KYOU-DT2 converted into an NBC affiliate at 5:00 a.m. on January 24, 2018; as a result, Grit programming was moved to digital subchannel 15.3, which, in turn, saw its Escape affiliation move a new fourth digital subchannel. Prior to the conversion, some portions of the Iowa side of the market (including Ottumwa) were served by K27CV (channel 27), a community-owned translator which rebroadcast WHO-DT's signal from Des Moines. Cable systems in the Kirksville and Ottumwa areas imported WHO-DT, KWWL's signal from Waterloo, KSHB-TV's signal from Kansas City, or WGEM-TV's signal from Quincy, depending on the location; the latter station's over the air signal reached portions of the southern half of the market. With the conversion into a major network affiliate, the subchannel – which became branded as "NBC 15.2" – adopted a general entertainment programming format that primarily features a mix of first-run syndicated talk shows, game shows and newsmagazines, with infomercials and other paid programming filling much of KYOU-DT2's weekend schedule outside of NBC network programs and a limited schedule of syndicated shows.