Yes, exactly. This is a big factor. If shows like Notorious, Conviction, Star Crossed, Time After Time, ect all bomb and get cancelled after a season then the network will see OUaT as a steady (if low) money maker. It might not make the same amount as big hitters or as much as it once did, but you can’t make any money on a show that’s been cancelled (apart from syndication, which one season only shows aren’t going to get)
Yep, and OUAT makes ABC money in other ways. Look at all the merchandise the show has received over the years. One interesting observation I’ve made is that OUAT is the only current ABC show that gets Blu-Ray releases. Agents of SHIELD did for its 1st 2 Seasons, but Season 3 hasn’t seen a release on either DVD or Blu-Ray. The other shows are DVD only. Their deal with Netflix to stream the previous Seasons is also probably almost as good as a cable syndication deal these days. Not to mention that Disney probably sees OUAT as a Disney marketing vehicle.