It seems like hardly a week goes by without another reality TV production company being snatched up in an eight- or nine-figure deal by one of the larger television firms.

But is the rush for a piece of the unscripted pie “one giant ponzi schene?”

That’s the opinion of one unnamed network exec who spoke to The Hollywood Reporter this week about the wave of acquisitions hitting the genre.

What’s driving the trend? A hunger for premium reality content in a television landscape littered with players.

But in reality, the mag quotes that same exec as saying ““They’re buying really expensive employment agreements and cash flow.”

And because reality shows are never a surefire hit, companies can’t be certain that the outfit they’re purchasing has a steady supply of ratings winners on deck.

Faced with this uncertainty, some networks are moving to in-house production to better control future programming.

Read More: The Hollywood Reporter

Brief Take: Premium unscripted content remains a huge ratings driver for cable networks. But television conglomerates may be in the midst of a huge M&A boom that will prove to be a bust for the bottom line in the end.

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