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The changing economics of television programming have turned cable programmers into veritable marauders in the market for off-network fare. More and more cable networks are scooping up rights to shows--mostly hour-long dramas that don't fare particularly well in syndication--that are currently running on the Big Four networks. In the most recent round of negotiations, Lifetime is said by knowledgeable sources to be the front-runner to buy up rights to ER, the most successful primetime series since Cosby. Even mid-sized cable networks such as E! Entertainment TV and fX have entered the after-market by buying rights to high-profile programming such as Melrose Place and NYPD Blue, respectively. These deals, considered in the context of a cable programming environment that increasingly includes first-run shows and specials, are proving that cable is no longer a last-ditch dumping ground to be pitched only when all other options have been exhausted. Still, many off-net deals are the result of corporate relationships such as that between USA Network and its half-parent, MCA, under which the latter sold Major Dad, Murder She Wrote and Miami Vice to USA. Another example is MTM's window for Evening Shade on the Family Channel. But Neil Hoffman, vp/program acquisitions at USA Networks, insists that ownership rarely guarantees a sweetheart deal. "Even though we're a division of [both Paramount and MCA], their distribution divisions have tough budgets to reach on the programs they have," explains Hoffman. "They can't afford to give us a good break even though they may want to. They have to answer to a higher authority." When you realize those higher authorities are Sumner Redstone, the ceo of Viacom, USA's other parent, and Edgar Bronfman, who just bought a controlling stake in MCA, Hoffman's point becomes even clearer. But certainly the economics of the broadcasting business has sent syndicators up the dial to cable. For example, Worldvision's Beverly Hills, 90210 went into the station market with a cash-plus-barter plan...