As of February 2015, TV One is available to approximately 57 million pay television households (48.9% of households with at least one television set) in the United States.[4]
History
Previous TV One logos
Used from launch in 2004 to August 2012
Used from August 2012 to February 2016
TV One launched on January 19, 2004, on
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, as a competitor to the longer-established
BET.[5] At the time of its launch, the channel was in approximately 2.2 million homes in 16 markets.[5] On July 7, 2008, the channel's president and CEO Johnathan Rodgers announced that TV One would provide extensive coverage of the
Democratic National Convention that August.[6] In 2011, TV One's original co-owner
Comcast acquired
NBCUniversal, effectively integrating TV One and the other Comcast Entertainment Group channels into NBCUniversal's portfolio.[7]
In August 2012, TV One updated its on-air look and logo, as part of a plan to "tell stories about how African-American life unfolds and to distinguish it from a growing number of competitors."[8] On July 9, 2013, TV One announced that it would debut its first live one-hour, weekday morning news program that would be hosted by commentator
Roland S. Martin.[9] The program, News One Now, premiered on November 4, 2013.[10]
In December 2014, Brad Siegel was hired as president of TV One. Siegel was formerly president of
Turner Entertainment Networks, and vice chairman of
Up TV, which he co-founded in 2004.[11][12]
In March 2015, Radio One announced a deal to buy out Comcast's 47.9% share of TV One for $550 million.[13][1][2]
In February 2016, TV One updated their logo again, along with a new slogan: "Represent."
Membership and affiliations
Associate member of the Caribbean Cable & Telecommunications Association, Inc. - CCTA[14]
Aspire TV – an American digital cable and satellite channel owned by businessman and former basketball player
Magic Johnson
BET – The flagship American basic cable and satellite channel of the
BET Networks, currently owned by
Paramount Global, which launched in 1980 as the first television channel devoted to programming targeting African-Americans
BET Her - A spinoff channel targeting African-American women