Who is Oprah's heir apparent in daytime?

NEW YORK — Will it be Ellen DeGeneres, Dr. Phil or Dr. Oz? Maybe none of the above. The announced shutdown of "The Oprah Winfrey Show" in two years creates room for a new queen (or king) of daytime television.

Until that day when Winfrey's 7 million or so daily viewers start looking for something else to do, preparing to claim that audience will be one of the biggest competitions in television.

"You haven't had a time period like this open up in 25 years," said Larry Gerbrandt, an analyst for the firm Media Valuation Partners in Los Angeles. "It really gives the players a chance to reshuffle the deck."

Nowhere now in daytime television is there a show with the breadth of Winfrey's, which can feature an interview with singer Whitney Houston about her drug use one day, or Sarah Palin about a contentious campaign the next. She can do a serious hour about domestic abuse, bring Tom Cruise on to jump on her sofa, host a party with the Black Eyed Peas or give away cars to everyone in her audience.

The two shows closest to Winfrey's in the ratings are hosted by her proteges, Dr. Phil and Dr. Oz. Yet "Dr. Phil" has been around a while and the ratings indicate viewers are starting to tire of his form of tough love.

"Dr. Oz" was a breakout hit as a newcomer this fall, but its appeal as a health-oriented show is limited. Winfrey only had him as an occasional guest, and there are questions about how many people want to see him every day.

Both, however, will have restrictions removed from their contracts that prevented their shows from airing at 4 p.m. ET each day — Winfrey's preferred time slot and generally considered the key time in daytime TV because there are more people available to watch, said Bill Carroll, an expert in the syndication market for Katz Television.

Winfrey has a financial stake in both shows, so if their audiences increase because she leaves, guess who benefits?

Strictly from a business standpoint, then, it seems odd that Winfrey has given signals that appear to be anointing DeGeneres as her chosen successor at the top of the heap. They've traded appearances on each other's shows recently and guess who's posing next to Winfrey on the latest cover of "O, The Magazine"?

"Ellen is probably in the best position to move into that role," said daytime TV host Jerry Springer.