As a result, he began to explore the possibility of re-launching the channel as a joint venture with another partner.

1.3 Tyler Perry development deal, expansion into scripted programmingĪfter becoming Discovery Communications' new CEO in 2007, David Zaslav found Discovery Health to be underperforming along with its other digital cable networks launched in the last decade, and taking in significantly lower carriage fees in comparison to the company's namesake.

1.2 Early struggles, targeting African Americans.

Harpo remains a 'significant' minority stakeholder and Winfrey is contracted with the channel through at least 2025.Īs of February 2015, OWN is available to approximately 81.9 million pay television households (70.3% of households with television) in the United States.

Initially a 50/50 joint venture, Discovery acquired a larger stake in the network in 2017 and again in December 2020, when Discovery increased its ownership in OWN from 73% to 95%. The network is led by talk show host and namesake Oprah Winfrey and largely features entertainment and lifestyle programming targeting African American audiences, and reruns of talk show programming from the Harpo Studios library (including Oprah's former eponymous series).

Discovery and Harpo Studios that launched on January 1, 2011, replacing the Discovery Health Channel. Oprah Winfrey Network ( OWN) is an American multinational basic cable channel jointly owned by Warner Bros.

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