Omni Broadcasting Network Explained
The Omni Broadcasting Network was a small over-the-air broadcast television network in the United States. The company's motto was "Less Edge and More Entertaining". Omni's flagship station was low-power station KSSY-LP. The network's reach was reported as 50 million households, according to a quote in Variety.
History
The Omni Broadcasting Network was incorporated in 2001.[1] Its parent company, OBN Holdings,[2] produced films as well as television.[3] OBN's target demographic was adults age 25 and older during prime time, and ages 8 to 13 on weekend mornings.
Broadcast operations began in September 2003. In December 2003, Omni announced affiliation agreements with 119 stations and cable systems, as well as the All Sports Television Network.
According to an Omni executive, the network struggled to get the funding necessary for new projects. OBN Holdings' stock was delisted in 2013.[4]
Programming
Omni broadcast 60 hours of programming per week, 21 hours during prime time.[5] The network primarily ran classic films, usually during late-night hours or on the weekends. Omni also offered a few original programs. One was "Thirteen O'Clock Theater", an umbrella title for old science fiction and horror films in public domain, shown at 1 AM. The network also showed older children's programming such as Birdz,[6] (to meet FCC requirements for educational and informative programming requirements), as well as The MovieTime Showcase, The Flutemaster, The Mini-Movie Hour, and Wizards Tales.
The network also broadcast the 50th Anniversary concert of the Four Tops.[7] This was the network's first original production, taped July 28, 2004,[8] Titled From the Heart: The Four Tops 50th Anniversary and Celebration, the special aired in 2005,[9] and starred musicians Aretha Franklin, Paul Rodgers, Dennis Edwards (of The Temptations), and Mary Wilson (of The Supremes), in addition to the Four Tops themselves.[10] The special won the network a Telly Award.[11]
Other original programs included The Vegas Variety Hour and The Adventures of Unit 28.[12]
Former affiliates
The following were signed or pending OBN affiliates in December 2003:[13]
| Station or channel | Location | Notes |
|---|
| AncCityTV | St. Augustine, FL | Cable only |
| BCC7 | Brewton, AL | Cable only |
| Channel 23 | Hornell, NY | Cable only |
| Channel 5 | Litchfield, CT | Cable only |
| GCTV | Tracy City, TN | Cable only |
| K23BJ | Lake Havasu City, AZ | |
| K27FA | Craig, CO | |
| K47FW | Casa Grande, AZ | |
| K64FO | Fayetteville, AR | |
| K68AL/K62AY | Lakeport, CA | |
| KADY-TV | Santa Barbara, CA | |
| KATA-LP | Mesquite, TX | |
| KAZV | Modesto, CA | |
| KBAX | Twin Falls, ID | |
| KBSC-LP | Brookings, OR | |
| KBSU | Bemidji, MN | |
| KCBO-LP | Corpus Christi, TX | |
| KCCE | San Luis Obispo, CA | |
| KCFG | Flagstaff, AZ | |
| KCLA | Alexandria, LA | |
| KCNS | San Francisco, CA | |
| KCTU | | |
| KDAO-CD | Marshalltown, IA | |
| KEEN | Las Vegas, NV | |
| Victorville, CA | |
| KIDZ | Abilene, TX | |
| KJLA | Los Angeles, CA | |
| KJLR | | |
| KKAX-LP | | |
| KMBA | Ontario, OR | |
| KMNO | Monroe, LA | |
| KPBN | Baton Rouge, LA | |
| KPVM | Pahrump, NV | |
| KQEG-CD | | |
| KSSY | San Luis Obispo, CA | |
| KTOV | Corpus Christi, TX | |
| KTSS | | |
| KTUD | Las Vegas, NV | |
| KTYJ | Coeur d'Alene, ID | |
| KVHF | Fresno, CA | |
| KVMD-TV | Joshua Tree, CA | |
| KWBJ | Morgan City, LA | |
| KWEM-TV | Stillwater, OK | |
| KXGN | | |
| KXI | Columbia, MO | Cable only |
| KXOC/KSBI | Oklahoma City, OK | |
| KXOK | Enid, OK | |
| Lakes TV | Spirit Lake, IA | Cable only |
| LTV | New York City, NY | Cable only |
| MCTV-48 | Michigan City, IN | Cable only |
| NSU22 | Natchitoches, LA | Cable only |
| SCTTA | Cortez, CO | Cable only |
| Shelby TV | Shelby Township, MI | Cable only |
| TV98 | Orlando, FL | Cable only |
| TV6 | Sylacauga, AL | Cable only |
| Ultavision | Morehead, KY | Cable only |
| VTV | Vernal, UT | Cable only |
| Sterling, KY | |
| W07BY/W10BM | Morehead, KY | |
| W34AX | Henderson, NC | |
| W35AY | Hilton Head Island, SC | |
| W35BB | Dublin, GA | |
| W38AQ | Lenoir City, TN | |
| Nashville, TN | |
| W67CD | Sanford, NC | |
| | |
| Cleveland, OH | |
| WBCF-LD | Florence, AL | |
| Bethlehem, PA | |
| Davenport, IA | |
| Pensacola, FL | |
| | |
| West Palm Beach, FL | |
| WCJT-LP | Mt. Carmel, IL | |
| Columbus, OH | |
| WCMN-LP | St. Cloud, MN | |
| WEBU | Webb, MS | |
| Heiskell, TN | |
| WGTN | Worthington, MN | |
| WHCQ-LD | Cleveland, MS | |
| WISF-LP | Oneonta, NY | |
| | |
| Jasper, IN | |
| Hopkinsville, KY | |
| Pascagoula, MS | |
| Indiana, PA | |
| WLMO | Lima, OH | |
| | |
| Lima, OH | |
| Lancaster, PA | |
| | |
| Towson, MD | |
| | |
| London, KY | |
| WNCE | | |
| Union City, TN | |
| WOBZ-LP | Bernstadt, KY | |
| WPFS-TV | Troy, OH | |
| WPHJ-LD | Vidalia, GA | |
| WPO Cable 4 | | Cable only |
| WPRQ | Clarksdale, MS | |
| | |
| Raleigh, NC | |
| Orlando, FL | |
| Dayton, OH | |
| | |
| Kingston, NY | |
| Bridgeport, CT | |
| WSPY-LD | Plano, IL | |
| WSTY-LP | Hammond, LA | |
| WTCN | Stuart, FL | |
| WUPT | Crystal Falls, MI | |
| WVBC | Machias, ME | |
| WVVH-TV | Southampton, NY | |
| WWCI-CD | Vero Beach, FL | |
| WYBE | Southern Pines, NC | |
| WYLN | Hazleton, PA | |
| WYPN | Gainesville, FL | | |
Additionally, the following major network stations aired OBN's From the Heart: The Four Tops 50th Anniversary and Celebration special:
- KCRG-TV, Cedar Rapids, IA, channel 9[14]
- KTVF, Fairbanks, AK, channel 11[15]
- WCTI-TV, Greenville, NC, channel 12[16]
- WHP-TV, Harrisburg, PA, channel 21[17]
- WIVT, Binghamton, NY, channel 34[18]
- WKOW-TV, Madison, WI, channel 27[19]
External links
Notes and References
- Web site: OMNI Broadcasting Network, Inc.:: Delaware (US) :: OpenCorporates . 2021-07-01 . opencorporates.com.
- Web site: OBN Homepage . https://web.archive.org/web/20040321012812/http://www.obnholdings.com/ . 2004-03-21 . 2021-07-01 .
- Web site: Bloomberg - OBN Holdings Inc . 2021-07-01 . www.bloomberg.com.
- Web site: 2013-01-29 . In the Matter of Largo Vista Group, Ltd., Montavo, Inc., OBN Holdings, Inc., PrepaYd, Inc., Ready Welder Corp., and Snowdon Resources Corp.; Order of Suspension of Trading . 2021-07-01 . Federal Register.
- Web site: Omni Broadcast Schedule . 2021-07-01 . https://web.archive.org/web/20070811133942/http://obn-tv.com/Omni_schedule.htm . 2007-08-11 .
- Web site: 2007-08-28 . Kids TV . 2021-07-01 . https://web.archive.org/web/20070828091918/http://www.obn-tv.com/Kids-TV/index.htm . 2007-08-28 .
- Book: Ghaffari, Elizabeth . Women Leaders at Work: Untold Tales of Women Achieving Their Ambitions . 2012-01-15 . Apress . 978-1-4302-3730-3 . 36 . en.
- Web site: Chaney . Lindsay . 2004-07-18 . Four Tops concert an Omni 1st . 2021-07-01 . Variety . en-US.
- News: 2005-07-24 . Fairbanks Daily News Miner Archives, Jul 24, 2005, p. 86 . en . 2021-07-01.
- Web site: From the Heart: The Four Tops 50th Anniversary & Celebration (TV Special 2005) . 2021-07-07 . IMDb . en-US.
- Web site: The Telly Awards - 2005 . 2021-07-01 . Telly Awards . en-US.
- Inc . OBN Holdings . 2004-05-25 . OBN Holdings, Inc. Begins Trading with symbol OBNH . 2021-07-01 . GlobeNewswire News Room . en.
- Web site: Registration Statement - OBN Holdings . 2003. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
- News: Jun 4, 2005 . Untitled . 70 . Cedar Rapids Gazette . Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
- News: Jun 12, 2005 . Sunday . 66 . Fairbanks Daily News Miner . Fairbanks, Alaska.
- News: May 8, 2005 . Sunday Daytime . 46 . Kinston Free Press . Kinston, North Carolina.
- News: May 7, 2005 . Daytime . 7 . Gettysburg Times . Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.
- News: May 15, 2005 . TV Week . 81 . Towanda Daily Review . Towanda, Pennsylvania.
- News: Janesville Gazette . Afternoon . May 21, 2005 . 31 . Janesville, Wisconsin.
