Will This Rev Up Our Love Life? The Homeshoppingista Orders HSN’s Hot Black Sheets Via Shop-By-Remote

We’re in trouble: Shop by Remote has come to Comcast in Montclair, N.J.

We were checking e-mails Wednesday with the TV on in the background, and Highgate Manor on HSN talking about its 300-thread count black sheets with croc-embroidered trim.

That certainly grabbed our attention, and when we looked around to see them the “Shop by Remote” icon was on our screen, the first time it has popped up.

Our black sheets should be on their way thanks to HSN Shop by Remote

So purely in the interest of research, we tried it out. Since we already have an HSN account, we didn’t have to do anything special, just follow the easy prompts. We picked the sheets, the color (black — woo hoo, someone’s getting lucky), the size, Flex-Pay for the $60 price and method of payment.

So let’s see if the process works and if these slinky sheets ever arrive.

Copycat QVC Has A Shop-By-Remote Offering In The Works, Like HSN’s

We’re very late to the party on this one: MediaPost had it back in July.

But taking a page out of HSN’s book, namely HSN Shop By Remote, copycat QVC plans to also offer viewers shop-by-remote options. Thanks for the tip, Ensequence CEO Peter Lowe.

He’s a Cablevision Systems and MTV Networks refugee who we know from our former life at Multichannel News. We recall sitting next to him and his wife at a very, very long business dinner that Scripps Networks had at the gorgeous Rainbow Room, with its spectacular view of Manhattan. The wine was flowing, and we think at one point ol’ Pete made fun of our lipstick.

Take my word for it: Most business dinners are not like popping a cork on a bottle and enjoying great food with friends. They are more often like the forced socializing you see on “Mad Men,” like that fun Christmas party Sunday where Roger Sterling had to wear a Santa suit for that repulsive Lucky Strike client, the on-the-down-low guy who hit on Sal and got him fired.

Anyway, here is the press release that we are more than a day late and a dollar short on:

QVC Selects the Ensequence Interactive TV Platform to Enable QVC Viewers to Shop via the Remote Control

NEW YORK (July 26, 2010) – Ensequence, the interactive TV company, today announced that QVC, one of the world’s largest multimedia retailers, has selected the Ensequence Managed Services Group and the Ensequence iTV Manager Programmer Edition to deliver its customers an interactive TV remote control shopping experience.

“We are excited to be entering into a long-term relationship with QVC,” said Peter Low, Ensequence CEO. “Recent quantitative research has proven that consumers are interested in shopping and buying with their remotes. With interactive TV, viewers are able to respond immediately to product offers.”

Interactive TV from Ensequence will provide QVC the opportunity to offer a selection of products for viewing and purchase across cable set-top boxes. In addition, using the Ensequence iTV Manager Dynamic Data module, QVC will have the ability to change its “shop window” to suit the products available along with multi-product display capabilities. Product details will also be able to be quickly updated, modified and synchronized to video content on a daily or even hourly basis.

“We’re thrilled to roll out this service to our customers, with our initial deployment scheduled for next year,” said Al Ulozas, QVC’s senior vice president of affiliate sales and marketing. “Ensequence will provide QVC with the necessary tools needed to deliver iTV to our viewers, making it easy for them to complete purchases using their remote controls.”

HSN Shop By Remote is now in more than 30 million homes, HSN CEO Mindy Grossman said on a second-quarter conference call Wednesday. That rollout has been in Cablevision Systems, Comcast and Verizon FiOS homes.

HSN Lands Patents For HSN Shop By Remote And E-Commerce Options

HSN has secured two patents, including one for HSN Shop by Remote, which is in 30 million homes, and is the only U.S. service of its kind to allow customers to buy products with just a few clicks of their remote control, the company said Wednesday.

“This patent reinforces our position as a revolutionary force in television and retail as we continue to bring exciting innovations to our customers that enable them to shop whenever and however they choose,” John McDevitt, HSN’s vice president of advanced services, said in a canned statement.

The HSN patent entitled “System for Improved Interactive Television Processing” covers many of the proprietary aspects of the HSN Shop By Remote platform and provides for a transactional environment between a server and one or more display devices. Using the unique identity of a given customer operating a display device, the HSN Shop by Remote system generates and transmits customized transaction data, creating an individualized transactional experience.

In addition, HSN secured a patent called “Method and System for Improved E-Commerce Shopping.” The patent includes many of the proprietary features of the HSN.com platform that allows consumers to view multiple video product presentations.

The system provides both a live video feed as well as pre-recorded video segments that may be related to one or more product presentations.

“Consumer appetite for online video viewing and shopping options is rapidly expanding, creating tremendous opportunities for e-commerce providers to monetize these channels,” McDevitt said. “Our second patent helps protect our video and e-commerce technology and reaffirms our leadership position in transactional innovation.”

As part of its strategy to provide customers with access to great shopping experiences across multiple platforms, HSN has deployed the HSN Shop by Remote interactive television service and is also today the only retailer streaming live HD video on three screens: TV, online and mobile.

With a focus on capturing additional growth opportunities in mobile, HSN has over the last year launched an i-phone app, an android app and, most recently, a WAP site. And Aug. 1 HSN will launch HSN2, effectively becoming the only home shopping network with a second TV shopping channel. HSN2 will provide customers with more viewing and shopping options as it offers 24 hours of encore airings of HSN’s favorite brands, products and personalities.

Samsung Will Launch HSN Shop by Remote App On Its Internet@TV – Content Service

HSN will offer its HSN Shop by Remote app on select 2010 Samsung HDTVs, Blu-ray players and Home Theater Systems through the upgraded Internet@TV – Content Service, officials said Friday.

The HSN Shop by Remote app will allow viewers to access live streaming HSN video and make purchases using their remote controls.

“We think TV is more than just for viewing your favorite programs. We’re committed to enriching in-home entertainment, and transforming television viewing into an interactive experience,” John Revie, senior vice president of Visual Display Marketing for Samsung Electronics America, said in a prepared statement. “Together with HSN, we’re excited to offer consumers the ability to interact with the HSN application thru their TV remote.”

Samsung’s upgraded Internet@TV feature includes Samsung Apps, providing consumers with an expanded, easy to navigate selection of content and applications from services that span video, information, lifestyle, games, and sports.

The HSN app will be included in the first group of TV apps that will be available on Samsung Apps this spring free of charge to consumers. Premium apps will be available for purchase via Samsung Apps’ transactional interface this summer.

“As the original TV retailer, HSN has been at the forefront of interactive television and transactional innovation for decades. This latest partnership with Samsung will continue our tradition of developing new ways to engage consumers by allowing us to reach an audience that does not otherwise have access to our Shop By Remote service,” John McDevitt, HSN’s vice president of Advanced Services, said in a prepared statement.

Samsung viewers will require a broadband connection to access Internet@TV including the HSN app. The full-screen app will appear with the following categories listed for browsing:

Current On Air Item – Product detail of the item currently airing live on HSN.

Today’s Special – Available at an exclusive special retail price for the day.

Deal of the Day – A must-have item that has never been discounted before will be unveiled daily at a special rate.

Last 15 Items Aired – Customers can go back and browse a list of the last 15 products on air.

Cablevision Systems Corp. and Comcast have rolled HSN By Remote on theis systems.

Yesterday Comcast, Today Verizon’s FiOS TV Has Launched HSN Shop By Remote; Telco To Offer ‘Must-Have’ Exclusive ‘Deal Of The Day’

FiOS TV customers will be the next to get HSN Shop By Remote, Verizon said Thursday.

It will be made possible by Verizon’s latest addition to its Widget Bazaar applications marketplace – the HSN Shop By Remote Widget.

“We’re excited about teaming with HSN to offer FiOS TV customers another unique interactive experience that combines HSN’s shopping technology with the unmatched speed and intelligence of our advanced all-fiber-optic network, adding an entirely new dimension to shopping on FiOS TV,” Shawn Strickland, vice president of FiOS product management for Verizon, said in a prepared statement.

The news came a day after Comcast officially announced what we had reported weeks ago, that the nation’s largest cable operator had rolled out HSN Shop By Remote to 8 million homes and was taking it national. Cablevision Systems Corp. was the first to offer HSN By Remote to subscribers.

“We’ve made it quick, easy and safe to order merchandise from HSN with just a few clicks of your remote control,” Strickland said. “See it, click it, own it. It’s that easy.”

HSN got its two cents in, too.

“HSN has always been at the forefront of innovation, and we are excited to be partnering with a pioneering leader like Verizon,” Peter Ruben, HSN’s executive vice president of affiliate sales and marketing, said in a prepared statement. “Thanks to our partnership with Verizon, we will offer our customers a revolutionary widget that will provide them with new ways to shop with us at home.”

The free HSN Shop By Remote Widget is available starting today, Thursday, in New Jersey, New York, Florida and Texas, and in all other FiOS TV markets by Dec. 7.

Customers must have an HSN online account. If they do not have one, they can create an account by logging on to HSN.com or by calling HSN at 1-800-284-5757. Once registered, customers can browse and purchase as many items as they want, whenever they want.

The HSN Shop By Remote Widget is located within FiOS TV’s Widget Bazaar applications marketplace. The full-screen widget appears with the following categories listed for browsing:

— Current On Air Item – Product detail of the item currently airing live
on HSN.

— Today’s Special – Available at an exclusive special retail price for the
day.

— Verizon FiOS Deal of the Day – Exclusive to FiOS TV customers, a
must-have item that has never been discounted before will be unveiled
daily at a special rate.

— Last 15 Items Aired – Customers can go back and browse a list of the
last 15 products on air.

Customers simply press the “C” button on the remote control to begin watching HSN on the right-hand side of the television screen; additional product detail from the categories above appears on the left-hand side of the screen.

To purchase an item, customers click on the “B” button on the remote and log in using the phone number and ZIP code associated with the customers’ HSN online account.

Once an order is finalized, a nine-digit confirmation number appears on the television screen, and customers can use it to track their shipment on HSN.com.