OWN Programming Options Emerging
The Oprah Winfrey Network faces a competitive landscape in targeting well-served female demo
By Marisa Guthrie -- Broadcasting & Cable, 11/22/2009 8:05:52 PM
With a little over a year until the January 2011 launch date Discovery has set for OWN: The Oprah Winfrey Network, a few things are probable, a handful are possible and just about nothing is certain about the programming lineup. But the options the network's execs have to choose from are coming into focus following Winfrey's Nov. 20 announcement that she will end her syndicated talk show in Sept. 2011.
Winfrey is expected to have a daily presence on OWN, though exactly what that will amount to remains to be seen. The joint venture between Discovery Communications and Harpo Productions is expected to focus at least at first on non-fiction programming and include daily doses of health and medical programming, per carriage agreement requirements associated with taking over Discovery Health's slot on the dial. OWN is expected to unveil a slate of new content in January and projects announced during the network's upfront presentation last year remain in consideration.
The network will have the entire 25-year catalog of The Oprah Winfrey Show starting in Sept. 2011. OWN is likely to seriously consider negotiating windows for at least some of the Harpo-produced talk shows on the air, such as Dr. Oz, or due to debut before the network does, like the Nate Berkus vehicle that Harpo and Sony are eyeing for syndication starting in fall 2010.
When the network finally launches in Discovery Health's 70 million-plus cable homes in January 2011, it will face a competitive media landscape in targeting a well-served female demographic.
"That whole target--working women and stay-at-home moms--is becoming more and more important and more and more difficult to reach," says Brad Adgate, senior VP of research at Horizon Media.
Indeed, NBC Universal's women's brands now include Bravo and Oxygen--a network founded by Winfrey and Gerry Laybourne--as well as the Web destination iVillage. Oxygen was launched as an alternative to Lifetime, the original "television for women," to use the network's old slogan. Now Lifetime Networks includes the flagship channel as well as Lifetime Movie Network and Lifetime Real Women, the company's digital channel.
"To be able to launch a network in such a competitive programming environment, you have to launch big," observes Shari Anne Brill, senior VP and director of programming at media buying firm Carat. "[Winfrey] is larger than life in terms of her following, the types of people she's able to attract, the kinds of issues she delves into. There's nobody else like her. So she instantly brings a cache to that new network that no other cable network really has."
Discovery and Winfrey first announced plans to launch a joint venture channel in January 2008; however, the launch date has been pushed back several times and there has been turnover in the executive ranks. Winfrey's announcement clears the way for the network to gain some momentum.
Projects announced during the OWN upfront in 2008 are still in play, B&C has confirmed. Those include: An investigative series with correspondent Lisa Ling, who has been a contributor on The Oprah Winfrey Show; a newsmaker interview show called Master Class, possibly hosted by Winfrey; a docu-soap about Surfers Healing, a California surf school for children with autism; a project featuring Peter Walsh, a de-clutter expert and a frequent guest on Winfrey's talk show; a talk show hosted by high-profile sex therapist Dr. Laura Berman; and Excellent Adventure, which follows two friends as they embark on "the adventure they have always dreamed of taking together."
OWN has the rights to The Oprah Winfrey Show as well as a handful of made-for-TV movies in the Harpo library. (A Discovery representative could not offer specific titles from the Harpo library.)
There has also been speculation that OWN could become the cable home for various Winfrey protégés including Dr. Phil, Dr. Oz and The Rachael Ray Show. There is currently no cable home for Dr. Oz, which debuted in syndication this season. But should one be made available, OWN would be a likely destination. Ray's show is in first-run syndication exclusively via CBS Television Distribution and is renewed through 2012. Phil McGraw produces his show through his own shingle, Peteski Productions.
Additionally, Jenny McCarthy inked a multiplatform development deal with Harpo Productions earlier this year. (Rumors about Jennifer Aniston fronting a talk show also surfaced, but OWN representatives denied that they were in talks or had even approached Aniston.)
And last year, Winfrey inked a development deal with HBO for scripted programming. Harpo Films chief Kate Forte said at the time that carriage agreements stipulate that the bulk of OWN's programming would be non-scripted, so the HBO deal would not be affected.
The carriage agreements for Discovery Health and by extension OWN call for a certain number of hours each day dedicated to health and medical programming. If Dr. Oz lands at OWN it would certainly fill the health/medical quota. And Discovery Health's top-rated show Dr. G: Medical Examiner is also said to be in consideration for a berth on OWN.
OWN representatives would not comment on the network's programming plans or specifics of carriage deals.
Of course, Winfrey would be the biggest start on her network. CBS Television Distribution handles The Oprah Winfrey Show. Winfrey reportedly told CBS Corp. CEO Les Moonves that she would not simply transplant her top-rated talker to OWN. Rather, according to Deadline Hollywood Daily, she'll do a show that is "smaller and different."
"She's going to do some version of [her daytime show]," says Brill. "Maybe she won't host it every day. Maybe it won't be the exact format. But she will have something."
"She's not going to fall off the radar the way Howard Stern did [when he left terrestrial radio for satellite]," says Adgate. "Her name has become a brand and it has worked in a lot of different platforms."
"She exerts a lot of power and influence," adds Brill. "She's an advertiser's dream, so she'll get that support. And she just commands a lot of attention."
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