One by one, as streaming providers develop in recognition, outdated standbys of the TV panorama are throwing in the towel.

The variety of cleaning soap operas, a decades-old linchpin of daytime tv, has fallen to a small handful. Hit daytime discuss exhibits — as soon as hosted by the likes of Phil Donahue, Oprah Winfrey and Ellen DeGeneres — have gotten rarer by the yr. Late-night exhibits are dwindling.

But one golden oldie remains to be standing sturdy: recreation exhibits.

ABC’s lineup this fall is populated by lots of them. On CBS, one of many longest-running exhibits, “The Price Is Right,” is getting a brand new studio. And rankings for “Jeopardy!” and “Wheel of Fortune,” tops within the class, are among the many most-watched packages in tv — no less than exterior of stay sports activities. Both entice round 9 million viewers on a typical night time, and generate tens of hundreds of thousands of {dollars} in revenue every year.

This week, Sony, the studio behind each “Jeopardy!” and “Wheel of Fortune,” gave the style an emphatic vote of confidence. The firm signed Ryan Seacrest, considered one of tv’s most recognizable personalities, to a long-term deal to exchange Pat Sajak as the subsequent host of “Wheel of Fortune.”

The viewers for Sony’s two exhibits is, within the phrases of 1 govt at a rival studio, “shockingly big.” Adam Nedeff, a researcher on the National Archives of Game Show History on the Strong National Museum of Play, mentioned “Wheel of Fortune” “has survived even beyond the wildest expectations of success.”

“‘Wheel of Fortune’ remains this giant,” mentioned Mr. Nedeff, who’s the writer of “Game Shows FAQ,” a historical past of the format. “As the TV business changes, and streaming takes over the world, ‘Wheel’ is one of the things that endures on the old traditional model of TV.”

Game exhibits supply two massive advantages for executives: They are one of many least costly packages to create, partially as a result of many episodes will be filmed in a brief interval. And they’re enticing to the most important demographic group that also consumes conventional tv — individuals 60 and older.

The median “Wheel of Fortune” viewer is within the oldest age bracket that Nielsen tracks: “65+.” (The median ages of lots of the higher-rated leisure exhibits in prime time in the newest tv season — “Survivor” (62.1), “Abbott Elementary” (60.2), “The Voice” (64.8) — are usually not far behind.)

Among adults underneath 50, the demographic that almost all pursuits advertisers, the 2 recreation exhibits draw related rankings: “Jeopardy!” averages 1.1 million viewers in that bracket and “Wheel of Fortune” a million.

Game exhibits have been round because the earliest days of tv. From the quiz exhibits of the Nineteen Fifties to the relationship exhibits of the Nineteen Sixties and Seventies, recreation exhibits have been as a lot a convention for American tv as soccer on Sunday afternoons.

The greatest success tales today are thoroughbreds which have endured a long time. “Family Feud,” which started in 1976 and is presently hosted by Steve Harvey, attracts almost eight million viewers per episode, one of many highest viewership totals in all of syndicated tv, based on Nielsen. CBS introduced that “The Price Is Right,” hosted by Drew Carey since 2007, will transfer right into a “state-of-the-art facility” in Glendale, Calif., for the present’s 52nd season this yr.

Beginning in September, ABC’s lineup will function an hourlong version of “Celebrity Jeopardy!” on Tuesday nights and a full Thursday prime-time lineup of “Celebrity Wheel of Fortune,” “Press Your Luck” and “The $100,000 Pyramid.”

Many of the present community prime-time recreation exhibits are usually not precisely rankings blockbusters. But their comparatively small budgets make them simple for community executives to swallow, particularly in contrast with the ballooning manufacturing prices of scripted tv.

Sony’s new cope with Mr. Seacrest means that the corporate plans for “Wheel of Fortune” to proceed lengthy into the long run. The deal is anticipated to final by way of the early 2030s, an individual who’s aware of it mentioned.

Selecting Mr. Seacrest, nevertheless, just isn’t with out danger. When Merv Griffin created “Wheel of Fortune” in 1975 as tv’s reply to hangman, it spent its early years on rankings life assist. It wasn’t till Mr. Sajak and Vanna White, his co-host, joined within the early Eighties that the present took off. By the mid-Eighties, it was drawing greater than 40 million viewers an evening.

Whether viewers tune out as a result of Mr. Sajak isn’t on the stage is an open query. He and Ms. White each have above-average favorable views amongst viewers, based on Q Score, the analysis agency that measures the likability of celebrities. Mr. Seacrest, nevertheless, is under common, based on Q Score, suggesting he could also be polarizing to a section of the viewers.

Additionally, Ms. White’s future with the present is unsure. She is underneath contract for an additional yr and is in negotiations for a brand new deal. Puck reported final week that Ms. White made considerably much less cash than Mr. Sajak and had not gotten a increase in almost twenty years. Many “Wheel of Fortune” followers on social media had expressed hope that she may substitute Mr. Sajak — if she departs, will droves of viewers depart along with her?

Mr. Seacrest, although, has repeatedly demonstrated a capability to convey a gentle hand to longtime franchises. He efficiently took over Dick Clark’s long-running New Year’s Eve present. He assumed a seat that after belonged to Regis Philbin — in addition to Michael Strahan — on “Live,” the show he co-hosted for six years with Kelly Ripa. And in 2004 he took over the radio present as soon as hosted by Casey Kasem.

Mr. Seacrest’s fast appointment — Mr. Sajak mentioned solely two weeks in the past that he would depart “Wheel of Fortune” in 2024 — is also a method for Sony executives to keep away from the succession disaster that enveloped “Jeopardy!” two years in the past. In 2021, Sony executives rapidly pushed out Alek Trebek’s successor, Mike Richards, amid a public uproar after sexist and offensive feedback Mr. Richards had made surfaced on-line. Sony ultimately named Ken Jennings and Mayim Bialik as Mr. Trebek’s everlasting successors.

Mr. Nedeff, the sport present historian, mentioned that so long as Mr. Seacrest acknowledged who the true star was, he must be profitable.

“The big driver for the show is the game,” he mentioned. “The game is the star of the show.”

Brooks Barnes and Benjamin Mullin contributed reporting.