From the Writers Guild of Canada:
Screenwriters and the U.S. Presale
In 2008, Flashpoint became the first Canadian-produced series to successfully crack U.S. Prime Time in a generation. Canadian producers and broadcasters welcomed the higher budgets and greater exposure, and a flood of series followed: Rookie Blue, The Bridge, Combat Hospital, Saving Hope, The Listener – to name just a few. But five years later, the report card is mixed. Series with ‘hit’ Canadian numbers have been canceled when they lost their U.S. partner. Canadian produced shows have mostly been shunted to the summer – often without the promised fanfare and promotional push. And there’s always the issue of creative control. Has the U.S. Presale model fallen short of the hype? Read more.
It might also be interesting to hear about this from the Canadian network development point of view. It’s difficult, of course, for the shows to “serve two masters,” as they say, but if the Canadian network becomes the junior master that would also have an effect.
Are Canadian networks developing their own development personel, so to speak.