• by Wayne Friedman , May 4, 2010

With broadcast ratings down this season -- on top of a lower upfront pricing set in 2009 -- many shows are reaping less advertising revenue.

The top 10 broadcast network shows pulled in $3.14 billion in ad revenue, down 5% in 2009 versus 2008's $3.31 billion, according to media research company Kantar Media.

No. 1 network earner Fox's "American Idol" easily continued as the best revenue generator, grabbing $849.6 million in calendar year 2009. This was down slightly, 3%, from the $879.5 number in 2008. Well back in second place was NBC's "Sunday Night Football," now at $374.0 million, down 14% from $434.5 million.

Only two shows in the top 10 gained from a year ago: ABC's "Dancing with the Stars" and "Grey's Anatomy." In 2009, "Stars" placed third again with $353.0 million in 2009, up 5% from $336.5 million. "Grey's" tallied $329.1 million, up 30% from $255.0 million in 2008.

Jon Swallen, senior vice president of research for Kantar Media, says multiple night reality series, such as "Idol" and "Stars," help to amass big totals, so did hourlong dramas versus half-hour sitcoms.  For example, "Stars" has two cycles per year (March-May and Sep-Dec) with 10-12 weeks per cycle.  Says Swallen: "It airs an average of three hours per week -- a competition episode and a results show. That works out to about 22 weeks per year, three hours per week, 66 hours of telecasts."

For 2008, NBC's game "Deal or No Deal" was in 10th place with $191.1 million. NBC has also been running the show in multiple time periods during a given week.

CBS lost some steam with its big "CSI" franchise. The original "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" went lower: 15% to $242.1 million from $283.1 million in 2008. "Miami" was at $191.8 million, down 18% from $233.8 million. But CBS gained with "The Mentalist" cracking the top shows, in 10th place with $174.7 million.

Beside "Idol," Fox had "House" in the mix in sixth place, with $235.7 million, down 6% from 2008, as well as its summer dance show, "So You Think You Can Dance," which also earned a fall time slot in 2009. This extra run pushed it into seventh place at $202.1 million. That said, "Dance" looks to go back to just a summer-only airing this year.

This year, Fox, ABC, and CBS, each had three shows in the top10 with NBC's lone entry, "Sunday Night Football."