WLNY-TV (channel 55) is an independent television station licensed to Riverhead, New York, United States, serving the New York City television market. It is owned by the CBS News and Stations group alongside CBS flagship WCBS-TV (channel 2). Both stations share studios within the CBS Broadcast Center on West 57th Street in Midtown Manhattan, while WLNY-TV's transmitter is located in Ridge, New York. WLNY-TV's primary over-the-air signal serves most of Long Island, and the station is available through cable, satellite television and subscription streaming services, in most of the New York City market. It is branded on-air as "WLNY TV 10/55" because of its carriage on cable channel 10 in most of the New York metropolitan area. History Proposed WRIV-TV The origins of channel 55 date back to 1965, when WRIV radio in Riverhead applied for a construction permit for UHF channel 55. The proposed WRIV-TV presumably would have gone on air as a NBC affiliate, due to the presence of WRIV radio's part-owner at the time, NBC News anchor Chet Huntley. WRIV-TV would have filled a coverage hole for NBC on eastern Long Island, as there was limited reception from New York City's WNBC-TV (channel 4) and the UHF signal from WATR-TV (channel 20) in Waterbury, Connecticut. In comparison, eastern Long Island was well served by the Connecticut-based VHF signals from CBS on WTIC-TV (channel 3) and ABC on WNHC-TV (channel 8). WRIV-TV was ready to go on the air by the early 1970s, but the combination of a tough economic environment and the widespread popularity of cable television – which enabled viewers on eastern Long Island to receive New York City television stations clearly – likely prevented WRIV-TV from making it on the air. WLIG (1985–1996) The channel 55 allocation remained dormant until 1979, when a group of local investors led by local businessman Michael Pascucci filed for a new construction permit from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), which was awarded in 1982. Channel 55 went on the air April 28, 1985, as WLIG, with the on-air branding TV-55. It was the first Long Island-based independent television station since the demise of WSNL-TV (channel 67), which had gone dark a decade earlier. The station's first studio was located at its transmitter site in Ridge, while offices were located on Crossways Park Drive in Woodbury, Long Island. Local news was included at the station's launch; a live 30-minute program,