At the recent
Cable Show in DC, one of the big buzz words was
"T- Commerce", meaning Television-enabled Commerce. This is nothing like the traditional QVC model, where people watch the television and then get more product information or order over the phone or on a PC. This commerce will be enabled through fully functioning interactive features appearing directly on your TV. Although talked about and experimented with for years, Interactive TV-in many ways the Holy Grail of the Cable industry-now appears to be ready for mass deployment through advanced platforms such as EBIF (Enhanced TV Binary Interchange Format) and
tru2way. Some FiOS TV customers may already be seeing some of these features, and applications will begin to roll out on digital cable later this year.
A Cherry Hill startup,
iCueTV, appears to have a good running start in this market. Founded about two years ago, iCueTV calls itself "The Standard Platform for I-TV Commerce", though it will take a while for that to prove itself out. President and Founder
Michael Huegel says his company’s services will expand the meaning of the term “t-commerce” beyond simply making purchases from a TV. The service also supports interactive applications for functions such as voting, polling, reporting, Web services, and request-for-information fulfillment. iCueTV provides the backend platform for these applications that leverages industry standard e-wallet applications developed by PayPal, Google, and Amazon.com.
iCueTV currently has about 75 employees. Former Century Communications CEO Bernard Gallagher joined the company as Chairman & CEO; he invested in the company himself and bought in a couple of other investors with him. My guess is that a VC funding announcement might not be that far off. iCueTV is working closely with Comcast, and was among four companies presenting at a session hosted by Comcast Interactive Capital at the Cable Show, two of which have been funded by CIC, according to
Network World. Walter M. Buckley III of Internet Capital Group is also on iCueTV's board, though ICG has made no investment in the company at this time according to their website.
Wireless HD Highlights Cable 'Innovations' (Light Reading: Cable Digital News)
Cable Show 2009: MSO Vet Gallagher Takes Cue From ITV Startup
Former Century CEO Pitching TV Commerce Provider At NCTA Event Multichannel News)
–Round-Up of Recent Interactive TV-Related News from CMC (Interactive TV Today)
