut Down as TV Station
In 2009, GIGA Television, spun off as a separate digital channel, shut down as a TV station. It was available on satellite and cable providers in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
2009: NBC and Seven Use "Like it Like That" in Image Promos
In 2009, NBC and Seven both used the Guy Sebastian single "Like it Like That" in image promos for their respective summer schedules.
2009: Same-Day Rebroadcast of Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade
In 2009, NBC began airing a same-day rebroadcast of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade telecast, replacing its annual Thanksgiving afternoon airing of Miracle on 34th Street.
2009: Digital Television Transition
In 2009, the digital television transition reduced signal coverage in southern areas of Canada located near the Canada–United States border 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 became the last NBC News program to convert to HD.
2010: NBCi Redirected to NBC.com
In 2010, NBCi.com was eventually redirected to the NBC.com domain.
2010: Solar TV Stops Broadcasting The Jay Leno Show
In 2010, Solar TV stopped broadcasting The Jay Leno Show in the Philippines.
July 2011: Losing Rights to Newer Episodes on Netflix
In July 2011, Netflix lost the right to carry newer episodes of NBC's programs during their current seasons, carrying only cataloged episodes of NBC programs.
September 2012: Completion of HD Conversion
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.
2012: Macy's Parade Rerouted
In 2012, Macy's chose to reroute the parade out of the view of CBS' cameras, as NBC holds exclusivity over the broadcast of Broadway and music performances appearing in the parade.
2012: KKHJ-LP disaffiliates with NBC
In 2012, NBC disaffiliated with KKHJ-LP in Pago Pago, American Samoa.
2013: Das Vierte shut down
Das Vierte, previously known as NBC GIGA, eventually shut down at the end of 2013. It was acquired by Disney, which replaced it with a German version of Disney Channel.
2013: Live Musical Adaptations
Since 2013, NBC has aired live musical adaptations with major stars in lead roles, proving to be rating successes and a nostalgic tribute to the early days of television.
2014: WMGM-TV No Longer Affiliated
From 1966 to 2014, WMGM-TV, based in Atlantic City, was an NBC affiliate.
2014: NBC Holds Rights to Pageants
From 2003 to 2014, NBC held rights to the Miss Universe and Miss USA pageants.
2014: VSB-TV Ends Operations
In 2014, NBC's entire program lineup was carried by VSB-TV, until it ended operations.
February 18, 2015: Live Programming Streams
On February 18, 2015, NBC began providing live programming streams of local NBC stations in select markets to authenticated subscribers of participating pay television providers.
June 29, 2015: Relinquishing Miss Universe and Miss USA Rights
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 made by Trump.
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: Trump's Controversial Remarks
In 2016, Donald Trump made controversial remarks about Mexican immigrants during the launch of his campaign for the Republican presidential nomination. This resulted in NBCUniversal cutting business ties with Trump.
2018: NFL Game Streaming Rights
In 2018, a change to the NFL's mobile rights agreement allowed NFL game telecasts to be streamed through network websites and apps.
2018: Experimental Station Goes Off-Air
In 2018, the experimental station WRAL-EX, which transmitted limited NBC programming in UHD, went off-air as part of the FCC's repacking process.
2018: Purchase of Nashua Station
In early 2018, NBC purchased the Nashua station (formerly WYCN-CD) after the FCC spectrum auction.
April 2019: NBC Pays Firm to Improve Reputation on Wikipedia
In April 2019, it was reported that NBC had paid a firm to improve its reputation by lobbying for changes to the Wikipedia articles on NBC, Nextdoor and several others.
2019: Relocation of WYCN-LD
In 2019, NBC relocated WYCN-LD to Providence, Rhode Island to serve as a Telemundo station for that market.
2023: Televised Broadcasts of Miss Teen USA Resumes
In 2023, televised broadcasts of Miss Teen USA effectively resumed, after NBC had discontinued broadcasts of that event in 2007.
December 31, 2024: KXGN-TV Drops NBC
On December 31, 2024, KXGN-TV in Glendive, Montana dropped NBC from its DT2 subchannel.
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