QVC facts for kids
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| Country | United States |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Worldwide |
| Headquarters | 1200 Wilson Drive, West Chester, Pennsylvania 19380 |
| Programming | |
| Language(s) | English |
| Picture format | 2160p UHDTV 1080i HDTV (downscaled to letterboxed 480i for the SDTV feed) |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Qurate Retail Group |
| Sister channels | (see below) |
| History | |
| Launched | November 24, 1986 |
| Availability | |
| Terrestrial | |
| ABC Owned Television Stations | -DT4 channel position; list of stations |
| Over-the-air as a subchannel | Consult local listings |
| Streaming media | |
| QVC | Live Stream |
| Apple TV & Amazon Fire TV | QVC app (all QVC networks) |
| Roku | QVC/HSN app (all QVC & HSN networks) |
| Frndly TV | Internet Protocol television |
QVC stands for "Quality Value Convenience". It is an American TV channel that specializes in home shopping. This means they sell products directly to viewers through their TV broadcasts. QVC is owned by Qurate Retail Group. It was started in 1986 by Joseph Segel in West Chester, Pennsylvania, USA. QVC now reaches over 350 million homes in seven countries, including the UK, Germany, Japan, and Italy. They also have a partnership in China called CNR Mall.
Contents
History of QVC
How QVC Started (1986–1992)
The Beginning of QVC
QVC was founded on June 13, 1986, by Joseph Segel. Other investors, like Ralph J. Roberts from Comcast, also helped. Cable companies even got a share in QVC for carrying the channel. One of the first big brands QVC worked with was Sears, selling their products on TV. In its first full year, QVC made $112 million in sales, which was a record for a new public company.
The channel officially launched on November 24, 1986. Some of the first hosts were Kathy Levine and Bob Bowersox. QVC used to celebrate its birthday every November 24th until 2008. At first, they broadcast live only in the evenings on weekdays and all day on weekends. But by January 1987, QVC started broadcasting live 24 hours a day, almost every day of the year.
Growing Bigger: Buying Other Channels
In 1989, QVC bought another shopping channel called Cable Value Network. This deal cost $380 million. Later, in 1991, QVC also acquired Shop Television Network, which helped them reach 4 million more subscribers.
New Leadership and Global Growth (1993–1995)
Barry Diller Takes Over
In 1993, Barry Diller, who helped create the Fox TV network, became the new chairman and CEO of QVC. He wanted to make shopping on TV more entertaining. Diller tried to launch a second channel called Q2, which was meant for younger shoppers. It started in 1994 but was later closed in 1996.
Reaching Around the World
In 1994, QVC changed its name to QVC, Inc. to help it grow and add new parts to the company. They created Q Direct for infomercials and QVC Interactive for online shopping. QVC launched its first internet shopping website, iQVC, on September 15, 1996.
QVC also tried to launch a shopping channel in Mexico in 1993, called CVC. However, it closed in 1995 due to economic problems and people in Mexico not being very interested in long TV shopping shows.
QVC's Rise and Changes (1995–2005)
In 1995, QVC started a special tour called "Quest for America's Best: 50 in 50 Tour." They traveled across the United States in a special bus studio, broadcasting live from every state. This helped them find and promote local products.
Comcast and Liberty Media took over QVC completely in 1995. Douglas S. Briggs became the new CEO in March 1995. On September 24, 1997, QVC moved into its new main building and studios called Studio Park in West Chester, Pennsylvania. This huge property has over 58,000 square feet of filming studios.
QVC even tried opening a physical store in The Mall of America in 2001. It was a 2,500 square-foot store where they could also broadcast live. This store stayed open for ten years, closing in 2011.
In 2003, Comcast sold its share of QVC to Liberty Media, making Liberty Media the main owner.
Moving Towards Online Shopping (2006–2021)
In 2006, Michael A. George became the new CEO of QVC. In 2007, QVC changed its logo and started a new advertising campaign with the slogan "iQdoU?" (meaning "I shop QVC, do you?").
QVC continued to expand globally. In 2010, QVC started broadcasting in Italy. In 2012, they partnered with China National Radio for a shopping network in China called CNR Mall, which reached 89 million homes by 2014.
In 2013, QVC also started broadcasting on regular broadcast TV through Ion Television as a subchannel. This allowed more people to watch QVC without cable. QVC also tried to create a social shopping website like Pinterest called toGather in 2013, but it closed in 2015.
Joining Forces: Zulily and HSN
In 2015, QVC bought the online store Zulily. Then, in 2017, QVC's parent company, Liberty Interactive, bought HSN, another big home shopping channel. In 2018, Liberty Interactive changed its name to Qurate Retail Group, with Mike George still as CEO.
In 2019, QVC updated its logo again. The new logo is square-shaped, like a computer or phone screen, to show how important digital and mobile shopping has become. Also in 2019, QVC stopped broadcasting live 24/7. Now, they broadcast live for 19 hours a day and show replays for 5 hours.
QVC2
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| Ownership | |
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| Sister channels | (see above) |
| History | |
| Launched | August 22, 2013 |
| Former names | QVC Plus (2013–2017) |
| Availability | |
| Streaming media | |
| Live Stream | |
On August 22, 2013, QVC launched a channel called QVC Plus. This channel showed QVC's programming a few hours later. In 2017, QVC Plus was renamed QVC2. It started broadcasting live for 12 hours a day during the week and 10 hours on weekends. Due to the global pandemic, QVC2 stopped live programming for a while in 2020, showing only replays. But by July 2021, it started broadcasting live again for 13 hours a day.
QVC3
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| History | |
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| Launched | April 1, 2019 |
| Availability | |
| Streaming media | |
| Live Stream | |
On April 1, 2019, another channel called Beauty iQ was rebranded as QVC3. This channel shows replays of programs from QVC and QVC2 24 hours a day.
QVC NOW
| History | |
|---|---|
| Launched | April 23, 2019 |
| Former names | Beauty iQ (2019-2021) |
| Availability | |
| Streaming media | |
| Live Stream | |
On October 25, 2016, QVC created Beauty iQ, a TV channel focused only on beauty products. It aired live shows from Monday to Friday evenings. In 2019, Beauty iQ became a digital-only channel, meaning you could watch it online. On March 1, 2021, Beauty iQ changed its name to QVC NOW and now shows a mix of different QVC programs.
How QVC Operates
All of QVC's channels around the world (in the U.S., UK, Germany, Japan, Italy, and China) operate 24 hours a day. However, the number of hours they broadcast live varies in each country.
QVC Headquarters
QVC's main office is in West Chester, Pennsylvania. The large QVC Studio Park complex, which cost $100 million, opened in 1997. It sits on 80 acres of land.
QVC in the United States
QVC's U.S. operations are based at the Studio Park complex. This is where their main offices, studios, and broadcasting facilities are located. QVC also has large warehouses in places like Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and Ontario, California, where they store and ship products.
QVC in the U.S. broadcasts live for 20 hours a day. The remaining four hours (from 3 AM to 7 AM Eastern time) show replays of the "Today's Special Value" item or other past programs. QVC broadcasts 364 days a year to over 100 million homes. The only day they don't broadcast their usual shows is Christmas Day. Instead, they show a taped parade and other pre-recorded programs.
Every year, QVC hosts a special event called "QVC Presents 'FFANY Shoes on Sale'." During this event, designer shoes are sold at half price, and 80% of the money goes to help with breast cancer research and education.
QVC in the UK and Ireland
QVC UK started on October 1, 1993. Its main office and studios are in West London. The call center and warehouse are in Merseyside. QVC UK also has an outlet store in Warrington. QVC UK has three other channels: QVC Beauty, QVC Extra, and QVC Style, which mostly show replays. QVC UK reaches 27 million homes in Britain and Ireland. Its main channel broadcasts live from 9 AM to 1 AM every day, except on Christmas Day when it shows replays.
QVC Germany
QVC Germany started broadcasting on December 1, 1996. Its offices are in Düsseldorf, and it has call centers in Bochum and Kassel. The warehouse is in Hückelhoven. QVC Germany reaches 41 million homes in Germany and Austria. It broadcasts live for 17 hours a day, almost every day of the year. QVC Germany also has two other channels: QVC 2 and QVC Style.
QVC Japan
QVC Japan is a partnership with Mitsui & Co. Its studios, offices, and call center are in Makuhari, and its warehouses are in Sakura City. QVC Japan started on April 1, 2001, and reaches 27 million homes. It broadcasts live for 19 hours a day.
QVC Italy
QVC Italy began broadcasting on October 1, 2010. Its main office and studios are near Milan, and its warehouse is in Castel San Giovanni. QVC Italy broadcasts live for 17 hours a day, 364 days a year, to 25 million homes. You can watch QVC Italy on digital TV and satellite.
QVC/CNR (China)
QVC/CNR (China) is located in Beijing. It's a partnership between China National Radio (which is owned by the state) and QVC. This partnership runs a TV channel and an online shopping website called cnrmall.com. Chinese law doesn't allow private companies to fully control TV stations, so QVC has a 49% share in this partnership. QVC/CNR broadcasts live for 17 hours a day.
Today's Special Value
Since August 11, 1987, QVC has featured a special product each day called Today's Special Value. Originally, this product was offered at a special price for only one day. However, since 2017, the Today's Special Value can be offered for a longer time, sometimes up to two weeks.
See also
- Diamonique
- Home Shopping Network – Another big home shopping channel that Qurate Retail Group bought in 2017.
- Jewelry Television
- ShopHQ
