New York City – Close to 1,000 people attended Discovery Communications International’s (DCI) Upfront event last night at the Lincoln Center theatre in Manhattan, NYC. TV ASIA Plus attended the annual industry event that showcases the latest programmes and series launching on Discovery’s various channels in the coming months. President and CEO Discovery Communications, David Zaslav, with the aid of a 30 metre digital projection screen, highlighted some of the changes and updates going on at DCI, including the rebranding of Fit TV to Discovery Fit & Health and new mens channel Velocity, which lands on U.S screens in the fourth quarter. Zaslav also said that more Americans are turning away from the traditional broadcasters. Viewership across all Discovery’s channels now sits at 44 per cent, versus 46 per cent for all U.S terrestrial broadcasters such as NBC, CBS and ABC. Joining in the fun on stage were celebrities Morgan Freeman, Rosie O’Donnell and Oprah Winfrey, who launched the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) in January. OWN’s CEO Christine Norman said the channel has premiered 14 original series in the past four months and there are 21 to go this year. This includes Why Not? with Shania Twain and Becoming Chaz, which follows the dramatic sex change of Chastity Bono, daughter of actress/musician Cher. Other shows launched included Billy Ray Cyrus’ Homecoming on TLC and Animal Planet’s epic undersea adventure Mermaids, which will premiere in Asia this July ahead of the U.S launch.