CBS may have decided to dump Flashpoint but ION thinks the show is a keeper. The cable channel has made a deal to renew the cop drama for a fifth season. There’s no word on when they’ll start airing.

CTV had previously renewed Canada’s most-watched drama series for another 13 episodes and those will go into production next month. ION made a deal earlier this year to air all of the episodes that had run on CBS, in addition to 11 extra installments that hadn’t been seen in the United States.

The unaired episodes of Flashpoint began running on ION in October and drew 1.25 million viewers, fewer than the cable channel’s Criminal Minds reruns lead-in. However, according to ION, the December 27th installment attracted a series high with 2.1 million.

Here’s the press release with the details of the renewal:

ION TELEVISION RENEWS ITS ORIGINAL POLICE DRAMA “FLASHPOINT” FOR SEASON FIVE

After Successful Launch, ION Television Orders 13 More Original Episodes for 2012

NEW YORK, January 3, 2012 – ION Television announced today it is renewing its original police drama “Flashpoint” for a fifth season. The network is picking up 13 more episodes, set to begin shooting in February 2012. The announcement was made today by Brandon Burgess, CEO, ION Media Networks.

“Flashpoint” joined ION’s primetime schedule in October 2011 after the network acquired all episodes from seasons 1-3 along with 11 season four original episodes. The production of season five contributes to ION Television’s original programming goals for 2012 and beyond. Since its debut on ION, “Flashpoint” recorded its highest-telecast ever among the network’s key demos on December 27, including households (1.5 million), A25-54 (869,000), W25-54 (566,000) and among total viewers (2.1 million).

“Flashpoint’s’ solid performance season-to-date shows that a growing number of fans enjoy the series on ION Television,” says Burgess. “We welcome back this exciting dramatic series and its cast to ION Television for another season in 2012.”

“We’re thrilled to be continuing our relationship with ION,” says Anne Marie La Traverse and Bill Mustos, executive producers of ‘Flashpoint’. “We are delighted with how ‘Flashpoint’ continues to resonate with fans in the U.S. and we look forward to creating another season of compelling and engaging episodes for them to enjoy.”

“Flashpoint,” a nail-biting cop drama, is an emotional journey into the tough, risk-filled lives of a group of police in the Strategic Response Unit. Members of a highly-skilled tactical team, they’re trained in negotiating, profiling and getting inside the subject’s head to understand the emotional breaking point (the “flashpoint”) that triggered the crisis. The series stars an impressive list of talent, including Hugh Dillon (“Durham County”) as Ed Lane, team leader and lead sniper; Enrico Colantoni (“Veronica Mars”) as Gregory Parker, team sergeant and head negotiator; Amy Jo Johnson (“Felicity”) as Julianna “Jules” Callaghan, profiler and secondary negotiator; David Paetkau (“Whistler”) as Sam Braddock, the young, hot-shot sniper; Sergio Di Zio (“Just Buried”) as Mike “Spike” Scarlatti, bomb tech and communications; and Clé Bennett (“The Line”) as Rafik “Raf” Rousseau, Team One’s newest diamond-in-the-rough recruit.

“Flashpoint” is produced by Pink Sky Entertainment and Avamar Entertainment in association with CTV and ION Television. Anne Marie La Traverse and Bill Mustos serve as executive producers, and co-creators Mark Ellis and Stephanie Morgenstern helm the writing department. David Frazee is the Series Consultant.

Source: Nielsen Media Research. Live+SD. Flashpoint TUE 10P telecasts 10/18/11 – 12/28/11.

About ION Television
ION Television is a leading U.S. general entertainment network, combining high-quality programming and dependable broadcast distribution with an attitude of innovation and growth normally associated with a cable channel. Its “Positively Entertaining” network brand positioning features a formula of proven series, an expansive catalog of blockbuster movies and a commitment to introduce new original programming. Since its recent launch in 2008, ION’s reach has grown to 99 million households and has become one of the top-15 TV rated U.S. networks in record time. For more information, visit www.iontelevision.com.

What do you think? Have you been watching Flashpoint on ION? Are you glad to hear it’s been renewed?

Image courtesy CTV.