HereIsTV has launched a web service that provides users with editorially-curated TV viewing recommendations and will allow subscribers to Comcast, DirecTV and Dish pay-TV services to program their DVRs from mobile devices and computers.
That means about half of all U.S. TV households will be able to program the DVRs based on recommendations from HerelsTV.com, the company reports.
"The key differentiator in our service is the human element," said Bruce Eisen, a former Dish executive who is the founder and CEO of HereIsTV. "HereIsTV is not based on an algorithm or simply telling you what your friends are watching. Our editorial team is thinking about each show or movie, and making decisions as to what is included each night."
HereIsTV also features content from major OTT players, including Netflix, Amazon, Hulu, Crackle and AOL and allows users to immediately start watching the content from the online providers without navigating away from the HereIsTV website.
In addition the company is offering a guide to new VOD movies, with a synopsis of each film, its cast, director, a video preview and a digest of the film's reviews.
The company also sees the site as a new advertising platform for programmers, with Random Media already using the service to promote its content.
In a statement, Eric Doctorow, CEO and founder of Random Media explained that “as a distributor of content across multiple platforms, we use HereIsTV and HereIsVOD to communicate with a very desirable demographic. Not having the name recognition of the major studio films, we have found that the more that people know about our films, the greater the viewing of our films. The HereIsTV platform allows us to provide that expanded information to a key user base.”
Prior to the new venture, Eisen was formerly VP of online content development and strategy at Dish Network, where he was responsible for the company’s on-demand, online and Internet-based initiatives and he launched Dish's TV Everywhere offering.
