What WKYC TV does

WKYC TV is Cleveland's oldest television station and the NBC affiliate for the Cleveland-Akron DMA, founded in 1948/1949 and headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio. The station is wholly owned by TEGNA Inc. (NYSE: TGNA) and operates as a local broadcast television property within TEGNA's larger station portfolio. WKYC distributes content via over-the-air broadcast on channel 4, cable/satellite carriage, the WKYC+ free OTT streaming platform (available on Roku, Apple TV, and Fire TV), and mobile applications for iOS and Android, reaching viewers across traditional and connected-TV channels.

The station's core products are organized under the 3News brand and include daily local newscasts (3News in the Morning through 3News at 11), investigative journalism under 3News Investigates, the WKYC+ streaming platform, a weather offering with 24/7 Doppler radar and 10-day forecasts, and a portfolio of community-focused digital products including Near Me (user-generated content), VERIFY (fact-checking), Health Hub, Education Station, 3Heroes, and Mission Possible. The station's newsroom produces hyperlocal coverage of news, weather, traffic, and sports for the Cleveland Browns, Guardians, and Cavaliers, plus exclusive live-sports streaming via the Cleveland Crunch partnership.

WKYC generates revenue primarily through advertising — both traditional broadcast avails and digital/OTT inventory on WKYC+, the website, and mobile apps. Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed. The customer base is the Northeast Ohio viewing audience, which is monetized through local, regional, and national advertisers; no specific enterprise customers or major advertiser concentrations are disclosed. WKYC does not sell B2B subscriptions, SaaS, or transactional products; WKYC+ is offered free to consumers, indicating an ad-supported model rather than a subscription or usage-based revenue stream.

Name

WKYC TV

Legal name

WKYC-TV

Website

https://wkyc.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1949

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

WKYC TV is the NBC affiliate broadcast station serving Cleveland and Northeast Ohio, owned by TEGNA Inc., distributing local news, weather, and sports via over-the-air broadcast, the WKYC+ streaming platform, and mobile apps to advertisers and regional viewers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Local Broadcast Television

NAICS

Television Broadcasting Stations (516120), Media Streaming Distribution Services, Social Networks, and Other Media Networks and Content Providers (51621)

SIC

Television Broadcasting Stations (4833)

akta.pro primary industry

Network-Affiliated Local TV Stations (ABC/CBS/NBC/FOX/CW/Telemundo/Univision, etc.) (MPABACAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

News OTT & Live News Streaming Channels (MPABAHAK), Local News & Weather Stations (MPABACAJ)

Keywords

• Local news broadcasting
• Television broadcasting
• Weather forecasting
• Streaming media
• Investigative journalism

Headquarters

HQ city

Cleveland

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Advertising Revenue: Traditional broadcast and digital advertising revenue from local, regional, and national advertisers. The station sells commercial airtime across its broadcast and streaming platforms.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

WKYC-TV is a local broadcast television station serving Cleveland and Northeast Ohio, operating as the NBC affiliate with 3News branding. The station produces and distributes local news, weather, sports, and entertainment content through over-the-air broadcast, the WKYC+ free streaming platform (Roku, Apple TV, Fire TV, mobile apps), and its website. WKYC generates revenue primarily through advertising sales across these distribution channels, with additional content partnerships such as streaming Cleveland Crunch indoor soccer games.

Product overview

WKYC TV is a local broadcast television station serving Cleveland and Northeast Ohio, operating as part of the TEGNA media group. The station offers a multi-platform content portfolio centered around its broadcast TV station, WKYC+ streaming platform, and 3News branded news division. WKYC+ provides free OTT streaming through mobile apps and connected devices (Roku, Apple TV, Fire TV). The 3News brand encompasses multiple daily news programs (3News in the Morning through 3News at 11) plus investigative journalism. Additional digital products include weather forecasting tools with live radar, the Near Me user-generated content platform, the VERIFY fact-checking service, and specialized sections like Health Hub, Education Station, and Mission Possible covering community-focused topics.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• 3News: The news branding for WKYC-TV's local news programming including 3News at 6A, 3News at 4, 3News at 5, 3News at 6, 3News at 7, and 3News at 11.
• WKYC+
• VERIFY

Products and services

• WKYC TV Broadcast Local broadcast television station serving Cleveland and Northeast Ohio with news, weather, sports, and entertainment content distributed over-the-air and through cable/satellite providers as the NBC affiliate. Targets viewers in the Cleveland-Akron DMA seeking hyperlocal coverage.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Cleveland CrunchminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 5 December 2025The Cleveland Crunch professional indoor soccer team partnered with WKYC+ to exclusively stream six home games during the 2025-26 season, starting January 10, 2026. The games are broadcast live from the Wolstein Center at Cleveland State University through WKYC's mobile app and streaming devices, making matches accessible to fans unable to attend in person or living out of state. This partnership reflects WKYC's commitment to connecting Northeast Ohio communities through local sports coverage.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• WEWS NewsChannel 5: Scripps-owned ABC affiliate serving the same Cleveland DMA as WKYC. Directly competes for the same local news audience, advertisers, and sports rights in Northeast Ohio.
• WOIO CBS 19: CBS-affiliated local news station in Cleveland, owned by Nexstar Media Group. Direct competitor across local news, weather, and sports in the same DMA.
• WJW Fox 8: FOX-owned local TV station in Cleveland, a direct competitor in news, weather, and primetime programming within the same DMA.
• WCMH NBC 4 (Columbus): Another TEGNA-owned NBC affiliate operating in a comparable Ohio market. Same network affiliation, parent company, and operating model — the closest functional peer within TEGNA's portfolio.
• WUSA 9 (Washington, DC): TEGNA-owned CBS affiliate in a major market. Direct portfolio peer demonstrating the TEGNA multi-station model and operating playbook.
• KARE 11 (Minneapolis): TEGNA-owned NBC affiliate in Minneapolis-St. Paul. Closest functional peer in terms of NBC network affiliation, mid-major market positioning, and TEGNA operational benchmarks.

Regional players

• WVIZ Ideastream Public Media: PBS member station in Cleveland offering local news and public affairs programming. Competes for the same local audience with a non-commercial model.
• WKBN 27 (Youngstown): CBS affiliate serving the adjacent Youngstown-Warren market. Regional peer that partially overlaps the WKYC viewing area and competes for some Northeast Ohio advertising.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCNBmxc6FvKyxtCpUygcdINA
• Xx.com/WKYC
• Facebookfacebook.com/WKYC.Channel3
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/wkyc-tv

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about WKYC TV