Quick FYI for Canadian Viewers - Supergirl S1 through 4 syndication will be shown on Family Channel starting in September.

Good for the show. It's finally hit enough episodes to be eligible for syndication, which is where some bigger money lies, both for Warner and for stars, who may have additional financial incentives in their contract once they hit that number. I hope some sort of network gets it, here, just for that reason. Though, with broadcast TV declining, I'm curious if the syndication-level episode count impacts the profitability of streaming deals, as well. Like, I wonder if there is a similar financial boon for streaming rights once that episode count is achieved.

@kdogg87,

Yup! This is where the greed game kicks in.

It's good for the stars because it pads their long-term financial security and it is also good for the studio because they've now recouped their costs and are looking at clearer profit margins and a bigger return on investment. Also, the longer they can keep the series going, the more they stand to make. More product = more to sell.

As for streaming and on-demand services, I'm sure there is a good chunk of change involved here, more so for the studio than the stars, but that's another kettle of fish.

Once a / the U.S. syndication deal is reached, the numbers will become more inflated because the market is much larger. If they factor in International rights (which they do), it's just more gravy. At this point viewership numbers don't matter because they've reached their thresholds.

@Romulus

Yeah, i just get curious. Arrow, The Flash, and Supergirl have all hit that episode count, but the only one airing in syndication, in the U.S., is Arrow, at absurd times of day (like 3am).

But I have to believe that's a symptom of audiences moving more to streaming services.

@Romulus

Yeah, i just get curious. Arrow, The Flash, and Supergirl have all hit that episode count, but the only one airing in syndication, in the U.S., is Arrow, at absurd times of day (like 3am).

But I have to believe that's a symptom of audiences moving more to streaming services.

Streaming is the new syndication.

@kdogg87 and @LibertyPrime,

Both very true.

It could also be that the CW's shows aren't as popular with mainstream audiences are we're led to believe. Viewing numbers can be very easily manipulated to suit various purposes. Since the CW is a niche network, it appeals to a limited viewing market.

In Canada, Supergirl - when the show started, ran on both CBS (US feed) and Global (Canadian equivalent), The Flash, Arrow and LOT were shown on the CW in the US and on CTV2 here (widely available through all cable packages).

Since Supergirl S2, it switched over to SHOWCASE (a niche channel) here in Canada, and both Arrow and LOT have since been shown on SPACE (CDN equivalent of Syfy), the Flash has only been on the CW (which is only available through select cable packages here). Batwoman will be shown both on the CW and SHOWCASE when it premieres. Black Lightning has never been shown on a Canadian equivalent channel.

So, what this indicates to me, is that since streaming is the new syndication medium of choice, traditional OTA/Digital broadcasting will be relegated to the infomercial hours of the day (between 1 am and 6 am) and will simply fill dead air time. In Canada, although the Family Channel is a nice location, it's essentially a niche cable package offering that targets a particular demographic age group. And, it's also possible that the Family Channel may only do the re-runs for a limited engagement to determine if it should remain in its lineup.

Ultimately, the show's re-runs might wind up in the 1 am to 6 am infomercial slot competing against the slap-chop guy, George Foreman grills, the Time-Life library offerings, and the Stair Lift Master. Quite the competition, I see.