Jay Leno staying on NBC in prime-time

[December 09, 2008]  NEW YORK (AP) -- Jay Leno is staying at NBC, and he's moving to prime time.

The network announced on the "Today" show Tuesday that Leno will host a show on weeknights at 10 p.m. Eastern, after he leaves the "Tonight" show. The network had announced earlier that Conan O'Brien would move to the "Tonight" show and succeed Leno.

The deal not only prevents Leno from moving to another network and competing with O'Brien, it also has the potential to be a big cost savings for NBC.

Dramas at 10 p.m. Eastern used to be a mainstay of network schedules, but they have been fading -- particularly on NBC. One reason is digital video recorders; more people are watching shows they taped earlier than the live 10 p.m. shows.

The deal was first reported Tuesday in The New York Times.

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NBC is owned by General Electric Co.

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On the Net:

http://www.nbc.com/

[Associated Press]

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