By Christopher Quinn

From his little studio and offices in East Point, the son of one of America’s early televangelists launched the squeaky clean Gospel Music Channel, potentially reaching more than 1 million homes with its first broadcast in October 2004.

In the years since, Charley Humbard and his investors can claim that what’s been called “MTV for Christians” has been the fastest-growing cable channel, now with 46.7 million subscribers, according to SNLKagan, a media research and analysis firm.

GMC finished ahead of TeenNick, which added 44.7 million subscribers, and NBA TV, which added 39.8 million during those years, according to SNLKagan research.

“They’ve grown pretty dramatically in number of subscribers,” said Derek Baine, a senior analyst at SNLKagan. He estimates its income shot up as well. From 2007 to 2008, GMC’s advertising revenue went from $6.5 million to $13.5 million, Baine believes.

The channel, privately owned by investors Humbard spent two years assembling after he walked away from a career at the Discovery Channel, does not release earnings.