AMERICAN IDOL - THE $42-MILLION-A-WEEK SHOW

THE $42-MILLION-A-WEEK SHOW

With ads each costing $623,000 per 30 seconds, Fox's American Idol brings in about $7 million for each 30-minute segment, or $42 million on an average week when it airs a two-hour performance show and a one-hour results show, according to Forbes. The magazine, which cited estimates of commercial revenue by TNS Media Intelligence, noted that Fox's 24 was network television's second most lucrative show, bringing in $3.7 million for a 30-second spot and $366,000 per half-hour segment. CBS, the overall ratings leader only had two shows in Forbes 's top ten list, and CSI Crime Scene Investigation , its highest-rated program, was not one of them. (It came in at No. 11.) ABC, however, landed five shows in the top ten, the most of any network. NBC, which often fails to place a single show in the top 20, won one spot in the top ten with H eroes , which came in at No. 8 ahead of the ninth- and tenth-ranked shows which take in slightly more total revenue, presumably because it has a smaller audience and therefore has a higher cost-per-thousand pricetag.

The top ten moneymakers on network television according to Forbes magazine, listed by rank, revenue per 30 minutes, and average cost per 30-second spot 1. American Idol (Fox), $7 million, $623,000; 24 (Fox), $3.7 million, $366,000; 3. Desperate Housewives (ABC), $2.9 million, $251,000; 4. Grey's Anatomy (ABC), $2.7 million, $224,000; 5. Two and a Half Men (CBS), $2.6 million, $227,000; 6. Dancing With the Stars Results Show (ABC), $2.5 million, $205,000; 7. Dancing With the Stars Performance Show (ABC), $2.4 million, $195,000; 8. Heroes (NBC), $2.1 million, $194,000; 9. Brothers & Sisters (ABC), $2.1 million; $195,000; 10. Survivor Gabon $2.1 million, $204,000.

10/04/2009