ABC launches new feature to sell products from its TV programs

ABC Entertainment has added an interactive feature to its online shopping site that enables viewers to buy items seen on the network’s most popular television series. ABC launched The SeenOn shopping guide this \ week in conjunction with Delivery Agent, a provider of shopping-enabled programming.

The new feature—found at ShopABCTV.com—sells select items seen on each episode of a TV program, such
as a halter top worn by a character on a “Desperate Housewives” episode or a baby stroller used on an episode of the daily talk show “The View.”

The listings carry the date of the episode and the items have such labels as “Gabrielle’s Body Language
Sportswear White Halter Top,” with a brief narrative of what the character was doing while wearing the top.
Previously, viewers could only purchase fan items, such as logo t-shirts or coffee mugs, at the ABC site, an ABC spokeswoman says.

Viewers can search for the products by character, episode, location or brand. Delivery Agent works with the
costume designers and prop masters on the TV shows after an episode is filmed to select products to post on
the sites prior to the air date.

Delivery Agent also uses predictive merchandising models, and such factors as how long a product was
on-screen, the projected margin, and the average order value when selecting products for the site. “We look very much like any retail operation in that capacity in that we’re trying to maximize conversion, average order value and margin,” says Michael Fitzsimmons, CEO of Delivery Agent.

The number of products sold from each show varies. A prime time show such as “Desperate Housewives” might offer 500 products per season while a late-night show such as “Jimmy Kimmel Live” would offer 250 products per season, Fitzsimmons says.

A merchandising team from Delivery Agent works with the manufacturers involved and sets them up for a sale within the company’s proprietary e-commerce platform, Fitzsimmons says. Delivery Agent also handles transaction processing and fulfillment.

Products are either shipped from Delivery Agent’s Illinois fulfillment center or directly from the vendor. For those vendors, Delivery Agent sets up an extranet where they can get real-time orders, print shipping invoices, and perform related activities, Fitzsimmons says.

The site is being promoted on-air during the show, online through direct e-mail campaigns, keyword marketing, affiliate marketing and fan clubs. “We touch the viewer at as many touch points as possible,” he says.

Among shows whose items are sold on the site are “Lost,” “Desperate Housewives,” “Grey’s Anatomy,” “Alias,” “The View,” “General Hospital” and “All My Children.”

ABC Launches E-Commerce Store

By: Wayne Friedman

Tuesday, February 21, 2006, 6:01 AM

ABC has launched a new e-commerce site where people can purchase the products that appear on TV series like “Desperate Housewives” and “Grey’s Anatomy.”

Delivery Agent, a 3-year-old San Francisco-based agency, enables the effort by working with prop masters and then arranging a retail relationship with product manufacturers to sell items from media companies’ Web sites. The media companies and Delivery Agent share in the revenue from the retail sales.

The site, www.shopabctv.com offers items such as Gabrielle’s Yoga Pants, Martha Stewart Signature Couch (as seen in Bree’s living room) and Edie’s Rouge Guitar. Delivery Agent also sells products for ABC’s daytime shows, “All My Children,” “One Life to Live,” “The View,” and “General Hospital.”

“This isn’t product placement–this is done after the fact,” said Bruce Gersh, senior vice president of business development for ABC Entertainment. “Delivery Agent creates a close relationship with prop masters to figure out what products to sell. It’s a significant business over the long term.”

Mike Fitzsimmons, CEO of Delivery Agent, added: “This is the after-market for product integration.”

The company started by selling products off of Sony Pictures Entertainment’s theatrical movie, “Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle,” as well as for shows on Showtime. Other studios in their stable include Miramax Films, Lions Gate Entertainment, and SoapNet. Delivery Agent also has a deal with NBC and Bravo that was made a year and half ago. Overall, the company has 75 TV and film properties.

For a typical one-hour show–for example, “Desperate Housewives,” says Fitzsimmons–there can be as many as 170 products placed per episode. Over the course of a season, this would amount to some 3,750 product placements–including some products that are repeated. For “Desperate Housewives,” Delivery Agent has picked some 300 products–mostly apparel from the four lead women characters.

Despite the current wave of branded entertainment activity, he says, “the reality is, 99 percent of the products are not paid to be placed.” Fitzsimmons says his company doesn’t really work with typical branded entertainment or product placement agencies to spin out sales of actual products.

“We don’t care how it got into the show,” he says. “We are agnostic.”