Despite attracting more than 100 affiliate stations and securing the financial support of Twentieth Century-Fox (which purchased a 50% share of NTA in November 1956), the network proved unprofitable and was discontinued by 1961.

Instead, NTA Film Network programs were mailed to each station, a method used by other television syndicators in the 1950s and 1960s.

However, many local stations agreed to broadcast NTA Film Network programs simultaneously.

[26] In January 1959, Ely Landau was succeeded by Charles C. Barry, who assumed the role of president of network operations.

[28][29] By 1961, WNTA-TV was losing money, and the network's flagship station was sold to the Educational Broadcasting Corporation that November.

WNTA-TV became WNDT (later WNET), flagship station of the National Educational Television network, a forerunner of PBS.

Four television series (Probe, Tintin, The Fair Adventure and A Day with Doodles) were syndicated by NTA between 1962 and 1966.