It's 10 p.m., and the networks don't know where their viewers are.
For decades, the late-evening time slot was one of the prime spots for top network shows, from '70s cop dramas like "Starsky and Hutch" to '80s-era soaps such as "Dynasty" and right through more recent hits like "ER" and "Law & Order."
But now the bottom is falling out of ratings for that time slot -- and one of the prime culprits is the DVR.
Broadcasters have had trouble coaxing audiences back to all of their shows since the three-month writers strike ended last season, but nowhere have the troubles been more acute this fall than at 10 p.m., with disappointing ratings for such dramas as ABC's "Dirty Sexy Money" and "Life on Mars," CBS' "Without a Trace" and NBC's "Lipstick Jungle" and the new Christian Slater caper, "My Own Worst Enemy."
For a time period that used to be a drama showcase, this is quite a comedown. It's a problem of great concern to broadcasters and advertisers alike, because the 10 p.m. shows play a key role in funneling viewers to local newscasts -- where stations make most of their money -- and lucrative late-night programming. Viewers are likely to see an impact too, because programmers will think twice before putting high-cost dramas in a slot where they don't perform.
In recent years many of the big matchups, such as "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" vs. "Grey's Anatomy," have shifted to earlier in the evening. "It's come back to 9 o'clock now," said Kelly Kahl, senior executive vice president for CBS prime time, No. 1 in the ratings. "Ten o'clock used to be the great faceoff hour."
Executives offer several theories to explain the viewer flight from 10 p.m. The most intriguing involves a device whose impact on viewing wasn't even officially measured until a couple of years ago: the DVR.
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Playing catch-up
Research shows that viewers with DVRs tend to watch more TV than people without the devices and also that they use them more as the evening progresses. So, the thinking goes, by the time 10 p.m. rolls around, many DVR users are catching up on shows they recorded earlier in the evening and skipping altogether the dramas that are scheduled by the networks for that hour.
If someone is busy watching a time-shifted episode of, say, "Ugly Betty" or "The Office," he or she may not bother to watch ABC's new cop drama "Life on Mars," either live or on delay.
