I found out with some amazement yesterday that Channel 4 have lost the rights to the third season of cult show Lost. From this sunday, the show with a rather large following will be aired exclusively on Sky One.
Now it would appear that I’m behind the times, as this deal was done way back in October, and it follows the pattern previously set by Sky when they poached 24 from the BBC some years ago.
However you can’t blame Sky - if they are prepared to pay £20m for a show, the US studio are within their rights to get the best deal possible. It’s just a little unfair on the loyal fans that have made it a success and don’t have Sky (which for you overseas readers, costs £30-£40 per month on top of the normal TV viewing costs).
In fact it remains to be seen whether Channel 4 have made a cunning decision. Lost started looking a little long in the tooth towards the end of the second series, and both Jen and I agree that the format may not stand up for another couple of series. However, we’ll be there watching it on sunday night, just to see if we’re right.
Perhaps Channel 4 should move to sign up NBC’s Heroes - the highest rated new show on US TV, and from what I’ve seen of it, shaping up to be an excellent purchase.
