MSG Metro Channels

MSG Metro Channels
Ownership
OwnerRainbow Media
History
LaunchedAugust 5, 1998; 26 years ago (1998-08-05)
ClosedSeptember 2005; 19 years ago (2005-09)
Replaced bySportsNet New York
News 12 Traffic & Weather

MSG Metro Channels was a series of local-minded New York City cable networks which launched on August 5, 1998, and closed in late 2005. Owned by Rainbow Media, the Metro networks were founded as a spinoff of the MSG sports network. The network was originally split into three separate channels, MSG MetroGuide, MSG MetroTraffic & Weather, and MSG MetroLearning Center. The tri-channel network was termed as "What to do, what to know, and how to get there" among similar billings and was an attempt by Rainbow Media to compete with newspapers and the internet for detailed coverage. Rainbow sought carriage in the mid- to high-teen numbers for the channels, so as to highlight that they "[fit] together like sections of a Sunday newspaper".[1]

  1. ^ Petrozzello, Donna (July 6, 1998). "Rainbow rolling out MSG Metro". Broadcasting & Cable. p. 65. ProQuest 225322181.