What if HKO was founded in 1934?/HKO Animation Studios in 1985?/HKO Network

HKO Network is an American pay television channel owned by HKO Media through its the Networks division, which is a division of AT&T's WarnerMedia and WheelerHKO Media. The channel was launched on February 1, 1993, and is aimed mainly at children and young teenagers between ages 6 to 12. Its programming consists of original first-run television series, theatrical and home media-exclusive movies and select other third-party programming.

As of September 2018, HKO Network is available to 86.4 million households in America.

Development
On July 13, 1992, following the upcoming launch of Cartoon Network, The HKO Company announced its plans to launch a cable television channel focused on their properties. On December 8, 1992, its name was revealed to be HKO Network. It was also reported that they would acquire its animated programming from different studios.

1993-1995: Early years
On February 1, 1993, HKO Network was launched. Its first major success was Firey and Leafy, which was airing on Fox Kids at the time, which became an instant success and made it a household name for viewers. The channel hit increasing ratings, such as competition from Nickelodeon, The Disney Channel and the Cartoon Network. On the same day of its launch, the channel launched its late-night programming block HKO's TV Land.

In 1994, HKO Network partnered with Turner Home Entertainment to release episode compilations of the network's programs, which became top sellers. HKO Network switched its distribution to Warner Home Video in 1997, with Warner Bros. re-releasing episode compilations of the network's shows on VHS.

1995-2004: Golden Age
The channel achieved further success in 1995 with Firey and Leafy, which was eliminated from Fox Kids, and moved to HKO Network in order to boost the channel's ratings from various children's channels.

The same year, the channel premiered the smash series Coconut and Friends, which made HKO Network a hit among children and other viewers. That same year, it launched a programming block in order to compete with Nickelodeon: HKO Junior, which targeted preschoolers.

In 1996, Turner was sold to Time Warner, which made HKO Network a sister station to The WB's Kids' WB. Time Warner began advertising HKO Network programming on their children's programming blocks on The WB and home video releases of feature films, and HKO acquired various animated programming from Warner Bros. Television Animation.

HKO Unleashed was launched later on, and was devoted to various action series. That same year, Arthur Christmas: The Series, based on the 1994 film of the same name, premiered on the network. As a result, both blocks gave access to HKO Network's programming. In late 1997, due to poor ratings, HKO Network announced they would revamp their nighttime block as HKO at Nite and refocused it on more adult programming. HKO at Nite launched on February 1, 1998.

On September 12, 1997, Firey and Leafy's Big Picture Show, the first theatrical film based on a Tackett Channel series, was released. It received positive reviews and grossed $116.2 million on a budget of $48 million.

On June 9, 2000, the channel premiered the animated series Ed, Edd n Eddy. It became the most popular series in the channel's history, and has remained very popular to this day, consistently ranking as the channel's highest-rated series since 2001. By 2002, a third of the series' audience was made up of adults, and the show was run in evening slots. A film adaptation of Ed, Edd n Eddy was announced in early 2003. The ensuing Ed, Edd n Eddy media franchise went on to generate over $11 billion in merchandising revenue for HKO Media.

On April 9, 2001, HKO Network revamped its programming identity, with the new slogan "It's Always on HKO Network". Also, the same year, HKO Network launched the block HKO's One Saturday Morning on Cartoon Network, devoted to HKO Network series and HKO Animation Studios cartoons, to replace the defunct Cartoon Network Action Extreme Team.

The following year, the channel debuted the series The Foster Twins' Home for Imaginary Friends Show and Codename: Kids Next Door, the latter of which became immediately popular and quickly became HKO Network's second-highest rated series. In 2003, HKO Network launched the successful series Bunsen is a Beast, which emulated the success of past HKO Network shows. The following year, Coconut and Friends ended while House of Anne launched.

2005-present: Modern Age
By 2006, Comedy World and Coconut: The Series premiered. In 2007, HKO Network successfully purchased the Ben 10 anime and begin airing it in the United States, while Hiro's Declassified Life Survival Guide premiered the same year.

In 2008, HKO Network launched Back at the Farmyard (based on the 2007 film Farmyard). That same year, Bunsen is a Beast ended. The success led to HKO Network ordering more shows. Also, Luz Noceda and King started its run on the network in February 2009. In early 2010, HKO Network premiered a spin-off of Ed, Edd n Eddy titled Kevin and Sarah, which centers on Kevin and Sarah.

By late 2013, HKO Network premiered Regular Show. In 2017, the series premiered the successful series The Coconut Show, which became a ratings hit and prompted HKO Network to renew the series for a second season. The same year, Power Anne and The New Adventures of Sonic H. premiered on HKO Network.

In 2018, HKO Network's long-running Codename: Kids Next Door ended. The same year, the short-lived series Grime's Mansion of Villains premiered. In 2020, The Adventures of the Angry Birds and Super King premiered on the channel.

Eras

 * February 1, 1993-September 6, 1998: Green Splat era
 * September 7, 1998-April 9, 2001: Stop-Motion era
 * April 9, 2001-March 23, 2006: Teletoon 1997 era
 * March 24, 2006-January 18, 2009: City era
 * January 19, 2009-February 5, 2011: Ribbons era
 * November 2, 2010-February 5, 2011: Check It era
 * February 6, 2011-May 31, 2015: Nickelodeon 2009 era
 * June 1, 2015-May 3, 2018: Yonatan Ashad Channel era
 * May 4, 2018-present: T&PF Network era

Programming
Main article: List of programs broadcast by HKO Network

Programming on HKO Network includes original series such as Ed, Edd n Eddy, The Coconut Show, The New Adventures of Sonic H., The Adventures of the Angry Birds, Super King, and more, as well as acquired programming from other studios, which as of November 2020 includes TBA.

Current

 * HKO Junior - HKO Network programs targeted at preschool-age children daily every morning on Monday through Fridays from 8:30 am-1:00 pm Eastern and Pacific Time (5-9 am during the weekends).
 * HKO at Nite - a late-night block targeted towards teens and adults, airing every night from 9 p.m. EST to 5 a.m. EST.
 * HKO Network Saturday Night Movie Show - A block that aired movies every Saturday at 6:00 p.m. EST (formerly at 5:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. EST) and every Sunday morning with two movies. The channel previously broadcast films in the late 1990s under the HKO Network Cinema banner, followed by The Film Theater in 2007 before adopting the name "The Big Flicks" in 2009, and later HKO Network Saturday Night Movie Show in 2016.

Yearly

 * Epic Summer - The Epic Summer block contains some of the channel's popular programs, and daily movies. The block also featured contests.
 * Creep Night - This block features Halloween specials.
 * HKO Network's Snowy Specials - This block features holiday specials.
 * HKO Network's Superstuffed Thanksgiving Movie Marathon - Launched in Thanksgiving of 2014, the block airs five movies back-to-back.

Former

 * HKO Unleashed - It was the block for action-adventure animated and anime programming.
 * The Big Crunch - It was the block for classic animated programming. It also featured several live-action series.
 * Variety - The Variety block aired weekday mornings from 7:00 to 9:00 a.m. EST and on Saturday mornings from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. It was known for airing new episodes of HKO Network programming.
 * Sunday Nights - This block aired on Sunday from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. EST.
 * Double Pack - A weekday programming block featuring back-to-back episodes of network programming.
 * HKO's TV Land - A block aired for nighttime programming, mostly for adults, and it consists of various television shows. Lasted from 1993 to 1998.

Death tributes
HKO Network occasionally airs bumpers that pay tribute to a recent celebrity death, with a fade-in, showing the person's name, along with the year of their birth and the year of their death, followed by a fade-out.

After Jack K.O. passed away on July 14, 2001, HKO Network played Jacktoons shorts, shows, and movies all day on July 16, 2001.

HKONetwork.com
HKONetwork.com is HKO Network's main website, which launched in 1996 as a component of America Online's Kids Only channel before eventually moving to the full World Wide Web. It provides content, as well as video clips and full episodes of HKO Network series available for streaming.

Mobile apps
HKO Network released a free mobile app for smartphones and tablet computers operating on the Apple and Android platforms in December 2012. Like HKONetwork.com, a TV Everywhere login code provided by participating subscription providers is required to view individual episodes of HKO Network's series.

HKO Network Movies
HKO Network Movies is a motion picture production unit that was founded in 1996. The studio has produced films based on HKO Network animated programs including TBA.

HKO Network Productions
HKO Network Productions is the HKO Network's distribution arm. It distributes the shows, pilots, and movies through various international HKO Network networks since 1993.

Video games
TBA.

Several video games based on the cartoon series TBA were released by HKO Media as well. The HKO Network website also features various flash games incorporating characters from various HKO Network series.

International channels
Main article: List of HKO Network international channels

On June 23, 1994, The HKO Company Europe launched HKO Network UK, the first international HKO Network network in the United Kingdom. It broadcast for 15 hours a day.

On September 5, 2003, Astral Media launched a Canadian version of HKO Network under a brand licensing agreement with The HKO Company; the channel operated as a multiplex channel of Teletoon, which had long maintained a programming distribution agreement with HKO Network for the domestic rights to the U.S. channel's series since 2011.

Slogans

 * "A Perfect Place for HKO" (1993-2001)
 * "It's Always on HKO Network" (2001-2006)
 * "The Best Place to Be" (2006-2011)
 * "Enjoy the HKO" (2011-2016)
 * "Keep Watching Us Everyday" (2016-present)