The channel broadcasts family-oriented general entertainment programming, including television series and made-for-TV movies. As Odyssey, the channel gradually phased out religious programming in favor of family -oriented films and television seriesβa pivot that intensified after Hallmark Entertainment and The Jim Henson Company acquired major stakes in the channel in In , after a corporate reorganization, Odyssey rebranded as Hallmark Channel.
By the s, Hallmark Channel had established a focus on made-for-TV moviesβparticularly romance films and comedies βthemed around specific seasons and holidays throughout the year. The strategy sought to create synergies with Hallmark's core greeting card business, and build upon the strength of the "Countdown to Christmas " programming event it first introduced in In , The New Yorker magazine published an article about the Hallmark Channel and its dominance over North American cable television and the cable industry using Christmas themed movies to gain popularity.
The two networks began alternating time on a shared transponder slot on the Galaxy III satellite in Each network was provided time for its programming blocks, and would use their own logos. James Kennedy. Both channels aired several hours a week of religious children's programs, some of which overlapped, including Sunshine Factory , Joy Junction , Davey and Goliath , and Jot. In , cable conglomerate Tele-Communications Inc. It added more secular programming to the network and reduced religious programming to about 10 hours a day.
In , the network was rebranded as the Odyssey Network although on-air promotions often referred to the network simply as "Odyssey" , and launched a website, Odysseyfamily. Hallmark Entertainment and The Jim Henson Company bought significant stakes, paid partly through programming commitments, in Odyssey in late ; by this time, Odyssey carried a mix of religious programming and family-friendly secular shows, with a limited amount of original productions.
Liberty had convinced Hallmark not to launch its own domestic channel, citing difficulty in getting carriage for a new network on existing cable systems. The NICC and Hallmark-Henson would hold equal shares while Liberty increased their stake, and the three groups shared control of the board. Hallmark and Henson would have say over chief executive selection. While adding Henson's and Hallmark's libraries, the channel could not make major programming format changes, so cable systems could not drop them.
