Spike buys off-net rights for The Shield

Sony Pictures Television has licensed the off-network rights for The Shield to Viacom’s Spike TV cable network, which will begin airing it in March 2006 on a weekly schedule.

The off-network rights to the edgy cop drama created and written by Shawn Ryan went for an unconfirmed mid-six figure fee per episode, according to sources.

Robert Friedman, senior vice president of programming for Spike TV, said: “The Shield has tremendous audience appeal and is one of the most talked about series on cable. We’re excited to offer the show to a whole new audience on Spike TV.”

FX, the cable network for which Sony originally produced the series, completed its fourth season airing in June and has ordered 13 more episodes for a fifth season, which begins shooting in September.