By Joe Flint 

When television executives unveiled their fall schedules to advertisers earlier this month, they used words such as "noisy" (as in very buzzy) and "passionate" to describe why they chose their new shows.

One word they didn't use was "ownership," although that appears to have been just as important in the decision process.

Walt Disney Co.'s ABC will own or have a stake in almost 70% of its coming schedule, compared with 59% now and 48% in 2010. And it's a similar story at Fox, where 68% of the network's 2015-2016 lineup is produced or co-produced by sister companies at its parent, 21st Century Fox, up from 52% the previous year.

CBS Corp. and Comcast Corp.'s NBC also try to own as much of their schedule as possible. CBS has ownership interests in 68% of its 2015-16 lineup, while NBC has 52%.

Owning shows is a priority because hits can generate revenue long after they have gone off the air by making money off reruns in the U.S. and internationally. Earlier this year, Hulu paid about $700,000 per episode for reruns of "Seinfeld." CBS Chief Executive Leslie Moonves has often bragged that the company still makes millions annually from "I Love Lucy, " which went off the air more than five decades ago.

With ownership also comes the ability to decide how a show will be exploited on other platforms such as video-on-demand and streaming services, all of which are increasingly important in capturing viewers and revenue.

The networks' push to own more shows is bad news for independent producers including Time Warner Inc.'s Warner Bros. and Sony Corp.'s Sony Pictures Television. Warner Bros. did land two of the most highly anticipated new shows for next season--"Supergirl" for CBS and "Blindspot" for NBC--but less than half of the studio's 13 pilots were ordered for the coming season.

When a network doesn't own a show, its only revenue comes from commercials, and much of that cash typically ends up going toward the show's license fee.

"You can't just rely on one revenue stream," said Dana Walden, co-chairman of the Fox Television Group.

To boost the number of Fox-made shows on its network, 21st Century Fox Inc. last summer combined the network with its Twentieth Century Fox Television production unit after years of operating as separate entities. (The Wall Street Journal and 21st Century Fox were part of the same company until mid-2013.)

"Having the companies aligned and under the same management allow us to have greater communication," said Ms. Walden.

Disney Chairman and CEO Robert Iger told analysts last year that it is paramount that ABC "own a substantial amount" of its prime-time programming.

"The long game is the studio," said Paul Lee, president of ABC Entertainment Group. "We at the Walt Disney Co. own and make the most extraordinary storytelling and we have to make it a priority."

Veteran television executive Jordan Levin added, "It's harder to justify the network business without having a greater degree of program ownership." The run on a network is more about building awareness for shows, which are increasingly making money from reruns, he said.

Studios attached to networks still produce shows for rival broadcasters. Disney has co-productions on Fox and CBS, for instance, while Twentieth Century Fox has a show on CBS. But such arrangements aren't as frequent as they once were.

There is growing concern among much of the creative community that the networks are letting finances and not quality be the deciding factor when choosing shows.

"The more you buy from yourself, the more you limit the potential of buying the best shows," said BTIG analyst Rich Greenfield.

ABC's Mr. Lee acknowledged that in case of a tie, the network will go with its own show. Still, he doesn't see a day where ABC is nothing but Disney-made shows. "I don't envision a world where that happens."

Ms. Walden played down the idea that Fox favored its own shows. "We took pitches from every studio. ...The best writers for us were mostly writers in overall deals at our studio."

The desire for ownership sometimes takes a back seat if a network's bigger priority is strengthening its schedule. NBC, coming off a year with no new hits, was more willing to do more business with outside suppliers. And CBS, eager to snare shows it hopes will lure younger viewers, doesn't have a stake in either Warner Bros.' "Supergirl" or "Life in Pieces," a family comedy from Twentieth Century Fox Television.

Gavin Polone, a veteran independent producer ("Gilmore Girls," "Curb Your Enthusiasm") and former agent, said the consequence of networks owning the bulk of their content is that independent production companies as well as the audience "are often forsaken in favor of deals that are beneficial to the media monoliths."

Warner Bros., which spends heavily on top producers such as Chuck Lorre ("The Big Bang Theory") and J.J. Abrams ("Person of Interest"), is reluctant to part with any ownership in return for a slot on a network. It is a strategy that has mostly paid off as the studio still has the most programs on broadcast TV with 29 heading into next season. This pilot season though, ABC passed on three Warner Bros. shows in favor of shows in which it had ownership.

Sony has shown a greater willingness to share ownership of its shows. This pilot season, it partnered with NBC on the drama "Game of Silence" and ABC Studios on the comedy "Dr. Ken." Sony Pictures Television and Warner Bros. declined to comment.

BTIG's Mr. Greenfield said the just-concluded pilot season should serve as a wake-up call to independent production companies. "The question these companies should be asking is why they aren't developing a direct-to-consumer business model," he said.

Write to Joe Flint at joe.flint@wsj.com

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