Oprah Winfrey Signs off of Broadcast TV, Joins Silver Spring Based Discovery Communications

Today, Oprah Winfrey will end her 25-year run as the queen of talk television without a couch-jumping Tom Cruise, giving away automobiles or an author on the hot seat. Instead, the final show will feature only one person, Ms. Winfrey herself.

On November 20, 2009, Oprah announced that she had decided to make this the final season of the Oprah Winfrey Show as the 8 million daily viewers knew it.

“Twenty-five years feels right in my bones and it feels right in my spirit. It's the perfect number—the exact right time, said Ms. Winfrey in a press release. “So I hope that you will take this 18-month ride with me right through to the final show.”

As early as 2006, discussion between the two media giants – Discovery Communications and Oprah – were taking place about joining forces, with a hopeful launch of the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) via Discovery Communications  in 2009. The transition actually took place on January 1, 2011, when OWN replaced Discovery Health in 80 million households across the United States.

Does this mean that we will see Ms. Winfrey dining at , taking in a movie at the or shopping on Ellsworth?

Only time will tell.