Every summer the entertainment presidents of the broadcast networks meet the press to tout their fall schedules and occasionally run down the competition.

But this past July in Beverly Hills, Calif., ABC Entertainment president Stephen McPherson sounded a rare note of unity.

"I hope the message that you get from all of us competitors across the board is that we're rooting for broadcast television," Mr. McPherson told the TV critics summer media tour.

During last winter's three-month writers strike prime-time TV devolved into a sea of reruns and replacement shows, causing network ratings to decline. Viewers were not watching less TV, just less broadcast network TV. And Hollywood movers and shakers started to grow even more nervous than usual about trying new ideas.

"This fall it's important for all the networks to get the viewers back," Mr. McPherson said, "get them excited about the programs, get them back into the characters and story lines and dynamics that they love."

Indeed, some viewers may be eager to have old favorites back this week as the 2008-09 TV season officially begins. But so far, new series have received a mixed response from viewers.

Many viewers who tuned in to see The CW's "90210" reboot for a dose of '90s nostalgia didn't stick around. More than 30 percent of them failed to return to see the second episode, but the good news was all those viewers came back for week three.

Fox's highly-promoted "Fringe" had OK-but-not-great premiere ratings and then grew by 34 percent in its second week, an uptick attributable to having the season premiere of "House" as a lead-in for its second episode.

Perhaps viewing patterns will stabilize once old favorites are back and viewers return to the habit of spending 8-11 p.m. parked on the sofa in the glow of the electronic hearth. Or not.

This much is certain: Viewers can expect to see ...

• More remakes: In addition to "90210" (8 p.m. Tuesday, WPCW), CBS is remaking an Israeli series, "The Ex-List" (9 p.m. Oct. 3, KDKA), and My Network TV brings back the Masked Magician for "Magic's Biggest Secrets Revealed" (9 p.m. Monday, Oct. 6, WPMY).

NBC has the most remakes of familiar franchises, including a new "Knight Rider" (8 p.m. Wednesday), a Jekyll & Hyde story ("My Own Worst Enemy," 10 p.m. Monday, Oct. 13), a re-telling of Robinson Crusoe (8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 17) and "Kath & Kim" (9:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 9), a remake of an Australian sitcom.

"It's a page from the movie industry," said NBC Entertainment co-chairman Ben Silverman. "Last summer you saw every single movie was derivative. It was either a theme park ride with 'Pirates of the Caribbean,' a toy with 'Transformers,' a comic book with 'Spider-Man.' "

"There's something to the pre-sold awareness of those brands that really helps you generate momentum and draw in people who may not be willing to take a risk on something new."

• More rich people: In addition to "90210," The CW also has season two of "Gossip Girl" (8 p.m. Monday, WPCW) and "Privileged" (9 p.m. Tuesday, WPCW), the story of an aspiring writer who also tutors two wealthy, spoiled teens living in a ritzy Florida enclave.

Despite the current economic crises facing many Americans, CW Entertainment President Dawn Ostroff said stories of the rich are always in style, pointing to "Dallas," which was launched in 1978, and "Dynasty" in 1981 in the middle of the Iran oil shock.

"A lot of times when the country goes through times like these where we're in what is perceived by many people as a recession, having entertainment be escapist entertainment is what our viewers look for," Ms. Ostroff said.

• More product placement: NBC aired a "Knight Rider" TV movie earlier this year that some saw as a two-hour advertisement for the Ford Mustang Shelby GT500KR, which landed the role of KITT, the talking car. That movie set the stage for a new series that premieres at 8 p.m. Wednesday. The movie included a bevy of commercials that featured both the car and the movie's lead actor, Justin Bruening.

"The star of the show is the car, so that was a case where it felt like low-hanging fruit to bring in an automotive partner on a certain level, because you know they're going to be part of that show no matter how you look at it," said Mr. Silverman of NBC. He acknowledged there may have been too much overlap between the "Knight Rider" movie and the commercials that aired with it, but he's still eager to integrate more advertisers into NBC shows.

"There's no question that the reason we're building these platforms and engaging the advertisers is just so that we can fund and finance the highest level of content we can."

For The CW, which targets women, 18 to 34, product placement isn't a distraction for young viewers, according to Ms. Ostroff.

"There are so many different kinds of product placement that you can do these days that's just organic to their lifestyle," she said.

Partnering with advertisers isn't limited to product integration. NBC struck a partnership deal with satellite service DIRECTV to produce the third season of "Friday Night Lights." The season will launch exclusively on DIRECTV's Channel 101 on Oct. 1; the episodes won't air on NBC until February.

"DIRECTV was so interested in this because it gave them the chance to find new subscribers," said NBC Entertainment co-chairman Marc Graboff, explaining the deal. "We did the analyses of what the erosion would be on the NBC viewers and people who had already seen it on DIRECTV ... and based on all those projections, it makes sense for us to do it.

"It's an experiment," Mr. Graboff continued. "It just shows you how we're trying to find new business models to keep shows we love alive that aren't delivering the kind of audiences that a broadcast network needs in order to keep shows like that on the air."

• Smarter use of on-screen promos: Some viewers have expressed exasperation over animated promotions for other shows that pop up at the bottom of the screen, distracting from the program currently on the air.

NBC's Silverman said he was inspired by FX's promos for "Damages."

"If you watch, as I do, a lot of cable sports and cable news, those screens are constantly moving," he said, but he also acknowledged that the animated promos need to be used selectively. "You probably don't do it during a game show. You probably don't want to do it during a horror hour. We need to find the rhythm of that, and we're experimenting and evolving. ... Obviously, we need to modify it to ensure that we don't turn off any of the audience."

• More new shows at midseason: In addition to the return of ABC's "Lost" and Fox's "24" early next year, the broadcast networks have a raft of new programs in development for mid-season.

Because of the writers' strike, shows that would have been developed for this fall were delayed. Most networks are launching fewer series than usual this week, saving many programs as mid-season replacements that will roll out between November and April.

• Another strike? Lest viewers forget, there's still the potential, unlikely though it appears to be, that the Screen Actors Guild could go on strike. SAG and producers have yet to agree on terms for a new contract.

But there's infighting among factions within SAG and the studios are continuing to mount film and TV production as if a contract was in place. Conventional wisdom in Hollywood says there won't be another work stoppage, but until a deal is brokered, it remains a possibility. A strike would ensure the kind of drama no one in the entertainment business is eager to repeat.