Sure, The CW’s ratings may have lost 28 percent of its 18-34-YO demographic, but it’s not not the network is sitting idly by and letting Gossip Girl walk to the plank into obliteration. They already turned off episode streaming on their website, and now they’re trying a new gimmick: If you watch the show live, you’ll have a chance to win swag!

To keep Nielsen numbers up and advertisers happy, The CW is running promos during the live broadcast of Gossip Girl that invites viewers to text into for a chance to win $500 cluthes and $1,000 handbags from Botkier or Goldenbleu. And only text messages sent during the broadcast are eligible to win, meaning TiVo viewers can count themselves out. [WWD]

Meanwhile, it’s a boon for designers like Goldenbleu, who donate low-five-figures in free bags and score a half million bucks in free advertising. Now please sign up John Varvatos as a sponsor, so the gays will have something to score.