The Omni Broadcasting Network (commonly referred to as Omni) 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. Its parent company, OBN Holdings, produced films as well as television. 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.
Programming Omni broadcast 60 hours of programming per week, 21 hours during prime time. 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, (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. This was the network's first original production, taped July 28, 2004, Titled From the Heart: The Four Tops 50th Anniversary and Celebration, the special aired in 2005, 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. The special won the network a Telly Award.
Other original programs included The Vegas Variety Hour and The Adventures of Unit 28.
Former affiliates The following were signed or pending OBN affiliates in December 2003:
Station or channelLocationNotes AncCityTV St. Augustine, FLCable 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 Wichita, KS KDAO-CD Marshalltown, IA KEEN Las Vegas, NV KHIZ Victorville, CA KIDZ Abilene, TX KJLA Los Angeles, CA KJLR Little Rock, AR KKAX-LP Kingman, AZ KMBA Ontario, OR KMNO Monroe, LA KPBN Baton Rouge, LA KPVM Pahrump, NV KQEG-CD La Crosse, WI KSSY San Luis Obispo, CA KTOV Corpus Christi, TX KTSS Hope, AR 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 Glendive, MT 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 W02BP/W06BC Sterling, KY W07BY/W10BM Morehead, KY W34AX Henderson, NC W35AY Hilton Head Island, SC W35BB Dublin, GA W38AQ Lenoir City, TN W52CT Nashville, TN W67CD Sanford, NC WACW-LP Rocky Mount, NC WAOC Cleveland, OH WBCF-LD Florence, AL WBPH Bethlehem, PA WBQD Davenport, IA WBQP-LP Pensacola, FL WBTR Baton Rouge, LA WBWP West Palm Beach, FL WCJT-LP Mt. Carmel, IL WCLL Columbus, OH WCMN-LP St. Cloud, MN WEBU Webb, MS WFEM-LP Heiskell, TN WGTN Worthington, MN WHCQ-LD Cleveland, MS WISF-LP Oneonta, NY WJJN-TV Dothan, AL WJTS Jasper, IN WKAG Hopkinsville, KY WKFK-LD Pascagoula, MS WLLS Indiana, PA WLMO Lima, OH WLOT-LP Watertown, NY WLQP Lima, OH WLYH Lancaster, PA WMFP Boston, MA WMJF-CD Towson, MD WMLW Milwaukee, WI WMPG London, KY WNCE Glens Falls, NY WOBT Union City, TN WOBZ-LP Bernstadt, KY WPFS-TV Troy, OH WPHJ-LD Vidalia, GA WPO Cable 4 Winslow, IN Cable only WPRQ Clarksdale, MS WQXT St. Augustine, FL WRAY-TV Raleigh, NC WRCF-CD Orlando, FL WRCX-LD Dayton, OH WREP-LD Martinsville, IN WRNN-TV Kingston, NY WSAH-TV 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 KTVF, Fairbanks, AK, channel 11 WCTI-TV, Greenville, NC, channel 12 WHP-TV, Harrisburg, PA, channel 21 WIVT, Binghamton, NY, channel 34 WKOW-TV, Madison, WI, channel 27
References
External links Omni Website (Website archived) Information on Omni Holdings