• Bloomberg, Tuesday, March 10, 2009 9:33 AM

CBS and NBC, looking to reduce prime-time programming costs, are turning to Canadian television producers for new shows. Two of these programs will air in May. CBS, which introduced the Canadian drama "Flashpoint" last year, is adding "The Bridge," a police series filmed in Toronto. NBC nabbed "The Listener," about a telepathic paramedic in the same city.

U.S. networks have made shows in Canada for years to gain tax benefits. Now they are buying dramas set north of the border, which are written and produced for Canadian TV. CTV is sharing costs with the U.S. networks and will air the shows at the same time, paring licensing fees for new dramas in half.

The pickup of Canadian shows by U.S. networks validates the past 25 years of growth in Canada's television industry, says Peter Sussman, partner at Toronto-based Aver Media LP., which financed "Flashpoint." He is also the former CEO of the company that made CBS' "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" series. Canadian tax credits have helped provide technical training to locals, giving rise to a pool of Canadian writers, actors and directors, he says.

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