|#' (| :] ]#* { I actually get this channel but not GSN }}{ }Outdoor Life Network going wild for 'Survivor'By Kimberly Speight
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Outdoor Life Network has snapped up cable rerun rights to "Survivor," sources said.
The cable network is said to have paid distributor King World about $60,000-$70,000 per episode for CBS' hit reality competition show.
The deal is said to include the first 10 "Survivor" installments, which have already aired, with an option for the next two installments. Outdoor Life, which is owned by Comcast Corp., is expected to announce the deal Wednesday.
Separately, King World also is in talks with GSN (formerly Game Show Network) for the cable network to acquire rights to another hit CBS reality competition show, "The Amazing Race," sources said.
It remains to be seen how reality shows perform in syndication. FX Network bought "Fear Factor" from NBC Universal Domestic Television Distribution last year for an estimated $250,000 per episode.
But "Survivor" and many other reality shows are more serialized in nature, unlike "Fear Factor's" self-contained episodes, a feature that tends to be more attractive to buyers because the episodes can air out of sequence in syndication.
GSN has been an active buyer of reality shows, including such acquisitions as "Average Joe" and "The Mole," both of which reportedly sold for less than $20,000 per episode.
Reuters/Hollywood Reporter
© Reuters 2005. All Rights Reserved.
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=televisionNews&storyID=8662381