Broadcast Syndication - Off-network Syndication

Off-network Syndication

It is commonly said in the U.S. industry that "syndication is where the real money is" when producing a TV show. In other words, while the initial run of any particular television series may theoretically lose money for its producing studio, the ensuing syndication will generate enough profit to balance out any losses.

Off-network syndication occurs when a network television show is syndicated in packages containing some or all episodes, and sold to as many television stations and markets as possible. In this manner, sitcoms are preferred and more successful because they are less serialized, and can be run non-sequentially, which is more beneficial and less costly for the network. In the United States, local stations now rarely broadcast reruns of primetime dramas; instead, they usually air on basic cable channels, which may air each episode 30 to 60 times.

Syndication rights typically last for six consecutive showings of a series within three to five years.

Syndication has been known to spur the popularity of a series that only experienced moderate success during its original network run. The most notable example of this is Star Trek, which ran for three seasons on NBC from 1966 to 1969, but became a worldwide cult phenomenon after it entered off-network syndication. Its success in syndication led to the Star Trek film series, Star Trek: The Next Generation, and several other series. Another example is The Brady Bunch.

In recent years, more and more fee plugs have appeared during off-network syndication non-game shows. Some of these fees charged pay for the distribution and editing of these shows for syndication, while others pay for closed captioning and promotional consideration.

In any event, the number of stations airing syndicated shows depends on which station in a particular market airs a particular show.

Sometimes, how a program is acquired for syndication varies. In the case of shows syndicated by one company, stations loyal to the company generally have first choice on any program it offers. For other shows syndicated by other companies, the syndication rights may be auctioned off to the highest bidder in a particular market.

It is common for long-running series to have early seasons syndicated while the series itself is still in production. In order to differentiate between new and rebroadcast content, up until the 1980s it was not uncommon for series to be syndicated under a different title than originally broadcast. Examples include Bonanza (syndicated as Ponderosa), Gunsmoke (as Marshall Dillon), Emergency! (as Emergency One), Happy Days (as Happy Days Again), etc.

The rise in popularity of infomercials in the 1980s, 1990s and into the 2000s (decade) has resulted in a marked decrease in the number of older off-network syndicated series being aired by American and Canadian broadcasters, many of which now air paid programming such as infomercials during the weekend morning and afternoon or overnight hours, timeslots formerly occupied by old series reruns, children's programming, televised theatrical films, TV specials, documentaries, or holiday programs. A number of "classic television" channels for cable and for digital subchannels have cropped up in recent years to pick up the large number of series that either no longer have a life in syndication (most sitcoms, some older dramas, children's programming) or never did (game shows, sporting events).