Hallmark A photo from Hallmark's 2022 Countdown to Christmas Launch and screening.
Hallmark, like many other networks, has experienced an overall decline in broadcast TV viewers over the last several years. But the network has plans, executives are hinting in recent interviews. Here’s what we know so far.
The Network Is Looking at Relaunching Its SVOD Services
CNBC reported that Hallmark has been experiencing a decline in viewers each year, even though the network has enjoyed some big hits. December 2022 was down about 40% from the viewers they were getting five years earlier, CNBC reported. And 2022 in general was down 20% from 2018. Despite this, during the last quarter of the year, Hallmark still walked away with the most household viewers of any entertainment cable network, indicating that linear broadcast TV is down for everyone.
Although the numbers were down overall compared to five years earlier, there will still some big hits that stood out. In terms of live/same-day viewers, “Three Wise Men & a Baby” brought in 3.626 million views. This was higher than 2021’s top movie — “Christmas at Castle Hart” — which saw 3.31 million. However, the 2014 movie “Christmas Under Wraps” still holds the record of being the most-viewed on the night of its premiere with nearly six million viewers.
Wonya Lucas, CEO of Hallmark Media, told CNBC that streaming is a big priority for Hallmark now. The network has a subscription streaming service called Hallmark Movies Now, and it has deals with other pay-TV streaming platforms like FuboTV, FrndlyTV, and Philo. Lucas also negotiated a new deal with the Peacock streaming service this year.
She told CNBC: “When Peacock knocked on the door, I thought it was going to be the same conversation and I went into it thinking, ‘OK, this will be over in like 10 minutes.’ But they had me when they described their services as being centered around fandom.”
Mark Lazarus, NBCUniversal’s head of TV and streaming, told CNBC about the Peacock deal: “It took a lot of forward-thinking for Wonya to think, ‘How do I get better distribution and streaming distribution for my content, and still maintain [traditional pay-TV deals],’ which I think she navigated successfully.”
Interestingly, when Emily Powers was hired as Hallmark’s EVP of streaming and digital platforms, the January 2023 announcement included a clear indication of big changes coming in the future.
Deadline reported: “Powers will also collaborate across the company to establish the vision, roadmap, and strategy for the relaunch of Hallmark Media’s SVOD service, as well as the company’s future AVOD and existing FAST channels.”
(SVOD means “subscription video on demand.”)
Lucas told Deadline: “[Powers’] expertise is particularly important at this stage in our company’s evolution, as the industry continues to shift in the direction of streaming and digital distribution.”
Lucas has said that she also believes there’s still a big future for linear TV too.
She told CNBC: “I don’t think this is the death of linear. I just don’t. I think that linear will still be alive and thriving. I do think there will be some shakeout in terms of which services survive and which ones don’t and which ones are bundled together, and there will be some consolidation. I don’t think everyone can have independence. But I think when we start bundling the cost of all the streaming services, you’re looking at the same cost of a cable package at some point.”
Hallmark Has Made Quite a Few Changes Recently
Hallmark is expanding and evolving in many areas even beyond streaming.
In an interview with Vulture in December, Lacey Chabert talked about Hallmark’s changing formula and how much she’s enjoyed seeing the shifts.
“We’re being allowed to take our storytelling outside this box it was put in,” she said. “‘The Wedding Veil’ is the first time they did a true trilogy that aired consecutively, and now we have the chance to revisit those characters. A lot of times, these movies end with the people falling in love: the kiss or the quick wedding scene. With ‘The Wedding Veil’ movies, we get to see what these characters are like in love, in a relationship, and in living real life together. It doesn’t have the meet-cute…”
She added that “Sweet Carolina,” which was about a character’s sister suddenly dying, was also a deeper topic that she had hoped to do for some time. And “Haul Out the Holly” focused on comedy, which broke from Hallmark’s formula.
In a June 2022 interview with TV Insider, Ryan Paevey predicted the big changes coming to Hallmark.
He said: “It’s rare you can find a place like Hallmark that will consistently serve feel-good stuff. We get the accusation that it’s a little repetitive. Powers that be know that. The fundamental storylines and equations are starting to change. Becoming more inclusive, embracing a broader range of content and subject matter to be more reflective of real life.”
But he said the core of what makes Hallmark “Hallmark” would remain.
“The core of it is still the same,” he said. “The stuff we have you should be able to smile a little wider after watching.”
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