• by David Goetzl  @dgoetzl, December 4, 2008

Over the summer, there was more than gossip about the long-term viability of the CW network. Time Warner CEO Jeff Bewkes, whose company owns 50%, said "if there's not a good return on it, then we shouldn't be doing it." Then, large affiliate group Tribune not only removed the CW brand from its station monikers, but dropped its affiliation with the network altogether in San Diego.

That move came after the network finished the 2007-08 season. And even with the popular "Gossip Girl" launching, ratings were down some 36% in its target female 18-to-34 demo.

Still, Dawn Ostroff, the network's entertainment president, said she never lost faith that the CW would establish itself and a turnaround would come. "Having been in a position before where we had to reinvent a brand, I knew it would take two years to put the pieces together," said the former Lifetime and UPN executive.

Now in year three, the network is indeed showing signs of life.

The remake of "90210" has been appealing enough that CW plans a redux of its former Fox companion "Melrose Place." "Gossip Girl's" female 18-to-34 ratings are up 41%--no doubt fueling improvement for "One Tree Hill," which follows it on Monday nights. And the network overall is up 11% this season in the key demo.

"What you're seeing this season is just the beginning," Ostroff said in an interview before speaking at Thursday's WWD Media + Style Summit in New York.

In addition to "Melrose Place" likely teed up for next fall, Ostroff said the network is exploring a "Gossip Girl" spinoff. While nothing is nailed down, discussions have begun with executive producers Stephanie Savage and Josh Schwartz. Ostroff, however, said the talks are preliminary--and, of course, contingent on "if we come up" with the right idea.

Like "90210," Ostroff said "Melrose Place" could appeal to both the Gen X and Yers who span the 18-to-34 demo. The series "could really fit into our schedule because people come for nostalgic reasons, and young people come in as well," she said.

Also in the pipeline is "The Beautiful Life," a drama from Ashton Kutcher's production company about what Ostroff calls the "dark side of the modeling world," and a makeover show involving two judges from "America's Next Top Model."

While there was talk that the CW needed some sort of brand resuscitation, Ostroff indicated that there are no plans. "People are starting to hear CW, and they have an image in their mind."

Also, the network's dominant hue isn't going away: "We like the green," she added.

Sunday nights remain a hurdle. The network turned the night over to production company Media Rights Capital to program this fall, but the ratings were so poor that all sides agreed to pull the plug. CW has replaced the lineup with reruns and a movie.

Ostroff expressed some willingness to bring CW-developed original programming to the night, but said there are no plans for this season, and hinted that may not be the case in the fall either. "It's a really challenging night," she said. "If we can further the brand and really think we can be successful, we'd like to hold onto it."

The formation of the CW (where CBS owns the other half with Time Warner) came in early 2006, giving Ostroff little time to build a channel ethos. The network spent its first season with a mélange of former WB and UPN shows. (The struggling networks combined to form CW). The network sought to carve a niche targeting females 18 to 34, but had wrestling on Fridays as an early impediment.

"One of the problems with UPN was we were recruiting a different audience every night of the week," said Ostroff, who was entertainment head at that network. "When we first started CW, we found we were in a similar position. And Friday night was the biggest obstacle of all."

Now, with wrestling gone, Ostroff said there is more of an opportunity to laser-focus on young women and build some programming flow across the week. In her speech Thursday at the Media + Style Summit, Ostroff said the CW has no ambitions to be a wide-reach, traditional broadcast network--an NBC or ABC.

Why be a United or Delta when you can be a JetBlue or Virgin, she explained. Advertisers welcome the 18-to-34 focus, which Ostroff described as the "white space within the TV audience." Much of that "white space" is watching less linear TV and craving shows like "Gossip Girl" and "One Tree Hill"--when and wherever viewers want them. As with most networks, that has sparked CW's digital initiatives, building on what MTV Networks once dubbed: "Feed the Need."

Ostroff said some younger viewers suffer from "DADS," a CW-coined acronym for "digital attention deficit syndrome." "If you can't meet their needs, they're moving on quickly," she told an industry audience. And CW's audience covets content on-demand: Shows such as "90210" and "Gossip Girl" generate significant time-shifted DVR viewing. Adult 18-to-49 ratings for "90210" rise 60% when DVR viewing numbers over a seven-day period are added to the total; "Gossip Girl" figures increase 38%.

Speaking of meeting needs, Ostroff reports that executives at Tribune--the station group that has 13 CW affiliates, including in the top-three markets--"have been really happy this year."