Business continues to bloom for Oprah Winfrey whose production company Harpo Films just inked an exclusive deal with HBO to develop and produce scripted series, minis, documentaries and movies together, the two parties announced Tuesday.

The move comes upon the ending of Harpo Films' lengthy collaboration with ABC, which spawned shows including "Oprah Winfrey Presents: Mitch Albom's For One More Day," "Tuesday with Morrie," "Their Eyes Were Watching God" and the reality show "Oprah's Big Give" over the past eleven years. The new agreement also marks Harpo Films' switch from broadcast to cable. Aside from TV movies, Harpo Films produced the theatrical film "The Great Debaters," directed by and starring Denzel Washington, last year. Theatrical films will remain separate from the HBO deal.

According to Harpo Films' president Kate Forte, the three-year deal offered by HBO provides Winfrey's company with more creative options and the ability to make shows that wouldn't air on broadcast television under usual circumstances.  

"For the last year and a half, every time I would bring a project to Oprah, she would say, 'This is perfect for HBO,' " Forte said after explaining that HBO unlike ABC had no natural limitations such as ratings and commercial sponsorship.

"The format and creativity offered by HBO are unique in television, and the quality and range of their subjects are extraordinary.  There is simply no other place like it.  We look forward to doing great things together," Forte added, echoing Winfrey's statement in which she called the deal a "perfect partnership." Although ABC planned to extend the exclusive deal, the switch came more like a "natural progression" for Harpo Films.

No word just yet as to when their first project will come into being but the company's execs said they plan to begin "brainstorming" in early 2009.

Over the past several years, HBO has been struggling to rebuild its programming portfolio since some its most successful series such as "Six Feet Under," "Sex and the City" and most recently, "The Sopranos," ended their run.

For the first nine months of 2008, HBO's prime-time viewership lagged its average for the like period in 2007 by nearly 23%, according to Nielsen Co. However, new series such as the vampire drama "True Blood," boosted the average prime-time viewership with 2.4% so far in the fourth quarter from last year's fourth-quarter average.

Michael Lombardo, president of HBO's programming group, was quick to welcome Oprah Winfrey into the HBO family, praising her for her work which reflects her integrity and talent. Lombardo also said that HBO's programming mix will suffer no changes as a result of the deal.

 Winfrey is currently amid preparations to launch the Oprah Winfrey Network, a cable channel she co-owns with Discovery Networks. OWN's programming strategy will run independently and won't be in line with the kind of content Harpo Films produces.

"Our deal with HBO is for scripted programming," Forte said. "OWN is more for nonscripted programming. It's a totally separate company."

Oprah's empire currently consists of her talk show "Oprah Winfrey Show," her own Radio Station, YouTube channel, television production company and a magazine.