Winfrey backed out of of the hybrid Internet-cable venture when she quietly sold her stake just prior to NBC Universal's acquisition of the languishing property. "Fifteen years ago, I wrote in my journal that one day I would create a television network, as I always felt my show was just the beginning of what the future could hold," says Winfrey. What happens to a dream deferred? If at first you don't succeed, try, try again. (Photo by George Burns)

Seriously, if anyone can make a YouTube channel work, it's Winfrey. Her show grabs 5 million viewers a day, and presumably some of them have computers. On the other hand, her past Web performance does not bode well for the venture. The last Oprah foray onto the web was the Oxygen cable-net/website which imploded and was sold off to NBC Universal, long after Winfrey had backed out of the venture.