• by David Goetzl  @dgoetzl, July 2, 2007

USA is going into the belly of the beast, airing first-run episodes of "Law & Order: Criminal Intent" beginning in October. The network will run them on Thursdays -- television's most lucrative, but most competitive night -- as part of a strategy to establish a fourth night with original programming, according to USA chief Bonnie Hammer.

"In order to grow, we also realized we needed another night of original programming, so we decided to plant the flag on Thursday nights, the most monetizable night of the week," Hammer told investors earlier this month.

A USA representative, however, characterized the plans to air the show Thursdays as "tentative." USA runs original programming on Sundays, Mondays and Fridays.

On Thursdays, USA has had success this summer with the six-hour mini-series "The Starter Wife," starring Debra Messing in the 9 p.m. hour. Hammer said the goal is "to stay and continue to try to own that Thursday night position."

But going against repeats and other lower-rated programming in the summer is vastly different than competing against originals of heavy hitters, such as "Grey's Anatomy," "CSI" and NBC's own comedies on Thursdays during the season. So it's somewhat surprising that USA would place such high-profile programming in the Thursday battlefield.

On the other hand, Thursday is a critical night for advertisers -- particularly in the big-spending movie category, where marketers look to reach viewers heading into the weekend. USA might believe there are enough dollars in the market to garner a sizable share, even when competing against the broadcasters.

A USA representative said the network has had successes on Thursday nights.

First-run episodes of "Criminal Intent," which has run for six seasons on NBC, will air on USA starting in October, then be re-aired on NBC, though no time frame has been announced for when they will run on the broadcast net. It's likely the programming will serve as a utility player on NBC. It may be placed in a time slot that opens when one of the new shows this fall fails .

USA parent NBC Universal opted to premiere "Criminal Intent" episodes on the cable network after the series had a difficult season on NBC, with ratings in the 18-to-49 demo down some 16% to a 2.7, the same rating as the cancelled "Black Donnellys."

But while "Criminal Intent" could have continued to lose visibility on NBC, it's a potential boon for USA. Looking for ways to grow USA, which just finished the season as the No. 1 cable network in the 18-to-49 demo, outperforming TNT, TBS and FX, is a corporate priority for NBCU. In the same investor presentation, NBCU chief Jeff Zucker said the entertainment cable networks -- which also include Bravo and Sci Fi -- are key growth drivers and account for one-third of the company's profits.

The two other members of the "Law & Order" troika will continue to air on NBC. "Law & Order: SVU" is slotted for Tuesdays at 10 this fall, while the flagship "Law & Order" is scheduled to return for an 18th season on Sundays at 8 after "Sunday Night Football."

"Criminal Intent's" first-run episodes have been on NBC with a second airing on USA for the show's lifespan.

In a statement in May, Zucker said the reversal changes "the paradigm of prime-time television."