A construction permit for UHF channel 22 in Cranford, New Jersey was granted to Craig Fox with alpha-numeric call-sign W22BM on February 11, 1993; it signed on in March 1997. The call-sign was changed to WLBX-LP on April 24, 1998. WLBX-LP was previously an affiliate of The Box until that network's acquisition by Viacom in 2001; the station then carried MTV2 like many other former Box stations. On September 11, 2001 WMBQ-CD aired footage from CNN and TechTV.
As WMBQ-CA
The call sign was changed to WMBQ-CA in 2004. In 2006, Renard Communications Corp. began transitioning to a new studio and transmitter they were constructing in Manhattan, New York City. Due to this change, WMBQ-CA was displaced from channel 22 to channel 46, and the city of license was changed from Cranford, New Jersey to New York City. On August 17, 2007, Renard Communications Corp. announced that would sell its three stations to Equity Media Holdings for $8 million. However, the transaction had a closing deadline set for June 1, 2008, and either party could cancel the sale if it were not completed by then. As of this revision, the sale has been consummated and, as of December 8, 2008, Equity Media Holdings is in chapter 11 bankruptcy. On January 3, 2008, WMBQ-CA went dark, reportedly as a result of moving to a new transmitter site. For a period of over two months, the station broadcast an aerial view of New York City and audio from NOAA weather radio. WMBQ resumed broadcasting Cornerstone TeleVision in early March 2008. In mid-2011, Renard sold WMBQ for $5,250,000 to Prime Time Partners LLC., whose main principals are Jose Rodriguez and Marisol Messir.
As WMBQ-CD
The call-sign was changed to WMBQ-CD on April 23, 2012 when the station completed its digital transition. Long-form infomercial programming was added full-time, however, later that year Soi TV was added after having been removed from WNJU-DT3. The Soi programming ended in 2013, and infomercial programming was once again added back to the subchannel. The only programming that was air in the morning is al dia. The format continued through late December. Biz TV was then added, and this diginet is the first station to air financial programming in the New York City TV market since WBIS-TV aired financial programming from 1996–1998. In the Federal Communications Commission 's incentive auction, WMBQ-CD sold its spectrum for $28,313,224 and indicated that it would enter into a post-auction channel sharing agreement. On September 29, 2017, the station entered into a channel sharing agreement with WNET ; concurrently, Prime Time Partners agreed to donate the WMBQ license to WNET. The donation was completed on December 22, 2017; the next day, WMBQ-CD was taken off-the-air while WNET prepares to move the shared transmitter to the World Trade Center. WMBQ returns to 46 in November 2018 as a primary affiliate of MHz Worldview. WMBQ-CD is the third commercial station to converted to a non-commercial station. Like WNDT-CD, WMBQ-CD airs NJTV News with Mary Alice Williams and a local produced program Metrofocus. Among local programing PBS Kids Sprout and Cyberchase airs on Saturday afternoons from WNET. After MHz Networks announced in January that MHz Worldview will cease operations by March 1, 2020 in favor of digital streaming, WNET switched its programming to First Nations Experience.
Digital television
The station's digital channel is multiplexed:
Channel
Name
Video
Aspect
Programming
46.1
WMBQ-CD
480i
FNX
Canal SOI was formerly carried as a Telemundo 47 subchannel. Locally, it had been airing over WNJU Linden, channel 47-3, between November 1, 2011 and December 21, 2012. A third sub channel, EEE, a Spanish religious network, was added in 2014 but in low audio tone. In January 2015, EEE was replaced with long-form Infomercial programming. Biz TV was previously on its primary channel 46.1 until it was donated to WNET which has since cease transmittion.
