Rachel VasoneApril 18, 2014TV & CultureABC FamilyBackground/Channel HistoryABC Family was launched in 1977 by a televangelist named Pat Robertson as a Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN) focused primarily on religious programming, until to 1981 when it was changed to CBN Cable Network and instead began including a mix of recent films and series and family classics, while maintaining few religious programs. Right now ABC Family has already reached one million homes. It wasn't until 7 years later in 1988 that the word "family" was actually included in the channel's name and it became known as The CBN Family Channel. The network soon gained popularity and significant profits, so it was spun off into a new company, International Family Entertainment Inc., to keep CBN's nonprofit status safe. In 1990 it was called Family Channel. Then in 1998 it was renamed Fox Family Channel, until 2001 when Disney purchased and renamed ABC Family. In 2006, a new slogan was developed under ABC Family: A New Kind of Family. It became the American cable and satellite television channel owned by a division of Disney-ABC Television, part of the Walt Disney Company, which we know today simply as "ABC." Family". The type of viewers ABC Family receives primarily resonates with the 18-34 age group (37%) and the 35-54 age group (35%). ABC Family viewers are mostly women (70%) and just under half have attended college. Some families who watch ABC Family are those with one or more children (45%). So essentially, the channel is aimed at young to middle-aged women and families. Channel's Business Profile In terms of advertising and commercials, ABC Family heavily promotes its own dramas, original films, blockbusters and what... paper... it seemed obvious to me that, rather than a family channel, this network caters mainly to young and middle-aged women. After going through multiple transformations from the CBN network to the Fox Family channel to finally ABC Family, the channel saw its greatest success as ABC Family: A New Kind of Family. While this is one of my favorite channels and will continue to be, I found myself very exhausted and bored with most of the viewing I did. The series was fun because I love Boy Meets World and That 70s Show, even though most of the series were outdated and didn't interest me. Overall I find ABC Family to be a complete archive and entertainment channel, with versatile programs, movies and series. However, I could never just watch ABC Family without flipping through other channels on the remote control without going crazy from commercials and repetitive movies.