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.
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.
Other-on air talent included Bobby Rivers, Christina Ha, Ed Levine and Tinabeth Piña.
In the early 1990s it would air in the mornings on most Cablevision systems in place of Bravo (which was owned by Rainbow, but sold to NBC Media in 2002 and later NBCUniversal) and E!
Mr. Palminteri notes that the studio was re-designed from the ground up to accommodate the new series, and Rick Ruggles installed the new broadcast console.
At the end of its first Spring Season (March 1995 to July 1995) Extra Help won a CableACE Award for Best New Educational Show Concept – 1995.
The channel's homework help shows were now all merged under the banner School's Out which later became Studio Y, the flagship teen talk program for the networks.
Many panelists were offered special opportunities to attend press junkets, which the network lucratively scored, for major motion pictures.
Eventually, the learning element was removed entirely and the show was renamed Studio Y. MetroTV, previously known as MSG Metro Channel, was a mix of all three of the MetroChannels for Cablevision's systems that were not upgraded to Optimum TV yet.
When MetroGuide was rebranded as MetroTV, it took up most of the schedule on this channel; MetroTraffic & Weather continued in the mornings, but MetroLearning programming was bumped to late night.
At the time the MSG Metro channels launched, Cablevision owned the local television rights to all seven MLB, NBA and NHL teams in the New York Metropolitan area.
Cablevision claimed that companies whose advertisements appeared during those sporting events were upset at the use of these additional feeds since it resulted in a lower number of viewers.
In addition, the programming on the MetroChannels was very Manhattan-specific and carried content thought to be of little interest to people who lived outside of the local New York City area.
[3] Later in Metro's existence, there were days where a game was scheduled on MetroGuide (or later on, MetroTV) but not MSG or FSN, showing the monopoly that Cablevision had over local sports.
The monopoly ended in 2002, when the New York Yankees and New Jersey Nets started the YES Network, lessening Cablevision's need to show pro games on Metro.
Key shows like Studio Y moved to MetroTV, and Learning evolved into a digital channel, MetroStories, which showcased biographical type programming premiered on MetroLearning.
In 2005, the MetroChannels disappeared for good, leaving only Metro Traffic & Weather to be the sole survivor, which was rebranded as part of the News 12 suite.