Travel Channel
{{short description|American pay television channel}}
{{for|the international version of this channel|Travel Channel International}}
{{Coord|38|57|44.7|N|77|5|6.8|W|display=title}}
{{Infobox television channel
| name = Travel Channel
| logo = 2018 Travel Channel logo.svg
| logo_size = 200px
| logo_alt =
| image =
| launch_date = {{start date and age|1987|2|8}}
| picture_format = 1080i HDTV
(downscaled to letterboxed 480i for the SDTV feed)
| parent = Warner Bros. Discovery
| country = United States
| language = English
| area = Nationwide
| headquarters = New York, New York, U.S.{{Cite web|url=https://corporate.discovery.com/discovery-newsroom/discovery-selects-230-park-avenue-south-as-new-global-headquarters/|title = Discovery Selects 230 Park Avenue South as New Global Headquarters – Discovery, Inc| date=2024 }}
| replaced = Home Theater Network
| replaced_by =
| sister_channels = {{collapsible list|
- American Heroes Channel
- Animal Planet
- Cooking Channel
- Destination America
- Discovery Channel
- Discovery Family
- Discovery Life
- Food Network
- HGTV
- Investigation Discovery
- Magnolia Network
- Motor Trend
- Oprah Winfrey Network
- TLC
- Discovery Turbo
- Cartoon Network
- Boomerang
- Cartoonito
- Adult Swim
- HBO
- Cinemax
- TNT
- TBS
- TruTV
- Turner Classic Movies
- CNN
- HLN
}}
| former_names = The Travel Channel (1987–1997)
| timeshift_service =
| website = {{URL|http://www.travelchannel.com}}
| online_serv_1 = Affiliated Streaming Service
| online_chan_1 = Max and Discovery+
| online_serv_2 = Service(s)
| online_chan_2 = Philo, Sling TV, Hulu With Live TV, FuboTV, Vidgo, DirecTV Stream
}}
Travel Channel (stylized as Trvl Channel since 2018) is an American pay television channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, who previously owned the channel from 1997 to 2007. The channel is headquartered in Manhattan, with offices in Silver Spring, Maryland and Knoxville, Tennessee, U.S.
Travel Channel features documentaries, reality, and how-to shows related to travel and leisure around the United States and throughout the world. Programming has included shows on African animal safaris, tours of grand hotels and resorts, visits to significant cities and towns around the world, programming about various foods around the world, and programming about ghosts and the paranormal in notable buildings.
{{As of|2023|11}}, Travel Channel is available to approximately 67,000,000 pay television households in the United States-down from its 2011 peak of 96,000,000 households.{{cite web|url=https://wrestlenomics.com/u-s-cable-network-households-universe-1990-2023-nielsen-data/|title=U.S. cable network households (universe), 1990 – 2023|website=wrestlenomics.com|date=May 14, 2024|access-date=July 28, 2019}}
History
File:Travel Channel - Logo.svg until August 31, 2021]]
= Original format =
The Travel Channel was launched on February 1, 1987; it was founded by TWA Marketing Services (a subsidiary of Trans World Airlines). The channel's name was derived from the travel-related filler programming that aired between programs on the Home Theater Network. TWA purchased the name rights from Group W Satellite Communications in 1986, and took over HTN's transponder spot following the shutdown of the premium cable channel in January 1987.{{cite news|title=Broadcasting Magazine|url=http://www.davidgleason.com/Archive%20BC/BC%201986/BC-1986-10-27.pdf|access-date=March 6, 2011|date=October 27, 1986|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120406072451/http://www.davidgleason.com/Archive%20BC/BC%201986/BC-1986-10-27.pdf|archive-date=April 6, 2012}} In 1992, the network was sold to Landmark Communications, then-owner of The Weather Channel;{{Cite news |date=March 23, 1992 |title=Landmark adds Travel to weather |pages=105 |work=Broadcasting |url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Magazines/Archive-BC-IDX/92-OCR/BC-1992-03-23-OCR-Page-0105.pdf |access-date=October 20, 2023}} five years later, Landmark sold it to Paxson Communications.{{cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-06-17-fi-4263-story.html|date=June 17, 1997|work=Los Angeles Times|title=Paxson to Buy the Travel Channel}}
Discovery Communications acquired a 70% ownership stake in the channel in 1997, and subsequently acquired the remaining 30% interest from Paxson in 1999. In May 2007, Discovery Communications sold Travel Channel to Cox Enterprises subsidiary Cox Communications as part of a larger multibillion-dollar transaction.[http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=76341&p=irol-newsArticle&t=Regular&id=999940& Cox Cable Corporate Site - Cox Now Owns Travel Channel and TravelChannel.com]
On November 5, 2009, Scripps Networks Interactive acquired a 65% ownership interest in the network for $1.1 billion;[http://www.multichannel.com/article/382930-Scripps_Snaps_Up_Travel_In_Deal_Valued_At_1_1_Billion.php Scripps Snaps Up Travel In Deal Valued At $1.1 Billion - Acquires 65% Interest In Service From Cox] Multichannel News November 5, 2009 the deal closed in January 2010. Following the purchase, Travel Channel began to add programming from sister networks such as Food Network{{cite web|url=https://www.rapidtvnews.com/2015122041073/scripps-offers-latam-programming-on-travel-channel-food-network.html|title=Scripps offers LATAM programming on Travel Channel, Food Network|date=December 20, 2015|publisher=Rapid TV News |author=Juan Fernandez Gonzalez}} In 2015, Scripps relocated the channel's headquarters from Chevy Chase, Maryland to Knoxville, Tennessee.{{cite web | url=https://thedailyrecord.com/2015/11/23/maryland-travel-channel-relocating-layoff/ | title=Travel Channel relocating from Maryland; 78 jobs affected | Maryland Daily Record | date=24 November 2015 }}
On February 25, 2016, SNI acquired the remaining 35% stake in Travel Channel from Cox Communications, giving it full control over the network.[https://variety.com/2016/tv/news/scripps-networks-travel-channel-1201715266/ "Scripps Networks Takes Full Control of Travel Channel"] Variety February 25, 2016 Discovery regained ownership of the network on March 6, 2018, after acquiring SNI.{{cite web|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/discovery-closes-scripps-acquisition-creating-nonscripted-content-giant-1072832|title=Discovery Closes Scripps Acquisition, Creating Non-scripted Content Giant|last=Szalai|first=Georg|work=The Hollywood Reporter|date=March 6, 2018|access-date=March 6, 2018}}
Available data shows that viewership peaked in Spring 2008 at 27.78 million views per 7 days, and has been in decline ever since. As of Spring 2017, the channel got 17.25 million views.{{Cite web|url=https://www.statista.com/statistics/228989/cable-tv-networks-travel-channel-watched-within-the-last-7-days-usa/|title=TV viewers of the Travel Channel in the U.S. 2017 {{!}} Statistic|website=Statista|language=en|access-date=2018-02-09}}
= Rebrand and shift to paranormal programming =
On October 1, 2018, Travel Channel revealed a new logo stylized as Trvl Channel, and shifted its programming to focus on "the paranormal, the unsolved, the creepy and terrifying".[https://www.travelchannel.com/shows/travel-channel-news/travel-channel-has-a-new-look Travel Channel Has a New Look] - Travel Channel (published October 1, 2018; accessed October 7, 2018) From 2015 to 2017, Destination America had undergone a similar shift to paranormal programming themselves.{{Cite web|url=https://deadline.com/2015/07/live-exorcism-exorcist-house-destination-america-tca-1201487652/|title=Live Exorcism Of Hellish "Exorcist" House To Air On Destination America – TCA|last=de Moraes|first=Lisa|date=2015-07-30|website=Deadline|language=en|access-date=2019-04-18}} Certain Travel Channel shows (such as Bizarre Foods, its spinoff series Bizarre Foods Delicious Destinations, Man v. Food, Food Paradise, Hotel Impossible, and Xtreme Waterparks) would move to either Destination America or Cooking Channel.
On January 12, 2021, it was reported that there were plans for selected Travel Channel programs to premiere exclusively on Discovery+ as timed exclusives.{{Cite web|last=White|first=Peter|date=2021-01-13|title=Travel Channel Originals To Move To Discovery+ As Factual Giant Experiments With Windowing|url=https://deadline.com/2021/01/travel-channel-originals-move-to-discovery-experiment-windowing-1234672482/|access-date=2021-01-13|website=Deadline|language=en-US}}
Programming
{{main|List of Travel Channel original programming}}
Outside the United States
{{Main|Travel Channel International}}
{{See also|DTour|T+E}}
On March 22, 2012, Scripps Networks Interactive announced that it had agreed to pay £65 million (equivalent to US$102.7 million) to acquire Travel Channel International Limited, the UK-based broadcaster which operates across the Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia Pacific markets, but had no direct relation to the American television channel until then.{{cite web|url=http://www.c21media.net/archives/78877|title=Scripps buys Travel Channel Int'l|publisher=C21Media|date=March 22, 2012}} The deal was completed on May 1, 2012, following regulatory approval.{{cite web|url=http://markets.on.nytimes.com/research/stocks/news/press_release.asp?docTag=201205010842BIZWIRE_USPRX____BW6146&feedID=600&press_symbol=11876131|title=Scripps Networks Interactive completes Travel Channel International acquisition|work=The New York Times|date=May 1, 2012}}
In Canada, Travel Channel's programming has aired on T+E, and later, DTour.
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{official website|http://www.travelchannel.com}}
{{Warner Bros. Discovery}}{{Warner Bros. Discovery Networks}}
Category:Warner Bros. Discovery networks
Category:Television networks in the United States
Category:Television channels and stations established in 1987
Category:English-language television stations in the United States
Category:Paranormal television