Time Warner Cable wants to change the name of its
20-year-old NY1 news channel in the Big Apple to clearly signal that it's
available only to cable subscribers.
The operator has not settled on a new name and said the
rebranding process will take nearly a year, the New
York Daily News reported. The move partly is driven Verizon FiOS's
incursion into New York City; the telco has launched FiOS1 news channels Long
Island and New Jersey but has not yet launched one for NYC.
"Our news outlets have grown tremendously in recent years.
As any entity grows and becomes more sophisticated, its brand evolves," a TWC
spokeswoman said in a statement. "Our research shows that people who watch our
stations, such as NY1, are loyal viewers, yet most people don't understand
their connection to Time Warner Cable."
According to the Daily News, the operator is
considering "TWC News" among the news names. The domain name TWCNews.com
currently is registered to a company in South Korea, although
TimeWarnerCableNews.com belongs to the MSO.
The operator plans to extend the new brand to its 17 other
local news channels, which it renamed YNN (Your News Now) in 2010.
NY1, which debuted Sept. 8, 1992, is available
on Time Warner Cable throughout the five boroughs of New York City and in parts
of Westchester and Hudson Valley, N.Y., as well as Bergen and Hudson counties
in New Jersey. NY1 News also available to Cablevision subs in Brooklyn and the
Bronx, as well as TWC subs in Rochester, Syracuse, Binghamton and Albany, N.Y.
In all, NY1 is available to 2.1 million cable customers.
