Game Show Gold Mine

Drew Carey's recent announcement to host The Price Is Right reveals what many stay-at-homers and TV execs always knew: Game shows are hot

by Dan Macsai

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Throughout his 16-year TV tenure, Drew Carey has charmed audiences in a variety of roles. He's improvised sketches on Whose Line Is It Anyway?, bumbled through Cleveland on The Drew Carey Show, and even guest-starred in 2-D on King of the Hill.

This fall, however, the 49-year-old funnyman will tackle his most pressurized task to date: replacing an icon. The CBS network (CBS) recently named Carey the new host of The Price Is Right, the long-running daytime game show made famous by the ever-dapper Bob Barker (who retired in June at the age of 83 after shooting his 6,586th episode).

Thus far, industry response has been mixed: Some critics object to CBS' "unorthodox" choice, while others praise Carey's "everyman charm" and "fresh appeal." But for the network and its new hire, the change of pace could prove highly profitable. Although game shows, including Price, generate less buzz than prime-time dramas, such as CSI, they're "the cheapest type of show to produce," says Steve Sternberg, executive vice-president of Audience Analysis at Magna Global, a Manhattan-based media research firm. Networks, in turn, can soak up more advertising dollars. "If a game show is successful," Sternberg explains, "it's a gold mine."

Targeting Housewives

For five decades, The Price Is Right has remained an industry standard, and it's currently the most-watched program on daytime network television. (This season, the show averaged 5.4 million viewers, up 3% over 2005-06.) Because Price airs five days a week, like a soap opera, it has also developed a loyal fan following. "It's a destination, a habit, a ritual," says Jack Myers, publisher of industry newsletter the Myers Report. "It's there every morning for people, and that's the beauty of it."

And with a target audience of women 25 to 54, Price is also a haven for product placement, says Rich Cronin, former president and chief executive of Sony (SNE) and Liberty Media's (LCAPA) GSN, the Network for Games (formerly Game Show Network). It's all about targeting the "housewives of America," as Cronin puts it. Most viewers guessing along with "Come on down!" contestants are household decision-makers, and big-name companies, such as Procter & Gamble (PG), Kraft Foods (KFT), and Pfizer (PFE), eagerly seek their approval. "Car shopping, grocery shopping, family shopping—the women [watching Price] have tremendous spending power," Cronin says, adding that GSN, which caters to the same demographic, is one of the top-rated midsize cable networks.

CBS declined to provide specific revenue figures, but CBS spokesperson Chris Ender assures that Price is profitable. (During his final years, Barker boasted an annual salary of $10 million.) While producing an hourlong drama such as Law and Order requires well north of $2 million, prime-time game shows typically cost less than $1 million. Funding a daytime franchise like The Price Is Right, Sternberg says, could require as little as $500,000 an episode, giving networks ample profit potential.

Back in Business

Carey's new gig arrives at the cusp of what Cronin calls "the new golden age of game shows." Five years after the demise of ABC's short-lived sensation Who Wants to be a Millionaire, which averaged a jaw-dropping 27.9 million viewers during its 2000 heyday, the once-fizzling game show industry has made a triumphant comeback.

NBC's Deal or No Deal and Fox's Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader? both took off last season, averaging 14.8 million and 12.5 million viewers, respectively. This summer has already spawned two more breakout hits: NBC's The Singing Bee and Fox's similarly themed Don't Forget the Lyrics! And tonight, CBS will roll out the Carey-hosted Power of 10, in which players compete to win $10 million.

The allure of these shows, says Ellen Seiter, author of Television and New Media Audiences, is remarkably simple: We like watching others win, and we love watching them lose. Also, she adds, game shows are universally accessible (read: no background info required), making them "ideal for group or workplace" viewing. "A lot of TV watching isn't about investment," Seiter explains. "It's about having company. It's about welcoming a five-minute distraction during your coffee break."

Carey On

Although many critics, like Myers, say Carey will succeed, CBS is nonetheless taking a gamble entrusting Price to a stand-up comic, says Richard Keller, a blogger at AOL-owned TVSquad.com. After all, Carey isn't as "classy" as his predecessor, says Keller, and his sometimes crude humor could alienate viewers who swear by the squeaky-clean Barker.

If all goes well, however, Carey could be looking at a lifetime gig. Pat Sajak started spinning the Wheel of Fortunein 1981; Alex Trebek has hosted Jeopardy! for 21 years. And despite his reservations about Carey, Keller says the change will be good for Price. "Nobody can replace Bob Barker," he says. "But Drew Carey will undoubtedly draw some interest."

Click through BusinessWeek's slide show for a glimpse of America's most popular game shows.

Macsai is an intern at BusinessWeek.