The Jewellery Channel

Infobox TV channel
name = The Jewellery Channel
logofile=TJC TV.png logosize=200px
logoalt=TJC TV logo launch = 4 April 2006 web = [http://www.tjc.co.uk|official website]
terr serv 1 = Freeview
terr chan 1 = Channel 35 (9am-12pm only) - (Five US)
sat serv 1 = Sky Digital
sat chan 1 = Channel 650
cable serv 1 = Virgin Media
cable chan 1 = Channel 185 (Five US)
cable serv 2 = Tiscali TV
cable chan 2 = Channel 30 (Five US)

The Jewellery Channel (UK) Ltd is a British falling-price auction-style home shopping channel specialising in jewellery, the primary competitor to Gems TV. The channel launched on 4th April 2006, and currently broadcasts from 8am to 3am daily.

Background

"The Jewellery Channel" is part of the VGL & the STS Jewels groups. The company mines and handcrafts many of the products sold on its TV networks, hence cutting out the "middleman" in attempts to undercut high-street prices.

"TJC" claim to sell the world's widest variety of gemstones, and that they are one of only 8 sightholders to the Tanzanite One mine. Fact|date=June 2008 In addition to commonly available gemstones, the channel also sell their own exclusive brands of jewellery including Iliana and Rhapsody. The channel occasionally offer themed days such as 'One Price, One Plunge' where everything sells in 4 minutes or under, and a 'Double Quick Gems' day, where viewers are against the clock, and other viewers not knowing the quantity available. The channel also has discount days where it reduces the final auction prices by 20% or 17.5% (the latter the equivalent to the UK 17.5% VAT charge).

On Monday 14th January 2008 The Jewellery Channel moved from Teddington Studios to brand-new purpose-built studios in West London, simultaneously switching to widescreen-format broadcasting. It plans to broadcast in HDTV in the future. Fact|date=June 2008

On Saturday 11th April 2008 The Jewellery Channel launched delivery to the Irish Republic for the first time.

Similarly branded channels are available in the US - "The Jewelery Channel" - and Germany - "Der Schmuckkanal".

Criticism

Misleading customers

The Jewellery Channel has been censured by the Advertising Standards Authority for misleading customers in connection with the quality of its products. [ [http://www.asa.org.uk/asa/adjudications/Public/TF_ADJ_43310.htm Advertising Standards Authority - October 2007] ]

Prosecuted by Trading Standards

On 16 January 2008, The Jewellery Channel was prosecuted by Trading Standards for making false claims about the treatment of a gemstone product sold through its TV channel. After complaints were made, the channel discovered that it had been selling jewellery described as natural 'pink topaz’, when in fact it was colourless topaz sprayed pink.

The channel pleaded guilty to 16 offences under the Trade Descriptions Act – eight for applying false trade descriptions and eight of supplying goods to which false trade descriptions had been applied. [ [http://www.maidenhead-advertiser.co.uk/m/news/article-785-trading-standards-prosecutes-tv-channel/ Maidenhead Advertiser news article] ] They were fined £3,200.

ASA Complaint

In May 2008, The Jewellery Channel was censured by the Advertising Standards Authority for misleading customers in its broadcasts. Concerns over the inferences of the channel's auction start prices and the "pressure" of the channel's timed auctions were among the problems the ASA found with the channel's remit. [ [http://www.asa.org.uk/asa/adjudications/Public/TF_ADJ_44410.htm Advertising Standards Authority - May 2008] ] In response, The Jewellery Channel plan to remove the start price from broadcasts "for the sake of clarity" from 30th June 2008. Fact|date=June 2008

Platform availability

"The Jewellery Channel" is available on DirecTV 24 hours a day, 7 day a week. It is also available on Sky Digital from 8am to 3am, and on Five US from 9am to 12noon, which is carried by Virgin Media and Tiscali TV in addition to Sky Digital.

The channel was also carried on Freeview 44 between 7-9pm daily between December 2007 and May 2008 but this platform contract was not renewed for June and beyond, for unclear reasons. It has since been replaced by a second Gems TV stream

List of auctioneers

* Derek Gibbons
* Dan Dennis
* Vicki Browne
* Sarah-Louise Buckle
* Anoushka Williams (on maternity leave from July for six months)
* Steve Milne
* Lee Clark
* Ian Gardner
* Pollyanna Woodward
* Georgina Burnett
* Liz Fuller
* Jim Brooman
* Vicky Letch
* Elisa Portelli
* Alan Ennis
* Andrianna Christofi
* Sharon Clancy
* Nathan Marley
* Kay Little
* Christine Quayle
* Olivia Hill (from July 2008)
* Frayer Berry (from July 2008)

Previous auctioneers

* Abby Surgeon - Last show July 2007,
* Donna Duval - Last show - September 2007,
* Chloe Marshall - Last show in November 2007,
* Justine Van Buren - Departed the channel in January 2008
* Gema Ensenat - Final show April 2008
* Lottie Mayor - Last show 13th June 2008
* Simon Brown - Last show June 2008

References

External links

* [http://www.tjc.co.uk UK website]
* [http://www.tjc.tv USA website]
* [http://www.derschmuckkanal.de German website]