Oprah sells most of her stake in OWN channel to Discovery

Oprah Winfrey has sold most of her shares in her eponymous Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) to the majority stakeholder Discovery for more than $36 million in stock.

The deal brings Discovery’s ownership of the cable network to 95 percent, sources close to the deal told Bloomberg. Winfrey’s company, Harpo Inc., received 1.34 million shares in the exchange, half of which it filed to sell on Tuesday.

OWN was co-founded in 2011 by Discovery and Winfrey not long after Winfrey ended her 25-year run as the host of “The Oprah Winfrey Show.”

Bloomberg notes that the network was not an immediate success, reporting losses when it began.

Content created by OWN is expected to start showing up on Discovery+, a streaming platform launching in January.

Winfrey had an agreement with Discovery that stated she could require the company to begin buying part of her ownership beginning in 2016, Bloomberg reported. Discovery first bought 25 percent of OWN in 2017 for $70 million.

The deal reported on Tuesday appears to suggest that the network has dropped in value since Discovery’s 2017 purchase.

Since launching, OWN has largely focused on content aimed toward African American women, airing shows created by producer Tyler Perry.

In November, it was reported that Heart Magazines would be laying off 60 staffers from Winfrey’s other media production The Oprah Magazine. The news came as Winfrey is reportedly prioritizing television projects going forward, notably signing a TV show with Apple.