Why is syndication so important

Wildly popular shows like Judge Judy get enough viewership that it is still cost effective for networks to license it even though they aren't exclusively doing so. Nostalgia can build audiences, and popular old shows such as M. The rise of cable in the s and s brought syndication into even more homes as networks sought to balance out their new programming with tested programming from a previous era.

Many cable channels rely exclusively on syndicated programming — first-run and off-network — to generate revenues from their audiences. There is simply not enough content being created on a frequent enough basis to meet television viewing habits.

All channels, especially topical channels such as the Game Show Network, need syndication to fill out their programming schedules. Some networks are almost entirely made up of a mix of first-run and off-network syndicated programs and licensed films, of course.

For creators of original programming, syndication does more than simply help extend the financial life of a program, it helps to keep it in the cultural conversation. Shows like M. Similarly, shows that are syndicated before they reach the end of their initial run often see an increase in viewership for their new episodes, making syndication a very lucrative way to boost prime time viewership for a popular property.

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We make your brand visible at the events that matter. We create TV advertising that drives results. We can help you drive sales, build awareness, or grow your channel. We love promoting positivity. We navigate any storm and bring you safely into port. We turn employees into your own influencer network. Syndicating a current show can offer other benefits as well.

Are there tapes of all the episodes? Thamks, joan. Your email address will not be published. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Syndication rights typically last for six consecutive showings of a series within three to five years; if a program continues to perform well enough in broadcast or cable syndication during the initial cycle , television stations or cable networks can opt to renew an off-network program for an additional cycle.

The Cosby Show — Magnum, P. Friends — Friends NBC. Seinfeld — Seinfeld NBC. The Fugitive — The Fugitive ABC. Cheers — Cheers CBS. That's right. A quick check of my local television listings reveals The Simpsons and Seinfeld to be the oldest TV shows airing in local syndication. Both sitcoms premiered in either or , depending on your point of view. When shows are syndicated , redistributed, released on DVD, purchased by a streaming service or otherwise used beyond what the actors were originally paid for, those actors get residual checks called royalties.

For principal performers, royalties can lead to long-term payoffs that trump the original salary. Suffice to say, Friends is one of the most lucrative syndicated shows out there, with episodes ready for blocks of TV repeats. More recently, Amazon has taken on a new syndication role.

Through its zShops program, it now hosts hundreds of small e-commerce providers on its own site. In return, they pay Amazon a listing fee for each item, plus a 1. In addition to the revenue boost, Amazon gets additional traffic from customers interested in the niche zShops offerings.

Amazon has also started signing distribution deals with larger e-tailers such as Drugstore. Amazon receives substantial payments and equity from these partners in exchange for placement on its site, and it also gives customers fewer reasons to shop elsewhere.

By acting as a syndicator and a distributor of e-commerce, Amazon is turning the absence of scarcity on the Web from a threat into an advantage.

By acting as a syndicator and a distributor of e-commerce, Amazon is turning the absence of scarcity on the Web from a threat to an advantage. The multitude of other sites that users visit are no longer alternatives to Amazon; they are opportunities for Amazon to expand its presence—and its earnings.

In a syndicated world, core capabilities are no longer secrets to protect—they are assets to buy and sell. Instead of keeping that system to itself—as traditional strategists might have counseled—Amazon uses syndication to sell the capability to both stores and content sites throughout the Web.

Amazon draws the line at direct competitors such as Barnesandnoble. In an economy of scarcity, core capabilities are sources of proprietary advantage. If you try to sequester them, you may gain a short-term competitive edge, but your competitors will soon catch up.

If you syndicate them, you can turn those competitors into customers. By replacing an economy of scarcity with one of abundance, the Internet will force executives to rethink their strategies.

In some cases, the syndicated assets themselves may be valuable enough to generate big revenues. Like Amazon, companies can use syndication to broaden their distribution in an efficient manner. Syndication can also bring companies data about customer usage patterns. And it can generate leads and reinforce brands. All of these are benefits that companies have traditionally sought to derive by dominating their markets and by exercising exclusive control over information. But with competitive advantages increasingly difficult to lock in—thanks to the leveling power of the information economy—syndication provides a superior route to the same benefits.

Think about what Federal Express has done with its package-tracking system. FedEx invested a great deal of money to develop unique technologies and an infrastructure for monitoring the location of every package it handles. This capability gave it an edge on competitors.

Now, however, FedEx is syndicating its tracking system in several ways. The company allows customers to access the system through its Web site to check the status of their packages. It provides software tools to its corporate customers that enable them to automate shipping and track packages using their own computer systems. And it allows on-line companies to customize its tracking system, integrate it with their own offerings, and distribute it through their own sites.

Someone who orders flowers through Proflowers. What does it get in return? By integrating its technology with the Proflowers ordering system, it makes it much harder for the customer to switch to a different delivery company. By enabling Proflowers to serve its customers better, it ensures that more packages of flowers will be shipped in FedEx planes and trucks.

And by incorporating its brand name on the Proflowers site, it publicizes its services and promotes its brand. As more and more business turns into e-business, smart managers in every company will find ways to use syndication to do what FedEx has done. As organizations begin to be constructed out of components syndicated from many other organizations, the result will be a mesh of relationships with no beginning, end, or center.

Companies may look the same as before to their customers, but behind the scenes they will be in constant flux, melding with one another in ever-changing networks. But in those areas where syndication takes hold, companies will become less important than the networks that contain them. Indeed, individual companies will routinely originate, syndicate, or distribute information without even being aware of all the others participating in the network.

A particular originator may, for example, have a relationship with only one syndicator, but through that relationship it will be able to benefit from the contributions of hundreds or even thousands of other companies.

While every participant will retain some measure of control—choosing which syndication partners to have direct relationships with and deciding which business rules to incorporate into its syndicated transactions—no participant will control the overall network. Like any highly complex, highly adaptive system, a well-functioning syndication network will be self-organizing, constantly optimizing its behavior in response to an unending stream of information about the transactions taking place among its members.

Syndication may not be a new model, but it takes on a new life thanks to the Internet. The tools and intermediaries that facilitate syndication relationships will become more sophisticated over time.

Already, though, there are many syndication networks in place and many examples of successful syndication strategies. As the Internet economy continues to grow in importance, syndication will grow along with it as the underlying structure of business. You have 1 free article s left this month. You are reading your last free article for this month.

Subscribe for unlimited access. Create an account to read 2 more. Within syndication networks, businesses can play one or more of three roles: 1. Example: Inktomi created a powerful Internet search engine that it syndicates to many Web sites. Example: Screaming Media collects electronic articles from some originators and then delivers to more than sites only the content relevant to their target audiences. To reap the benefits of syndication, seek niches in syndication networks that maximize your connections with other companies and customers.

These connections are always shifting, so be ready to change the roles that your company plays. Example: Amazon.