Crossing Jordan heading to A&E in Fall 2004

[Pavan]

A&E, which has suffered alarming declines in ratings over the past year or so, has bought exclusive rerun rights to the NBC mystery drama "Crossing Jordan" for $800,000 an episode.

That's more money than A&E has ever paid for any other off-network series.

In exchange for the high license fee, NBC Enterprises, which owns "Jordan," will allow A&E to get the reruns a year earlier than the usual four-year waiting period: the network will be able to start scheduling the reruns five times a week in September 2004.

A&E has also bought out the weekend-syndication window that many distributors carve out for hourlong reruns. These windows force a cable network to share the series with TV stations in markets throughout the country. NBC Enterprises will not have that option with "Jordan," giving A&E full exclusivity.

After a stellar rookie season in 2001-02, "Jordan" has fallen off in its sophomore year, at least in part because CBS scheduled "CSI Miami," an instant hit, directly opposite it Mondays at 10.

Some industry observers predict that NBC will move "Jordan" out of the time period before the season is out. Others say NBC will stick with the Monday slot in the expectation that "Jordan" will pick up new viewers when "ABC Monday Night Football," another Monday bellwether, ends its season next month.