May 25, 2013

Oprah Talks OWN Ratings Turnaround: ‘I’m Not Doing the Hula Yet’

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*The Hollywood Reporter sat down with Oprah Winfrey to chat about the huge reversal in fortune of her OWN cable channel and the lessons she’s learned. “I’m not doing the hula yet …but compared to a year ago, it feels like a sigh of relief,” says Winfrey between sips of iced tea on her sprawling [...]




Discovery: Oprah’s OWN Should Break Even by Mid-2013

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*OWN, the joint venture of Discovery Communications and Oprah Winfrey, will reach cash flow break-even during the second half of 2013, Discovery CEO David Zaslav said Tuesday. On his company’s first-quarter earnings conference call Tuesday, he said Discovery expects funding to OWN in 2012 to come in below that of 2011. The network’s recent steps [...]




Discovery CEO: Key to OWN Success is Black Viewers

Discovery CEO David Zaslav and Oprah Winfrey

*Discovery Communications CEO David Zaslav on Tuesday urged patience for OWN after insisting his cable network joint venture with Oprah Winfrey will only grow over the next two years. “My job, Oprah’s job, is to create a meaningful audience for OWN over the next two years. That’s what you should watch for and we’re on [...]




Oprah Winfrey Hires Herself as CEO of OWN

Oprah Winfrey attends the Allen & Company Sun Valley Conference on July 7, 2011 in Sun Valley, Idaho. The conference has been hosted annually by the investment firm Allen & Company each July since 1983. The conference is typically attended by many of the world's most powerful media executives. (July 6, 2011)

*Oprah Winfrey will take over as chief executive officer of OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network this fall, the cable channel announced today. Winfrey will be the third CEO of the company since its debut in January. She will also become chief creative officer as the network prepares for her new talk show, “Oprah’s Next Chapter,” to [...]




Discovery to Invest Additional $50 Million into Oprah’s OWN

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*Discovery Communications on Friday said it will invest an additional $50 million in OWN: The Oprah Winfrey Network this year, particularly in programming, which it said will mean the company will break even on the channel this year instead of turning a profit as it had previously predicted. According to the Hollywood Reporter, President and [...]




Oprah’s New Network Projects Profit in First Year

Oprah Winfrey with Christina Norman, C.E.O. of OWN, and David Zaslav, president and C.E.O of Discovery Communications

*The New York Times says Discovery Communications expects Oprah Winfrey’s cable channel to achieve profitability in its first year: Discovery and Ms. Winfrey flipped the switch on OWN, short for the Oprah Winfrey Network, on New Year’s Day. The new channel enjoyed heavy sampling among viewers over the weekend, though executives have cautioned that they [...]




Oprah’s OWN Network Set to Launch January 1

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*(Via LA Times) It happened in its OWN time. After three years of planning, delays and management misfires, OWN: The Oprah Winfrey Network finally arrives Jan. 1, the biggest launch of a cable channel in more than a decade. Wall Street and the television industry are eager to see whether the celebrity who can unleash [...]