• by David Goetzl  @dgoetzl, May 6, 2010

With a consortium of cable operators looking to launch a similar option, Dish Network has partnered with Univision on an interactive advertising system that allows viewers to seek more information about an advertised product.

Under the agreement, the Spanish-language broadcaster can stream ads into Dish homes that offer the chance to receive more product details, receive coupons or free samples.

Dish homes that have a DVR will be able to use the RFI (request for information) opt-in function via a remote control. Univision, which reaches more than 12 million Hispanic homes, will be able to sell advertisers the chance to run a national spot that has an RFI opportunity attached to ads in the Dish subset.

The majority of Dish's more than 14 million subscribers have a DVR, though the satellite operator does not provide an exact number. Only homes with DVRs provided by Dish can receive the iTV ads; homes with stand-alone TiVo boxes cannot.

Dish will track metrics -- perhaps click-throughs and RFI requests -- for the iTV ads and issue reports to Univision, which can provide them to advertisers. Advertisers can use RFI campaigns to generate sales leads.

Canoe Ventures, owned by the six largest cable operators, has promised to launch a similar RFI opportunity for advertisers on national cable networks. Its RFI-equipped ads would be available on ads delivered to cable homes.

In an email Thursday, a Canoe representative said the system would be up and running by July 1, but did not provide further details.

Dish had a similar RFI set-up with NBC Universal in 2008 and 2009, but Univision is currently the only network using its technology. A Dish representative said in an email that it "hope(s) to bring this opportunity to other networks in the future" to supplement their inventory.

When an ad airs, an "interactive trigger," or prompt, is overlaid on the screen. A click takes viewers to a separate landing page to begin the opt-in process. The programming is minimized on a smaller box in the corner of the screen.

Univision Ad Sales Chief David Lawenda stated that the iTV function will offer our advertisers "the opportunity to interact with the U.S. Hispanic consumer in a relevant and more engaging environment that consumers control."

Separately on Thursday, Univision released first-quarter results that saw revenue for its networks and local stations rise 13% to $380 million. A year ago, with the economy in turmoil, Univision saw revenues fall 9%.