Price Drop

Price Drop
Launched	11 June 2003
Closed	17 April 2014
Owned by	Bid Shopping
Picture format	16:9, 576i (SDTV)
Country	United Kingdom
Broadcast area	United Kingdom
Formerly called	Price-Drop.TV (2003–2005) Price-Drop TV (2005–2011)
Sister channel(s)	Shop at Bid
Availability (at time of closure)
Terrestrial
Freeview	Channel 37
Satellite
Freesat	Channel 801
Sky	Channel 654
Eutelsat 28A	11426 V 27500 2/3
Cable
Virgin Media	Channel 741
Smallworld Cable	Channel 702
WightFibre	Channel 47

Price Drop was a British television shopping channel based in the UK, that ran daily live reverse auctions. It was the first reverse auction channel of its kind in the world. The channel was owned by Bid Shopping.

The channel first launched as Price-Drop.TV on 11 June 2003. The channel began broadcasting from 4pm to 12am, Wednesdays to Saturdays. The hours of live broadcast have been extended since and currently operates from 7:45am to 1:30am, 7 days a week. It is available to more than 12 million homes in the UK, and makes weekly revenue of over £3 million.

Prior to December 2004, each 'price drop' started at the guide price. After guide prices were removed, it was no longer possible to judge how closely the starting prices reflected the true value of products. A certain number of units of a product were advertised at a specified price, and buyers could place orders by telephone. The price was decreased in steps until all units were sold. All purchasers paid the final, lowest, price. Occasionally, the channel had promotions where a small number of products "Megadrop" to £1 during a special event (it appeared to be random, but directors chose which products will Megadrop beforehand). Megadrops were also used on sister channel Bid, but Price Drop was the first to use the promotion.

On 21 January 2005, the channel was renamed from Price-Drop.TV to Price-Drop TV, losing only the 'dot' part of the channel's name.

In October 2005, a start price graphic was introduced, effectively reinstating a rephrased guide price. The "start price" was used to show the starting price of the reverse auction, but was not used to represent a value or worth.

On 10 May 2006, products were now sold at prices in pounds and pence instead of just pounds.

On 1 August 2011, 'Price-Drop TV' rebranded as 'Price Drop' dropping the 'TV' and '-' from the channel's name. Along with the new name, new buying graphics were introduced on all three Bid Shopping channels and new idents compromising of different 3D products flying around the new logo designs were shown. The new design was created to make buying easier for the viewer. At the same time as the new channel design, multi-buy was introduced on certain products where the viewer can select to buy more than one product at the same time (P&P is still applied to each item).

On 30 March 2012 at 6pm, Price Drop "re-launched" with a completely new set, but still in their existing studio. The new set primarily consisted of a brick-work wall design with blue and purple lighting filling the left and right window cut-outs. In the centre of the simulated wall there was another cut-out which housed four LCD screen panels that constructed the main visual display on the Price Drop set; this also provided a backdrop for images and video behind the presenters and assistants.