Discovery Channel
Discovery Channel
Discovery Channel is an American cable TV network, based in Silver Spring, Maryland, that has a variety of science programming, particularly documentaries and nature shows. Discovery Channel's tagline is "Let's All Discover...", with a continuing phrase or sentence that relates to a show. Their previous tagline was "Entertain Your Brain".
Broadcasts and other ventures
Discovery Channel went on the air in 1985 and is owned by Discovery Communications inc., which also owns TLC (The Learning Channel, which was purchased in 1991), Animal Planet, The Travel Channel, The Science Channel (formerly Discovery Science), BBC America (operated in association with BBC Worldwide), The Military Channel (formerly Discovery Wings), Discovery Health Channel (home of most of the true-life medical reality shows that populated TLC plus original programming) and FitTV (formerly The Health Network prior to its purchase by Discovery from Fox). The Discovery Channel has added programs on mechanics and popular science including American Chopper, MythBusters, and Monster Garage that widen the network's scope beyond its initial focus on science and because of it, have put it under scrutiny of presenting infotainment instead of educational television.
Discovery Networks has decided to return its founding agenda after dropping out of the Top 10 of watched channels and ratings for two-year span have been low. Chris Moseley, Discovery Networks' Executive Vice President, has said that the channel will return programming to the channel's original intent, interesting science programming that educates.
Discovery Channel also has a multiplex of digital channels: Discovery Times (operated in association with The New York Times), Discovery Health, Discovery Home, Discovery Kids, and Discovery HD Theater (a high-definition TV channel). Discovery Channel Radio is a channel on both of the major United States satellite radio services: XM Satellite Radio and Sirius Satellite Radio. [Discovery was dropped by XM Radio in early September 2005.] The programming consists of audio versions of popular programs from its multitude of TV channels. Their education division, fittingly dubbed Discovery Education, has a service called United Streaming, that allows teachers, students, and parents to stream or download over 50,000 educational videos.
Discovery Communications also has a theatrical production arm, Discovery Docs, which produces documentaries for theatrical releases.
Around the world
The Discovery Channel reaches over 450 million homes in over 160 countries. In a number of countries, Discovery's channels are available on digital satellite platforms with multiple language soundtracks or subtitles (including Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Danish, Greek, Polish, Hungarian, and Romanian). For example, subscribers of Cyfra+ in Poland, at an extra USD 2 per month, can now switch between four Discovery channels with two language soundtracks: the original English or the native Polish soundtrack. In Bulgaria, Discovery has since 2001-2002 been displayed with Bulgarian subtitles by all cable providers.
Canadian viewers receive similar English-language programming to the channel that American viewers watch, but with content modified to suit the audience. Most notably, Discovery Channel Canada carries the daily science news show Daily Planet, originally @discovery.ca, the first of its kind. Occasionally, several segments on similar topics are taken from various episodes and put together into one-hour specials that are broadcast on the original Discovery Channel.
In the United Kingdom, Discovery broadcasts a bouquet of 14 channels (including timeshifts) on digital television, with a new HD channel also announced for Spring 2006.
Marketing and branding
The Discovery Channel also has a multitude of stores in malls across America and also features a online store its website. Educational gifts are its specialty. Shortly before the 2004 Tour de France, the Discovery Channel company announced it would become the primary sponsor of the Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team starting in 2005, featuring seven-time champion Lance Armstrong. The Discovery Channel has also used a variety of guerrilla techniques to promote their shows.
Diversity
Discovery Communications has been dedicated to educating and providing viewers the chance to explore, appreciate, and learn about the world's diversity. Discovery Communications was named one of the 100 Best Companies for Working Mothers in 2004 by Working Mothers magazine. Discovery Communications provides a variety of unique feeds with several different languages, also.