 IFC Center is owned by AMC Networks (known until July 1, 2011 as Rainbow Media), the entertainment company that owns the cable channels AMC, BBC America (49.99% stake and a joint venture with BBC Studios), IFC, We TV and Sundance TV and the film company IFC Films.AMC Networks has positioned the theater as an extension of its cable channel IFC (Independent Film Channel) because IFC was to take over the building.IFC has converted the historic building, originally built as a church in the early 19th century, into a three-, and eventually five-theater facility.