Home Contact Us

Network Shopping Site Worldwide

Info Menu

Network Shopping Site Worldwide

Home Shopping Network or HSN is a 24-hour basic cable shopping network that can be seen on cable, satellite, and some terrestrial channels in the United States. The company also operates HSN.com, an e-commerce operation.

The channel is owned by HSN, Inc. (NASDAQ: HSNI).

History

Launched by Lowell 'Bud' Paxson and Roy Speer in 1982 as the Home Shopping Club , a local cable channel seen on Vision Cable and Group W Cable in Pinellas County, Florida, and expanded into the first national shopping network three years later on July 1, 1985, HSN (its initials forming its alternate name) pioneered the concept of the viewer shopping for items in the comfort of their own home.

HSN has its roots from a radio station managed by Paxson which in 1977, due to an advertiser's liquidity problem, the company was paid in can openers. Left with having to raise the funds, on-air personality Bob Circosta went on the radio and sold the can openers for $9.95 each. Lo and behold, the can openers sold out and an industry was born. Bob Circosta later became the new network's first ever home shopping host and would eventually sell 75,000 different products in over 20,000 hours of live, on-air television.

In 1986, HSN began a second network that broadcast over the air on a number of TV stations it had acquired under the name Silver King Broadcasting. In 1999, the stations were sold to IAC founder Barry Diller and changed its name to USA Broadcasting, with a few of them ending HSN programming outside of overnight hours and taking on a local programming format equivalent to Toronto's Citytv. In 2001, they were sold again, this time to Univision, and all HSN programs ceased on those channels; however, HSN continues to air on low-power stations. Ventana Television ( ventana meaning window in Spanish) has the same street address as HSN, and is the holding company for its broadcast licenses.

In 1999, the company launched HSN.com, which as of 2009 is one of the top 10 most trafficked e-commerce sites. In 2008, HSN also started MySpace and Facebook pages. In an attempt to engage with younger consumers in 2009, HSN produced a 14-episode online video series, Faces of Beautiful You, which follows three young women who find solutions to many of life's problems through HSN's beauty products. The campaign included a Facebook widget, character blogs, and profiles for the three main characters on Twitter, MySpace, and Facebook.

HSN HD

In August 2009 HSN launched their HDTV channel broadcasting in 1080i. At launch it was carried by TimeWarner and Verizon FiOS. Since the launch it has been added by Comcast and AT&T U-verse.

Hosts

Present home shopping hosts on HSN include:

Guest Product Experts

Previous Hosts

Kara Connor, Todd Newton, Candace Kumai, and Christian Anderson joined HSN as the new hosts in 2008 and left by 2009. Candace Kumai was removed from HSN's website schedule and host bio page in July 2008.

Past home shopping hosts on HSN and America's Store include:

Models

(This is only a partial list)

Product Categories

Voice-over talent

Current background music

Regular music

Halloween music

Christmas music

Operations

HSN runs 24 hours a day, although programming hours vary between each region, based upon the local TV provider.

United States

HSN's U.S. operations are based in St. Petersburg, Florida, which houses its corporate headquarters, studio and broadcasting facilities. Additional call center facilities are located in Roanoke, Virginia. Distribution centers are situated in Roanoke, Piney Flats, Tennessee, and Fontana, California in order to ensure the fastest possible delivery of items.

HSN also operates four retail outlet stores in Orlando, Brandon, Bardmoor, and St. Petersburg (Emplorium). HSN broadcasts 24 hours a day, 364 days a year. On Christmas, a mix of special programming airs from Christmas Eve afternoon until midnight on December 25. For the first twelve years, a looping Yule log was aired from Noon Christmas Eve to Midnight December 26th. Several years the show allows members of the staff to go on camera with their families to say hello to relatives back home.

In 1997, HSN formally launched its second nationwide electronic retail venture, a 24 hour network under the America's Store name (it had operated similar concepts of more limited scale since 1988). This station took advantage of HSN's already extensive network of low-power transmitters located in many major metropolitan markets throughout the United States. Eventually, the network was also picked up by some cable and satellite providers. While America's Store closely mirrored HSN's programming strategy and schedule format, it functioned primarily as an outlet for distressed and discontinued HSN merchandise in various categories. Occasionally however, new merchandise would be showcased concurrently on both channels at varying schedules. Like its sister network, America's Store also had a full service internet website that shared most of its functionality with the HSN parent site. In April, 2007, America's Store ceased operating permanently. Most of the America's Store hosts (some of which were already splitting hosting duties between networks) were absorbed into the HSN programming schedule.

In 1998, Home Shopping Network launched its Spanish version Home Shopping en Español on Univision's cable network Galavision. In 2000, the Spanish version re-branded itself as HSE and tapped into low-power stations in the US and Puerto Rico. It also ceased to broadcast through Galavision. In June 2002, HSE ceased to operate.

UK

HSN had a UK sister network called HSE, which has ceased trading. On the 18 April 2005, the falling price auction channel iBuy, was created by the ex-senior management figure of Auction World.tv, Andy Sheldon.

The iBuy shopping channel closed in May 2007, when 85 jobs were lost. The reasons for the channel's closure were cited to be connected to financial difficulties at the channel, due to their failure to successfully break into a market already dominated by shopping channels such as QVC, sit-up Ltd, Ideal World and Gems TV. It was suggested that there were a growing number of customer complaints over products, and controversy over the channel allegedly selling fake products, in particular Tiffany jewellery.

On 18 March 2007, iBuy Senior Presenter Adam Freeman, revealed while on air, that it was to be his final shift. It was also revealed, that unlike many of the other staff at iBuy, he wasn't to be out of a job. As like the previous iBuy Head of Broadcasting, Andy Sheldon, Freeman will in fact be moving over to HSN for employment in the USA.

On 27 March 2007, it was officially announced on the iBuy website that the channel has now ceased live broadcasting. In its slots, iBuy will be offering a variety of programming over the coming weeks, which include pre-recorded iBuy Unique, and Rye by Post Collectibles.

Germany

HSN has a sister network in Europe called HSE24.

Japan

HSN's sister network in Japan is known as The Shop Channel.

Access Network - Worldwide Accessible Travel

Worldwide accessible travel network for the slow walker, mature traveler, wheelchair ... Property Rentals | Airfare | Shopping | Photo Gallery | Site Map ...

mo..

Online Shopping Sites

Online Shopping Sites. Kathmandu Mart.com - This site will deliver ... from nepal for free immediate express delivery worldwide. ... Site | Site Intro | Business Info | Staff | NHP Network ...

mo..

International Florist | Worldwide Floral Network

The Worldwide Floral Network is an award ... Online flower shopping is private, secure and ... Check out our site map for links to ...

mo..

Sensis MediaSmart - IGA Worldwide

Shopping ... Network Sites | Gaming ... GA Worldwide Inc. is the global independent in-game ...

mo..

Site Map - Worldwide Floral Network

Site map for Worldwide Floral Network. Site index pages for WFN. ... Shopping Cart Check-out. Canada Flowers USA Florist

mo..

Home Shopping Network posts largest gain among top home and garden ...

ECTR: Free Worldwide ... Home Shopping Network posts largest gain among top home and garden sites

mo..

Expat site for overseas jobs, forums, offshore finance, shopping and ...

Looking for work? We have 1,350 worldwide jobs, unique recruiting tools, contract news, salary comparisons and much more ... More...

mo..

1996-06-07 0015 "New America Network: One-Stop Shopping ...

One-Stop Shopping—Worldwide" 2. New and Notable 3. Upgraded Sites 4. Site Announcements 5. Subscribing and Canceling : 1. Headline... "New America Network: One-Stop ...

mo..

Webbite1 Consumer Network Department Stores & Shopping Sites

It's a good site to know about. It's the Internet shopping directory for outside USA customers. ... Webbite1 Consumer Network. All ...

mo..

ArtBoomer.com - Worldwide Art Network

Shopping: Events: Register Event: Marketplace ... and recommend that you explore these sites in other parts of the world. If you wish to be a part of our worldwide partner network ...

mo..