WGRZ - Digital Television

Digital Television

WGRZ-DT2 was part of NBC Weather Plus until December 2008, when that network shut down, and aired a locally originated "Weather Plus" channel between that time and June 2009. The DT2 channel then switched to Universal Sports, which it carried through the end of 2011.

WGRZ ended analog broadcasts at 1:00 on June 12, 2009 and began a two week analog night light operation. The station's digital signal remained on channel 33. However, digital television with PSIP capability display WGRZ's virtual channel as 2. WGRZ dropped the -TV suffix, like most Gannett stations just a week after the transition.

Retro Television Network was previously seen on WGRZ-DT3. The 2.3 channel was removed in September 2011 with no replacement in order to provide better picture quality to both the DT2 and the main WGRZ signal; the DT3 signal had never gained significant cable carriage and by that time, much of the programming was being duplicated by WBBZ-TV. Although the DT2 subchannel has achieved significant cable penetration dating to its time as a Weather Plus outlet, Universal Sports itself is scheduled to cease terrestrial broadcasting in January 2012 as part of Comcast's overhaul of the NBC Sports division and will be replaced by NBC Nonstop, which WGRZ will not carry. Instead, WGRZ-DT2 will return to classic programming, this time as an affiliate of Antenna TV, competing with WBBZ.