Crazy or not, they did the deal. Although the show was only in its second season, the consistency of its top-10 Nielsen ranking suggested a long run on its broadcast network, CBS. And TNN needed a high-profile "franchise" beyond wrestling that would attract young viewers. That was spring 2001, a time when the syndication market was its hottest ever, breaking the record that historically small-time buyer Bravo had set just weeks earlier with a $1.2 million bid for rights to NBC hit The West Wing. Today, though, the frenzy sparked by big-spending new entrants to the high end of the off-net syndication game is over. The slumping ad market makes it hard for cable networks to justify such huge license fees, particularly for shows that could run way past four seasons. In addition, some established networks are shifting strategy. FX and Court TV, for example, are lessening their dependence on syndicated fare in prime time.
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