• by Wayne Friedman , Staff Writer, March 11, 2005

Wasn't it a couple of years ago media agency executives said syndication was dead? Apparently no one checked the gravesite to make sure this TV business was in the box.

Perhaps the best-kept secret is that syndication is thriving. At yesterday's Syndicated Network Television Association conference in New York, Mitch Burg, the trade group's President and CEO, touted mighty fine industry numbers.

From October to January, syndication was, surprisingly, up 5.2 percent in ratings versus a virtually flat broadcast network number -- 0.4 percent. Most glaring is that its arch rivals, the cable networks, are decidedly down 1.4 percent. The cable industry, which for years took credit for the fall of the broadcast networks, won't like hearing this news.

Not only that, but syndication witnessed a healthy 16 percent growth to $3.9 billion in 2004 - perhaps the biggest gain for any TV medium. TV Watch is somewhat taken aback by these developments - and may need to amend some previous observations.

Some weeks ago we called syndication somewhat boring and financially at a standstill because of its inability to launch new shows. In part, that is still true. For the 2005-2006 season, so far, syndication has announced the launch of only four new five-day a week shows for next season - perhaps its weakest new season start.

The good, is that fewer shows are going off the air. And the main genres of syndication - talk shows, court show, off-net sitcoms, and game shows - are seeing significant rating increases for the year, according to Burg.

Syndication must be benefiting from the fact that mature cable networks are now - more than ever -- subject to the same kind of viewership erosion broadcast networks have seen for the last two decades.

Back in the late '80s when new independent stations went on line in droves, syndication was a big growth business as these new stations needed programming. Then as the '90s hit, new TV station growth stopped. Media investments shifted into new cable networks and cable operations.

Now things have shifted a bit.

Perhaps television business reporters will need to cover syndication again. But first, they need to stop listening to the cable network spin masters once in a while.