During the recent crippling Writers Guild of America strike, some prognostications had it that we might actually be spared that annual tribal gathering wherein the broadcast and cable networks and syndicators unveil their programming plans and knock heads with advertisers over rates. Yet, here we find ourselves on the eve of another upfront.

With the number of players multiplying, new programs and programming genres cropping up, and ratings standards and rates fast changing, the upfront is more chaotic than ever, making a scorecard essential. So, here we present Upfront Players, a rundown of the leading TV programmers, their top sales execs, their returning and (where available at this early stage) new shows, and analysis that aims to shed light on how these players stand to fare heading into this wild period.

We break down the players by network, cable and syndicated TV. On the network side, ABC stands to land the bulk of upfront dollars, reports Mediaweek senior editor John Consoli, riding a wave of returning smash series including Grey's Anatomy and Dancing With the Stars. Meanwhile, the once-dominant, now-fourth-place NBC remains the most-challenged broadcaster, having failed to land a major prime-time hit in a decade.

As Mediaweek senior editor Anthony Crupi reports, cable boasts a roster of all-stars, from Lifetime (which just snagged Bravo's monster hit Project Runway while spinning out original fare like Army Wives) to MTV Networks and its flurry of new and returning shows (VH1's untitled P. Diddy reality series, MTV's The Hills). In syndie, as Mediaweek's "Mr. Television" Marc Berman details, the field remains dominated by court shows (including, new from Sony Pictures Television, Judge Karen), talkers (Warner Bros., home of Tyra and Ellen, intros The Bonnie Hunt Show) and off-net offerings (Boston Legal from Twentieth Television, Disney-ABC's Desperate Housewives).

So, get ready for the first pitch in what's sure to be another action-packed season.--Tony Case, Editor, Special Reports




Network TV

By John Consoli

ABC
Sales Point People: Mike Shaw, president, sales and marketing; Geri Wang, svp, prime-time sales

Programming: Returning: Grey's Anatomy, Desperate Housewives, Lost, Brothers & Sisters, Dancing With the Stars, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition

Analysis: ABC methodically continues to fill holes on different nights, targeting a female audience. The network boasts a slew of returning hit dramas, two hit reality shows and a handful of successful freshman shows from the current season that have great potential going forward. But like its sibling networks, ABC has had trouble developing breakout comedies. Several new offerings got off to a good start last fall before the writers' strike, but Grey's Anatomy spinoff Private Practice may be the only new entry with long-range potential. Because of its buzzworthy programs and younger female audience, ABC is primed to capture the biggest share of prime-time dollars in the upfront.

CBS
Sales Point People: Joanne Ross, president, network sales; Chris Simon, evp, network sales

Programming: Returning: CSI, CSI: Miami, CSI NY, NCIS, Criminal Minds, Without a Trace, Two and a Half Men

Analysis: CBS continues to get solid ratings from veteran procedural dramas, but they're not as strong as they once were. Its Monday sitcoms are solid, and its schedule is still the most stable across the week among all the broadcast nets. Still, CBS has not generated a new, buzzworthy hit in several years, and with its aging programs beginning to bleed audience, the network could be in trouble. CBS will continue to battle ABC in raking in the most prime-time ad dollars in the upfront, though ABC advertisers target younger women as opposed to the overall older demos on CBS.



Fox
Sales Point People: Jon Nesvig, president, sales; Jean Rossi, evp, sales

Programming: Returning: American Idol, House, Bones, 24, Prison Break, The Simpsons, Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader

Analysis: Fox has done a solid job shedding its image as the titillating reality network and now has several dramas -- particularly hit medical drama House -- advertisers are flocking to. Even its reality shows now are more family-oriented than bawdy. Lowbrow fare like Temptation Island, The Littlest Groom and Playing It Straight are a distant memory (at present), as Fox now is closely identified with mega hit American Idol and, more recently, Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader. Fox also boasts a solid, young-male-skewing Sunday animation block, led by The Simpsons, still going strong in its 18th season. Advertisers like the direction Fox is headed, with the network secure to win the 18-49 demo race this season for the fourth consecutive year as well as the 18-34 face-off for the ninth time in a decade. Look for Fox to again ring up a record upfront take and to again challenge NBC for third place in terms of upfront dollars.

NBC
Sales Point People: Michael Pilot, president, sales and marketing, NBC Universal; Marianne Gambelli, president, network ad sales

Programming: New: Crusoe, Kath and Kim, Knight Rider, My Own Worst Enemy, The Office untitled spinoff, The Philanthropist Returning: Heroes, Law & Order: SVU, Deal or No Deal, The Office, 30 Rock, Medium, Chuck

Analysis: No. 4 in the ratings, NBC has nowhere to go but up. Its new strategy of announcing its prime-time schedule 52 weeks in advance was a hit with advertisers, some saying it would give them better opportunities for product placement. Still, many in the ad community wonder whether NBC will boast enough quality new programming to make an impact with viewers. The once-dominant network has failed to score a big hit in nearly a decade, although Heroes and Deal or No Deal have performed OK. While comedies The Office and 30 Rock are praised by critics, they draw only average ratings. Most advertisers see NBC prime-time upfront buys as a way to balance the higher prices they pay on the other Big Three nets. Even with creative sales programs, NBC could face a challenge from Fox and finish fourth in upfront dollars for the first time.



The CW
Sales Point People: Bill Morningstar, evp, national sales; Rob Tuck, evp, sales and planning

Programming: Returning: America's Next Top Model, Gossip Girl, Smallville, Supernatural

Analysis: The CW is in trouble from a ratings perspective, but because it reaches such a young, harder-to-reach, primarily female audience, advertisers are pulling for the two-year-old network to succeed. Buyers believe Warner Bros. and CBS made a mistake merging The WB and UPN into the new CW rather than folding UPN into the more-established WB. Many of The WB's more fanatical viewers (brought to the net by such fare as Buffy, The Vampire Slayer, Dawson's Creek) are not watching The CW, whose ratings are down more than 20 percent across the board compared to last season. The network also dropped its WWE Friday night wrestling, adding two more hours to fill next season on a schedule already filled with holes. Advertisers will continue to buy the network, as they balk at paying the hefty premiums the network commanded when it was The WB.

Univision
Sales Point People: David Lawenda, president, ad sales; Peter Lazarus, evp, network sales

Programming: Returning: Al Diablo con los Guapos (Down With the Beautiful), Passion

Analysis: Though the Hispanic upfront remains separate from English-language network negotiations, Univision's story is nonetheless compelling. It's the No. 1 network on Friday nights in the 18-34 demo, beating all English-language nets. Some weeks, it's been the No. 2 net on Fridays among adults 18-49. For several weeks running, Univision has finished third among adults 18-34, beating, on occasion, ABC, NBC and The CW. Every week this season, it has consistently finished ahead of The CW in both adults 18-49 and total viewers. Next season, the network will have to prove itself again with new novelas, but its track record in prime time is solid. More advertisers are waking up to the fact that they'll miss a huge audience by leaving Univision out of their buy.



Telemundo
Sales Point Person: Mike Rodriguez, svp, sales

Programming: Returning: Victoria, Pecados Ajenos (Other People's Sins)

Analysis: Telemundo remains a distant second among Hispanic nets in prime, behind Univision. But it has successfully monetized its novelas, most of which are filmed in the net's own production studio and which have attracted assorted product-placement deals. Recently, the net has averaged 1.1 million viewers per night, less than one-third of Univision but at record levels for Telemundo. The network hopes a recent deal to put its programming on Televisa stations in Mexico will have a halo effect in the U.S.




CABLE TV

By Anthony Crupi

A&E Networks
Sales Point Person: Mel Berning, evp, national ad sales

Programming: New: The Cleaner (A&E), Tougher in Alaska (History) Returning: Intervention (A&E), Ice Road Truckers (History)

Analysis: Over the last five years, A&E has reinvented itself as a premium entertainment brand, putting away the bowl of hard candy it once offered viewers as a network for blue-hairs and pensioners. It's been a protracted process. But in the last five years the former home of Murder, She Wrote has developed a franchise for itself with the warts-and-all reality genre, which, in turn, led to the off-net acquisition that gave A&E the juice to finally reinvent itself as a drama destination. If nothing else, at a cool $2.5 million per episode, The Sopranos pickup signaled that A&E was deadly serious about getting back into the scripted programming business. (Tony, Paulie Walnuts and the rest of the Satriale's Pork Store crew also helped A&E rough up the competition. Last year, the net averaged 1.35 million prime-time viewers, an increase of 20 percent year over year, good for seventh place among ad-supported cable nets.) When the new Benjamin Bratt drama The Cleaner bows this summer, it will mark the first time the network will air a homegrown scripted series since it bowed Sidney Lumet's 100 Centre Street in January 2001. Meanwhile, History is enjoying a sea change as well. Since evp, general manager Nancy Dubuc stepped in at History, having moved over from the top development spot at A&E a year ago, more younger viewers have been tuning in than ever before. In 2007, History upped its average delivery of adults 18-34 by 34 percent versus the previous year, while raising its profile among viewers 18-49 by 10 percent.

Comcast Networks
Sales Point Person: Dave Cassaro, president, ad sales

Programming: New: Pamela, Untitled Denise Richards project (E!) Returning: Keeping Up With the Kardashians (E!), Attack of the Show! (G4)

Analysis: It's an eclectic bunch, ranging from the sports-minded Versus to the fashionista destination Style, and therein lies the allure of properties under the Comcast umbrella. Each network targets a specific demo, offering exclusive content that can't be found anywhere else on cable (Versus' NHL coverage; nearly everything on G4). While the Comcast nets are defined by the niches they serve, E!'s celebrity-focused reality programming is turning it into something of a reach vehicle. In the first quarter, E! cracked the top 30 with an average prime-time delivery of just under 600,000 viewers, a boost of 27 percent over the prior year. In demos, E! fared even better, taking 16th among adults 18-49 after growing 41 percent while upping its delivery of 18-34s by 31 percent (394,000). Meanwhile, Cassaro has drawn a bead on G4's ad partners, prepping "Hunting With Lightsabers: A Field Guide to Men 18-34," a research report designed to dispel some of the more persistent misconceptions about the demo. What Comcast's portfolio will look like a year from now is anyone's guess (the company shuttered its AZN service in January, and emerging nets are always potential takeover targets), but Cassaro is bullish heading into the upfront.



Discovery Networks
Sales Point Person: Joe Abruzzese, president, ad sales

Programming: New: Prototype This!, Raging Planet (Discovery), untitled Real Simple project (TLC) Returning: Dirty Jobs (Discovery), Jon & Kate Plus 8 (TLC)

Analysis: Discovery ad sales capo Joe Abruzzese has more inventory to sell than anyone else in cable, as the group programs thousands of hours of original programming on franchise platforms like Discovery Channel, TLC and Animal Planet and emerging nets (Military, Science). Moreover, in 2008 Discovery will flip the switch on Planet Green, the eco-focused net that will play host to granola-and-Birkenstock-favoring celebs like Entourage star Adrian Grenier and the rockin' man's environmentalist, Motley Crue drummer Tommy Lee. That doesn't even take into account the next big project Discovery has in the hopper -- a little something called OWN: The Oprah Winfrey Network, which launches next year in some 70 million households. With all that on his plate, Abruzzese has to compress his pitch for the 14 Discovery nets in an upfront show that clocks in at just over two hours. Rather than try to approximate that distillation here, the big themes of Discovery's upfront pitch are reach, ratings, new programming and opportunities for integrations and exclusive sponsorships. Also on the table: an initiative to create customized spots for clients at the company's in-house production unit, Discovery Studios. Bottom line: GRPs are up across the board, most significantly at the flagship net. Discovery returned to the top 10 in 2007, averaging 1.28 million viewers, up 13 percent year over year.

Fox Cable Entertainment Networks

Sales Point Person: Bruce Lefkowitz, evp

Programming: New: Sons of Anarchy (FX), Who Knew? With Marshall Brain (National Geographic) Returning: Rescue Me, Damages (FX), Explorer (Nat Geo)

Analysis: Thus far in 2008, FX has picked up where it left off a year ago, standing firm as a top-10 cable net in prime time while claiming the No. 4 spot among adults 18-49 and 25-54. Since Vic Mackey and the Strike Team first sauntered onto FX in March 2002, the net has become a breeding ground for antiheroes, drawing big audiences and critical acclaim, while establishing itself as the home of cable's biggest lineup of must-see dramas. Trouble is, FX suffered something of an identity crisis, as consumer research suggested that viewers tended to conflate the network with HBO or USA Network. To that end, FX in December rolled out a multimillion-dollar branding campaign, introducing a new tag line ("FX: There Is No Box") and logo designed to define the channel as a destination for gritty, uncompromising drama. Although FX has no new series to shill in the 2008 upfront, clients are likely to line up for the final season of The Shield, as well as Rescue Me, which returns for a fifth run on July 1. Meanwhile, sibling National Geographic Channel storms into the bazaar with a strong wind at its back, as it hopes to improve on the success of the 2007 upfront. Last year, Nat Geo grew its upfront ad revenue by 43 percent, while bringing in around 30 new clients. In a bid to bring in even more business, Nat Geo will offer clients isolated 30-second commercial pods and branded integrations.



Lifetime Networks

Sales Point Person: Debbie Richman, evp, ad sales

Programming: New: Project Runway, Models of the Runway, The Big Match Returning: Army Wives, How to Look Good Naked

Analysis: When Harvey Weinstein marched Bravo's hit Project Runway over to Lifetime a little more than a week ago, the move bent more than a few tiaras out of shape. With Runway poised to set up shop at its new home this November, network chief Andrea Wong is looking to make Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn the twin stars around which other unscripted fare will revolve. (Reality is old hat to Wong, who came to prominence as ABC's doyenne of unscripted programming before taking the Lifetime gig a year ago.) In addition to Runway and the Weinstein Co. bookend Project Pygmalion, the net has four other unscripted shows in the works for 2008-09. And while Lifetime will continue to produce its signature original movies (planning to pump out about 40 new titles in the coming season), the emphasis now is clearly on series development. On the scripted drama front, Army Wives returns for a second season June 8, clearing the ground for two pilot pickups (Mistresses, Drop Dead Diva) and a handful of other projects in various stages of development. At Lifetime, the impetus is to shake off some of the old Markie Post-in-peril ethos that once defined the net in favor of shows that speak to a younger, hipper female audience. Heading into the upfront, Wong has another ace up her sleeve in longtime OMD national TV buyer Debbie Richman, who took the network's top ad sales job in March.

MTV Networks

Sales Point Person: Hank Close, president, U.S. ad sales

Programming: New: Untitled P. Diddy reality series (VH1), The Mighty B! (Nickelodeon), Darius (MTV) Returning: The Hills (MTV), Flavor of Love (VH1), South Park (Comedy Central), iCarly (Nickelodeon)

Analysis: Last summer, Close faced a crisis. As the C3 ratings currency was becoming established as the coin of the realm, two of MTVN's iconic networks were at the bottom of the charts in terms of keeping viewers tuned in through commercial breaks. Lured by the siren song of MySpace and IMs, Generation ADD went AWOL when it came time for a word from MTVN sponsors -- so much so that MTV and VH1 once lost some 20 percent of their respective audiences during ads. While his team was easily the most proactive when it came to examining how to structure the pods in order to keep viewers from churning out, Close still fought to broker live-only guarantees through the end of 2007. Fast-forward, and Close's various pod-busting salvos have been inordinately successful, especially at VH1, where drop-out now hovers at around 9 percent. And that doesn't even begin to take into account the ratings momentum of VH1, Nickelodeon and Comedy Central, or how the oddly transparent conceit behind MTV's quasi-reality hit The Hills has helped return the network to its former iconic stature among the 12-34 set. As the upfront approaches, Close will contextualize those notes against a background of his "return on innovation" concept, which trumpets MTVN's leadership in "reinventing and recreating the commercial experience."



NBC Universal Cable

Sales Point Person: Steve Mandala, evp, NBCU cable ad sales

Programming: New: In Plain Sight (USA), Caprica (Sci Fi) Returning: Monk, Psych (USA), Battlestar Galactica (Sci Fi), Project Runway, Top Chef (Bravo)

Analysis: Picking up where it left off last year, USA has been on a ratings tear, winning every week in 2008 while regularly picking off the competition in the race for adults 18-49 and 25-54. Like Turner nets, USA is programmed like a scaled-down broadcaster, winning over viewers with a mix of original drama series like the long-running Monk and the scruffy, younger-skewing Psych, as well as off-net pickups and somewhat uncategorizable hybrids. But USA enjoys a business model that must make its cable peers dollar-green with envy, programming on the cheap by casting newcomers and veteran actors in lieu of the high-profile talent for which rival TNT seems more than happy to shell out. (See: Romano, Ray.) Meanwhile, Sci Fi has gone from geek magnet to critical darling, with the ascension of Battlestar Galactica to the pantheon of can't-miss TV. And a much-anticipated prequel is closer to realization, with production on the two-hour Caprica pilot set to begin later this spring. Though the loss of Bravo's Project Runway threatens to take some of the sparkle out of the prime-time lineup, perhaps no other cable net offers such a well-defined concentration of upwardly mobile, engaged viewers. The net grew ad revenue 30 percent in the first quarter.

Scripps Networks

Sales Point Person: Jon Steinlauf, svp, ad sales

Programming: New: Chopped (Food Network), Red Hot and Green (HGTV) Returning: Throwdown With Bobby Flay (Food), Design Star 3 (HGTV)

Analysis: While the 2007 upfront was shaped by the C3 ratings debate and the industry's subsequent adoption of the new currency, the conversation leading into this year's marketplace has been dominated by research, particularly those findings pertaining to engagement. Scripps Networks ad sales chief Jon Steinlauf is telling buyers that Food Network and HGTV, in particular, are invaluable pieces of real estate, inasmuch as both excel at keeping viewers locked in during commercial breaks. According to a recent Simmons Research study, Food and HGTV are the most engaging, fully distributed cable nets among adults 25-54, 18-49 and 18-34-suggesting that viewers are inherently receptive to ads appearing in either environment. HGTV also boasts one of the industry's best commercial-retention averages, keeping nearly 97 percent of its viewers tuned in during breaks. With "literally thousands of hours" of new programming in the hopper for 2008-09 and an ad-sales initiative that allows sponsors to carve out unique integration opportunities across all five nets, Scripps is gearing up for a lucrative upfront. In addition to its linear TV pitch, this year Scripps will make inroads into mobile and wireless media, allowing viewers to connect with Scripps content wherever, whenever.



Turner Broadcasting System

Sales Point Person: David Levy, president, Turner Broadcasting Sales, Turner Sports

Programming: New: Raising the Bar, Leverage (TNT) Returning: The Closer, Saving Grace (TNT), My Boys, The Bill Engvall Show (TBS)

Analysis: In March, Turner vowed to challenge the broadcast nets on their home turf, announcing it would stage its annual upfront presentation on May 14, hours before CBS kicks off its event. While the move was vintage Levy -- at once aggressive and carefully considered -- the encroachment had some broadcast ad-sales chiefs in high dudgeon. Even before the first dollar hits the table, Levy's gambit has reaped dividends, shuttling Turner out in front of the cable queue -- while making the notion of a two-tier upfront system as antiquated as watching TV in real time. Beyond philosophy and tactics, Levy has a solid story to tell on the original programming front, as TNT gets set to program 60 percent of its prime-time lineup with homegrown fare by 2010. (Keep an eye out for Steven Bochco's law drama Raising the Bar.) Meantime, TBS has exploded, winning 18-34 in the first quarter with 701,000 viewers, up 34 percent. And acquisition truTV has shed its old Court TV skin, growing 7 percent in prime to claim 13th place among ad-supported cable nets with 1.28 million viewers.




SYNDICATED TV

By Marc Berman

Disney-ABC Domestic Television Distribution

Sales Point Person: Howard Levy, evp, ad sales

Programming: First-Run/New: Wizards First Rule Off-Network/New: Desperate Housewives, Lost First Run/Returning: Live With Regis & Kelly, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, At the Movies With Ebert & Roeper Off-Network/Returning: My Wife and Kids, Scrubs, etc.

Analysis: Riding on the coattails of veteran Live With Regis & Kelly and underrated Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, Disney-ABC has remained unusually gun-shy in the new first-run strip department since the demise of sophomore talker The Tony Danza Show in 2006. But the fall 2008 arrival of first-run scripted weekly Wizards First Rule is the first of its kind in years via any distributor. And Disney-ABC aims to make an impact in the growing category of off-network scripted hours with Desperate Housewives and Lost. But will the audience really respond to anything of a serialized nature in repeats?

CBS Television Distribution

Sales Point Person: Steven Hirsch, president, media sales

Programming: First-Run/New: The Doctors Off-Network/New: CSI: NY First-Run/Returning: Dr. Phil, Entertainment Tonight, Inside Edition, The Insider, Jeopardy, Judge Joe Brown, Judge Judy, Oprah, The Rachael Ray Show, Wheel of Fortune Off-Network/Returning: Everybody Loves Raymond, Frasier, Half & Half, One on One, Star Trek

Analysis: With eight of the top 10 shows in households-and dominance among all key demos-no distributor, past or present, has dominated like powerhouse CBS Television Distribution. Upcoming talker The Doctors, a spinoff of Dr. Phil, is expected to lead the fall 2008 freshman entries, courtesy of early exposure and the best potential time periods. And the unprecedented, decade-plus advantage of first-run leaders Oprah, Wheel of Fortune, Entertainment Tonight, Judge Judy and others means the house of CBS is poised for continued leadership among syndies.



NBC Universal Domestic Television Distribution

Sales Point Person: Bo Argentino, svp, ad sales

Programming: First-Run/New: Deal or No Deal Off-Network/New: House, Monk First-Run/Returning: Access Hollywood, The Chris Matthews Show, The Jerry Springer Show, Lyons & Bailes Reel Talk, The Martha Stewart Show, Maury, The Steve Wilkos Show, Your Total Health Off-Network/Returning: Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Law & Order: SVU

Analysis: Opposite the CBS Television Distribution stranglehold, no one ever said cracking the top 10 would be easy. But a growing inventory of first-run product, including the recently introduced, already renewed Steve Wilkos Show, plus the arrival of a half-hour daily version of Deal or No Deal hosted by Howie Mandel, keeps NBC Universal Domestic Television Distribution an active force in syndication. The biggest concern in 2008-09 could be the hefty, ongoing losses for mainstay talkers Maury Povich, Jerry Springer and Martha, which, at present, is anything but "a good thing."

Sony Pictures Television
Sales Point Person: Amy Carney, president, ad sales

Programming: First-Run/New: Judge Karen First-Run/Returning: Judge David Young Off-Network/Returning: Girls Behaving Badly, The King of Queens, Regenesis, Seinfeld, The Shield

Analysis: Following the demise of the long-running Ricki Lake Showin 2004, Sony Pictures Television has failed to find a place in the cluttered talk-show genre, thanks to clinkers Life & Style, Pat Croce: Moving In and, most recently, The Greg Behrendt Show. So, the focus has shifted to first-run (and low-rated) court, including recent entries Judge Maria Lopez (which will not return next season) and Judge David Young, as well as the forthcoming Judge Karen, hosted by Miami Judge Karen Mills. The long-running Judge Hatchett has ceased production and will air in repeats next season, while Seinfeld and The King of Queens remain mainstays in the off-net sitcom pack.


 
Twentieth Television

Sales Point Person: Bob Cesa, evp, ad sales

Programming: First-Run/New: Trivial Pursuit (Debmar-Mercury) Off-Network/New: Boston Legal, House of Payne (Debmar-Mercury) First-Run/Returning: Cristina's Court, Divorce Court, Family Feud(Debmar-Mercury), Judge Alex, The Morning Show With Mike and Juliet, South Park (Debmar-Mercury), Temptation Off-Network/Returning: Bernie Mac, Cops, The Dead Zone (Debmar-Mercury), Family Guy, King of the Hill, Malcolm in the Middle, Still Standing, That '70s Show (Carsey Werner), 24

Analysis: Mirroring NBC Universal, there's certainly no lack of product at Twentieth Television, particularly in the first-run court and off-network sitcom departments (freshman Family Guy is a rare non-CBS top 10 player). But the established Divorce Court and Judge Alex continue to lose ratings steam, as talker The Morning Show With Mike and Juliet hovers at the bottom of the genre, and recent game show Temptation -- based on the old Sale of the Century -- waits for the ax to swing. Handling all ad sales for distributor Debmar-Mercury keeps Twentieth Television actively populated, but there's nothing new in the first-run hopper for next season.

Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution

Sales Point Person: Michael Teicher, evp, media sales

Programming: First-Run/New: The Bonnie Hunt Show First-Run/Returning: The Tyra Banks Show, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Extra, Judge Mathis, People's Court, Showtime and the Apollo, This Old House, TMZ Off-Network/Returning: Cold Case, Friends, George Lopez, Sex and the City, Two and a Half Men, Without a Trace, Will & Grace

Analysis: Like every player outside the CBS umbrella, life in syndication can feel like a long walk uphill. But freshman Two and a Half Men leads the off-network sitcom pack, despite the absence of a simultaneous run on cable. Freshman magazine TMZ, based on the wildly popular celebrity Web site, is attracting a growing number of young adult viewers, while veterans The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Extra, Judge Mathis and People's Court all have been renewed for multiple seasons. Less certain is the future of The Tyra Banks Show, which continues to bleed by double digits year after year, as well as the forthcoming talker, The Bonnie Hunt Show, which, despite the familiarity of its host, is no guarantee for success, as so many other celebrity-helmed talk failures in recent years have shown.