The ladies of Wisteria Lane are finally available to Canadians online through a deal between ABC and CTV. (Associated Press)

Big-time U.S. television programs are finally becoming available to Canadians online, starting with a deal announced by CTV and ABC.

The two networks announced on Friday that full streamed episodes of ABC series Desperate Housewives, Lost and Grey's Anatomy would be available for viewing on CTV's website for 28 days after their initial broadcast. The shows will be supported by advertising.

Other less popular series are already available in a number of ways.

CTV has been streaming domestically produced shows such as Corner Gas and Degrassi: TNG, and some U.S. programs, including The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and Gossip Girl, for some time now, but the ABC shows are the first in the top 20-rated list.

Some of those shows are also available for download from iTunes, although Apple's online store also has a dearth of highly rated programs. Apple sells episodes of shows including South Park and Pimp My Ride for $1.99 each.

The holdup is primarily because of rights disputes between Canadian and U.S. networks. Canadian networks contend that since they buy broadcast rights of the shows for Canada, their U.S. counterparts should not be allowed to stream or sell them online. That has resulted in the U.S. networks blocking Canadians from accessing streamed video on their websites.

Sponsors helped sell deal

CTV said a key to the deal was getting two sponsors, Duracell and Volkswagen, to sign on and provide the finances needed to purchase the digital rights from ABC. CTV has spent the past few years building an online audience, which is now allowing it to attract advertising attention.

"We've built the audience, which has brought the advertisers to the table and given us the opportunity to invest in these shows ... Advertisers want to see that the audiences are there to make sure that their money is well invested," Stephan Argent, vice-president of digital media for CTV, told the Globe and Mail.

ABC said it is looking at further agreements to make its shows available in Canada.

Some of the network's other big prime-time shows are Ugly Betty and The Bachelor, which air on Citytv, and Boston Legal, which airs on Global.