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Home Shopping Network - Not Live 24/7 Anymore?

MarcB

MarcB

Last week HSN had an hour long show selling products from Chef Todd English and it said "Previously Recorded" on the screen next to their phone number. Earlier that night they had a live show featuring Chef Todd English.

Then this morning during the 5AM Eastern time slot they had a cooking show featuring Chef Emeril. Again on the screen it said "Previously Recorded."


I remember some of the stuff on the now-defunct Shop-at-Home Network was previously recorded too. Look where they are now - out of business.
 
As long as the product is still for sale, and orders can be taken via the displayed phone number, why does it have to be live 24/7?
 
If it didn't say "Previously Recorded" on the screen how would anyone even know the difference if it was live or not? I just don't see why it matters.
 
People have a tendency to feel connected and engaged if the broadcast is live. That increases their interest in the products being sold and increases sales. There is a reason QVC broadcasts live 24/7, 364 days a year. It has been extremely successful.
 
ansky212 said:
If it didn't say "Previously Recorded" on the screen how would anyone even know the difference if it was live or not? I just don't see why it matters.
Click to expand...

I don't see it, either. But, then, I don't see the point of home shopping networks in general in 2013 when the Internet provides better services with greater convenience and more choices.
 
The taping is done mainly to help the celebrity presenters; for example, Kate Walsh from Private Practice goes to Tampa five times a year to promote her perfume line on HSN. There's no way she's going to want to do a 4am show, so the late-night shows are pre-recorded so she can get some sleep. It makes more sense for HSN because they have several celebrities who promote their wares.

Also, even though it might seem home shopping is struggling with the Internet, nothing beats seeing an item of clothing or jewelry on an actual model, or electronics in action, and so far 'video presentations' of online items have been stuck either being ignored or killed with ad-block when they're auto-run. And of course, many members of the QVC or HSN audience either have low-bandwidth Internet plans, or just prefer to talk to a reassuring voice on the phone when they order.
 
Casey said:
People have a tendency to feel connected and engaged if the broadcast is live. That increases their interest in the products being sold and increases sales. There is a reason QVC broadcasts live 24/7, 364 days a year. It has been extremely successful.
Click to expand...

That's not necessary for regular 30- or 60-second commercials. Why should it matter for a channel that is a 24/7 series of one commercial after another?
 
Because it does. QVC has the second highest revenue for a network in the US. And they have nothing other than ads to draw people in. That means they have to have a solid presentation to draw their audience and having it live is part of that mix. Having people call in engages the audience and that can only be done on a live show.
 
QVC has been stronger than HSN for years.

However, one differentiator was QVC was cable only, once owned by Comcast, and preferred to pay cable systems to carry the channel, while HSN was on many broadcast full power stations, trying to reach more masses, and had must-carry from the stations that got them on cable. QVC, at that time, even acted like it was superior. Less masses, but going higher end in audience.

Since then HSN has left broadcast and it likely pays cable to carry it, but HSN permits its signal to be broadcast on low power stations likely for the OTA only audience.

Oddly enough, QVC the cable only channel now isn't cable/pay view only. I saw QVC on broadcast OTA in Chicago on a LP station subchannel.
 
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