TiVo joins with Yahoo! to create internet-DVR Voltron
Well, the TiVo/Netflix thing kinda fell through, but maybe this is what they were talking about all those months ago when they said really cool things would be coming down the pipeline. The deal is mutually beneficial to both companies, TiVo, who is striving to differentiate itself from knock-off DVR boxes, will gain a little added value. Yahoo! takes an important step in its evolution, attempting to break into other, non-internet mediums.
Yuanzhe Cai, the director of broadband research at Parks Associates, said: “We are seeing a lot of experimentation in terms of video programming through the Internet, and a lot of people are going to want to sit back and watch it on their TV. The big hurdle now is the digital rights issues of the studios and content owners.”
TiVo is caught in the middle. Its current digital recorder is capable of viewing programming from the Internet. Indeed, it recently did a test that allowed its users to download movies offered by the Independent Film Channel. “There is more video content that is coming down the broadband pipes,” said Tom Rogers, TiVo’s chief executive, referring to high-speed connections. He argued that TiVo’s technology could be important in helping providers that put programs on the Internet to gain a wider audience.
“People will be much more inclined to watch broadband-delivered video if it shows up on the TV screen,” he said, adding that business models for such programming have yet to be worked out.
But what does this mean for consumers? What does the partnership actually do?
First: what it doesn’t do. It doesn’t let you watch your recorded shows remotely from a computer. And it doesn’t let you download and watch video material from Yahoo! and watch it on your TV. Yet. It’s clearly Yahoo! and TiVo’s intention to eventually put some broadband video through the box in the future, but so far, no dice.
So what does it do? You can go online and log onto Yahoo, then follow the instructions to program your TiVo box from anwhere in the world. Let’s say you’re at the office and your boss starts talking about Wrestlemania, and d’oh, you forgot to set your TiVo to record it! Ok, bad example, but you get the idea. Also, in the next month or so you’ll be able to go onto your TiVo box and access Yahoo! news and weather updates. Not too exciting, but a lot of cool video options should come down the pipeline soon.
But of course all this is making cable and satelite providers a little edgy. And why wouldn’t they be? Cable has always feared TiVo. They’re feeling hurt, sad, possibly angry. Alone. They’re calling the move a “Cable-bipassor.” And that’s where the trouble begins.
…cable and satellite companies are becoming concerned about providers of video programming using the Internet to reach customers directly.
Larry Kramer, the president of CBS Digital Media, has explicitly called the network’s Internet video strategy a “cable bypass.”
Yuanzhe Cai, the director of broadband research at Parks Associates, said: “We are seeing a lot of experimentation in terms of video programming through the Internet, and a lot of people are going to want to sit back and watch it on their TV. The big hurdle now is the digital rights issues of the studios and content owners.”
I think this is a bit of an over-reaction, and shouldn’t hurt cable or satellite too much. What it has really done is given TiVo a new way to compete with media PCs, but turning any PC into sort of a media PC. Kind of.