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Friday television will look different this fall

In recent years, Fridays have become a wasteland for network TV, populated largely with low-cost, low-impact reality series and newsmagazines. Only CBS has regularly programmed original dramas, and viewers have embraced shows such as “Ghost Whisperer” and “Numb3rs.”

Friday this fall looks different. The major networks’ schedules, announced last week, include 10 scripted series. Fox, ABC and NBC, which combined aired one last year, have six.

Several are declining series relocating from other nights, such as ABC’s “Ugly Betty,” NBC’s “Law & Order” and “Southland,” and CBS’ “Medium,” just canceled by NBC. Fox will try a new comedy, “Brothers,” to pair with low-rated “’Til Death” and “Dollhouse,” and CW is moving “Smallville” (in its ninth season) to make room for the new series “Vampire Diaries” on Thursdays.

It’s not that people stopped watching TV on Fridays: An average of 105 million people did last fall, a number that has been surprisingly stable over a couple of decades. (Yet it’s still the week’s second-lowest turnout, and it’s 20 million fewer than watched on top-rated Sundays.)

In past years, “The X-Files,” “CSI,” “Providence,” “Full House” and “Dallas” thrived on Friday nights.

But now, “the audience is incredibly fragmented over every alternative available,” from DVD to basic cable, says ABC’s prime-time research chief, Larry Hyams.

DVRs are used less frequently on Fridays, according to Nielsen, and viewership is largely driven by kids, seniors and sci-fi fans.

“It’s really wide open from the network perspective,” Hyams says. “There’s no dominant program anywhere on Friday night, so the networks look at this as an opportunity to recapture viewing on a night where viewers are searching for something to watch.”

With ratings declining throughout the week, the bar for success is simply lower: The 10 million fans of Friday’s top-rated show, “Ghost Whisperer,” wouldn’t be shabby on any night.

But others still see Friday as a dumping ground. It’s just now being used for scripted series, which fetch higher ad rates than “Howie Do It” or “Don’t Forget the Lyrics.”

“Except for CBS, Friday has become Death Valley for the broadcast networks,” says Steve Sternberg of ad firm Magna Global USA. “It’s where they place shows right before they get canceled. On the other hand, they also know that if CBS can succeed here, one of their shows might pop. But I think they’d really see that as gravy.”