TiVo May Be a Buyout Target 149
Moose writes "Ars Technica has a piece up about the takeover rumors surrounding TiVo, now that it has a lawsuit win to boost its chances in the marketplace. From the article: 'It appears that TiVo is at a major crossroads, with brilliant technology under what now appears to be enforceable patents and a rapidly growing subscriber base, but with larger players in the TV market lurking just out of sight, possibly with pen to checkbook already. The DVR innovator seems to have little control over its own destiny now, and future success may rest in the hands of the legal system. Godspeed, TiVo.'"
Fallen out of love w/ TiVo (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Fallen out of love w/ TiVo (Score:2, Informative)
you will hear a happy confirmation tone.
Re:Fallen out of love w/ TiVo (Score:2)
Re:Fallen out of love w/ TiVo (Score:2)
Re:Fallen out of love w/ TiVo (Score:2)
Works for me fine on a series 2 bought from TiVO last December.
That's the most valuable key on the whole box!
Re:Fallen out of love w/ TiVo (Score:2)
Once you see the show, back up using the backwards skip button (opposing the 30 second skip button). It is only 5 or 10 seconds, so you hit it 3-4 time, and you are back to TV.
If you try it both ways, the 30 second skip button is both much faster and requires less attention during the commercials.
Comcast Has nothing on my Tivo (Score:1)
Re:Fallen out of love w/ TiVo (Score:5, Interesting)
Tivo's greatest asset is its brand and unique UI, not its DVR. Tivo should give up its DVR sales and instead license its brand and UI to other DVR makers. This would give Tivo a more predictable income and allow the company to expand into other areas. The reason Tivo is a buyout target is because any CEO with half a brain has thought of this and sees the company as piggy bank just waiting to be cracked open.
If Tivo isn't willing to follow the lucrative business model sitting in front of them, a bigger company will gladly come along and "guide them" in the right direction.
Re:Fallen out of love w/ TiVo (Score:2)
Isn't this exactly what they're doing with their Comcast deal? I'm pretty sure they'll continue going down this road. There's nothing saying that they can't make their own DVRs while licensing the technology to other companies.
Re:Fallen out of love w/ TiVo (Score:2)
Re:Fallen out of love w/ TiVo (Score:2)
Everybody keeps rolling their own instead of paying the license fees.
Haven't there already been... (Score:1)
In the past month?
Re:Haven't there already been... (Score:2, Informative)
I want to switch, I really want to... (Score:2, Informative)
Re:I want to switch, I really want to... (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:I want to switch, I really want to... (Score:4, Insightful)
Whenever TiVo decides to release their cable compatible HD set, I'm taking this 6412 and inserting it into a Comcast Employee's ass.
Re:I want to switch, I really want to... (Score:3, Informative)
Re:I want to switch, I really want to... (Score:2)
And every time the techs come out to replace the box, I have to reconfigure it cause the retards have no idea how to set the output to 1080i rather than 480p.
Re:I want to switch, I really want to... (Score:2)
Re:I want to switch, I really want to... (Score:2)
Re:I want to switch, I really want to... (Score:2)
Don't hold your breath, but Comcast is supposedly working with TiVo to bring the Tivo software to the Comcast (Motorola) boxes. I'm not sure if the model 6412 is the same box as the PR releases but that's the story.
I'm sure Comcast will use this agreement to try to stay out of the patent lawsuit fire, now that TiVo has won against EchoStar (DiSH).
Re:I want to switch, I really want to... (Score:2)
Tivo rules! (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:Tivo rules! (Score:3)
Re:Tivo rules! (Score:1)
Not trying to throw stones here, but there's really nothing on television that I (personally) would find so important that I'd miss while out of town. For many years I didn't even own a television nor miss having one. Until my son started spending significant time in my home I had no need for it. The downside of having one now is that I can still hear Sponge
Re:Tivo rules! (Score:2)
Tivo truly
Re:Tivo rules! (Score:2)
I don't watch live TV at all. I've found that simply slurping an entire show, by which I mean every single season, off bittorrent really improves the quality of teh expierience. Despite the reduced quality, nothing quite beats watching the first four seasons of SG-1 over three weeks. It's a million times better than waiting
Re:Tivo rules! (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Tivo rules! (Score:2)
If you enjoy the show though, why do you seem to be opposed to everyone involved with it getting either 1) some of your money or 2) some of your time to give someone else a chance at (1)?
ReplayTV Rules Tivo (Score:2)
Hmm. My ReplayTV skips right over commercials, invisibly, silently, and with no fuss, and no silly 30-second button clicking.
Re:Tivo rules! (Score:2)
Re:Tivo rules! (Score:3, Insightful)
BZZZ you lose the Tivo Vs Myth for the average consumer.
Re:Tivo rules! (Score:2)
The original comment spawning this debate was "I've tried MythTV, and for all the work you put into it, it's still just a beta system that will fail you when you least expect it." A setup conflict that is resolved and goes away is not the same as a product "failing when you least expect it". Presumably, once set up it's solid.
I'm currently tweaking the setup of m
Isn't it sad or strange or both . . . (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:Isn't it sad or strange or both . . . (Score:1)
Re:Isn't it sad or strange or both . . . (Score:2)
If they are bought out (Score:3, Funny)
"Well that's too bad, I sort of liked them before; but now no way. Looks like its time to build my own DVR or switch to Myth TV becuase I could never use Windows Media Center, even if it was better."
By Google:
"Well that's awesome, maybe now ill be able to search through TV shows to find exactly the ones that I want and skip all the ones that aren't worth watching."
By Yahoo:
"Please provide your yahoo username, otherwise please create an account. It will be free until we get up to what Google would have done. And after 2 Gigs of storage you will have to pay again. Sorry for any incontinence."
Re:If they are bought out (Score:2)
On the other hand, the State of the Union address from Pinnochio himself would give you one way tickets to Toronto, Sydney, Tokyo, Paris and London. Basica
Re:If they are bought out (Score:1, Funny)
"Oh my GOD a new piece of Apple hardware??! I wonder if it syncs with my iPOD!?
Re:If they are bought out (Score:2)
Either way, I got a chuckle out of it.
Re:If they are bought out (Score:2)
That's the first step to Googlezon and the Google Grid [makingithappen.co.uk]!
Re:If they are bought out (Score:2)
"The TiVo you just bought last month is obsolete. Introducing the MacRecorder Pro. Its sexy! Steve Jobs has personally redesigned the remote. We've recorded every TV show ever broadcast for you at our Cupertino headquarters. You can buy them for 99 cents a show."
Why no Tivo in Canada? (Score:3, Insightful)
That said, it's only $25/month to rent the unit, and it has 2 tuners, meaning you can record 2 things at once (and watch a pre-recorded third program at the same time, if you want). I'd gladly pay a little extra to have a real Tivo unit.
Why aren't any Canadian companies using Tivo's technology? Has Tivo tried to crack the Canadian market? As I said, Rogers uses Scientific Atlanta. Bell has their own ExpressVu box. I have a co-worker who claims he bought a Tivo on his own, and it works on Rogers' network. So what's holding Tivo back from breaking into the Canadian market? Just curious, because I'm really getting sick of this Scientific Atlanta crap and would gladly upgrade.
Re:Why no Tivo in Canada? (Score:1)
What does this really mean?
Well you can get programming data for most (all?) Canadian tv providers, the catch is that you have to buy the Tivo hardware in the States (or over ebay or the excellent site http://www.weaknees.com/ [weaknees.com]).
Keep in mind that the series 3 Tivos should be out soon*.
*where soon is sometime in the next 6 months.
Re:Why no Tivo in Canada? (Score:2)
I have a Rogers digital cable and their pvr (8300HD). Actually got it free for 2 years, which is a nice price. Except for it missing some programs due to time zone changes or what not, I really can't see why I would want a Tivo and pay extra. This unit has a dual tunner,
Re:Why no Tivo in Canada? (Score:2)
Re:Why no Tivo in Canada? (Score:2)
Re:Why no Tivo in Canada? (Score:2)
That joke would be funny, if the Canadian dollar weren't so close to actually passing the US dollar in terms of valuation. Check out this graph [kombat.org]. When it reaches the top (1), they'll be equal. You can thank the US's outrageously irresponsible and uncontrollable borrowing and spending for causing such catastrophic devaluation of the US dollar.
Re:Why no Tivo in Canada? (Score:2)
Call up your credit card company, and put an alternate address on your credit card, use the address of a business that receives packages in the US. I used a UPS store just acrosss the border. Call up Tivo, order the machine, give them the UPS address as the shipping address, they'll receive it for you. Drive down to the States, pay the UPS g
Apple (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Apple (Score:3, Interesting)
What i would like though is a PVR unit like my Philips PVR, but one that has a network jack on the back to allow netowrk access to the hard disk, and playing of content via the network. Are there any PVRs out there like that, or has the DMCA i
Re:Apple (Score:2)
Re:Apple (Score:2)
Been using a mythtv system for over a year now and it has worked great. As others have stated it changes the way you watch TV. And the auto-commercial skip features are pretty good.
Re:Apple (Score:2)
Re:Apple (Score:2)
http://www.monolithmc.com/?gclid=CMLM0b3atoQCFQZL G god2CimAA [monolithmc.com]
http://store.interact-tv.com/store/ [interact-tv.com]
http://www.hackmyth.com/ [hackmyth.com]
And building your own is not that difficult or expensive.
Re:Apple (Score:2)
Re:Apple (Score:2)
Re:Apple (Score:2)
Re:Apple (Score:2)
The older models (like I have) had fully-automatic commercial skip. Now you have to manually skip through them like everyone else.
Replay doesn't
Re:Apple (Score:2)
My current recorder is a philips HDD/DVD recorder, which works very well and has a 6 hour buffer that it re
Re:Apple (Score:2)
It allows you to access the recorded content via a built in FTP server.
You can also go the other way and view content from your PC on your TV over your IP network
Re:Apple (Score:2)
Jedi mind trick!
*resists*
*fails*
Seriously though- thanks to everyone who posted replies to my question- you've realy opened my eyes to the (suitably expensive and occasionally open source) hardware that's out there. This looks like the closest I've seen to what I'm after. Pity these aren't mass-mass-market- if I didn't know about them then no-one I know is even aware they exist.
Re:Apple (Score:2)
Plug in a USB/Ethernet adapter, and put it on your network.
Tivo has a software package (windows only, I think... bummer) that will let you watch stuff on the Tivo on your computer. (Or burn to DVD, etc.) Not that useful to me... I don't use windows, and would rather watch TV on an actual TV anyway.
But if you have another Tivo (say, in another room), they can share their playlists over the network. (Watch stuff from one on the other. I Got a refurbished Tivo for
Re:Apple (Score:2)
Thanks"
Re:Apple (Score:1)
Re:Apple (Score:2)
And, yes, you'll be able to download it to your iPod, but only with purchase of the iTMS content version.
Re:Apple (Score:2)
It occurs to me that I'm dropping a good $750 on DTV every year. I have access to broadcast programming from all but ABC digital, and for under $300 I could get all the majors over the air in digital (new antenna and splitter/combiner electronics). There are, at most, three shows (no...four, almost forgot the occasion
Re:Apple (Score:2)
But my suspicion is this is exactly the opposite direction from where Apple wants to go--rather than providing a means for users to capture
ReplayTV all the way (Score:2)
Re:ReplayTV all the way (Score:2)
A Few Points (Score:3, Informative)
The new Tivo Series 3 adds HD Recording. It will have the ability to record one show and watch "live" television on another station. Even if both stations are HD.
It also adds the ability to hook up an External SATA hard drive to extend the storage capacity. No more cracking the case to add a hard drive. Finally, there is a RJ45 for standard networking connectivity.
Then, Comcast has agreed to go with Tivo for their customers. As a Comcast customer and a Tivo owner, I am really excited about this.
As for who would be interested in Tivo. I see two companies.
Apple - Tivo is Linux based. They have a lot of *nix experience on their side. It would really be a great Triple Threat for their Video offerings on ITunes. With the strong Tivo brand and the even stronger Apple brand, this would be a huge boost for Tivo.
Cisco - They already purchased Scientific Atlantic. They have their targets set on getting into the Consumer Market and really, really want to put a Cisco device on everyone's Television. Their motiviation is pushing Television over IP. They see it as the next big Networking push. And like Apple, they also have a ton of *nix experience on their staff.
I would be completely shocked if it was not one of these two companies that bought Tivo.
Tivo Is Dead! Long Live Tivo!
Re:A Few Points (Score:2)
Cisco also purchased Linksys who purchased Kiss Technology
Kiss is already making stuff very similar to TiVo http://www.kiss-technology.com/?p=products [kiss-technology.com]
As an Apple share holder I would rather see TiVO and NetFlix bought up by Apple.
Another victory for our broken patent system (Score:1)
Brilliant technology? (Score:2, Insightful)
Can someone please explain what brilliant technology is in a Tivo? I thought it just records and plays back video in digital form. From what I can gather what's made Tivo big is its usability. Am I missing something technical?
Re:Brilliant technology? (Score:2)
You have to think back to when the invention was made, and ask yourself if it were perfectly obvious to build a system to do a given job using the technologies available at the time.
Consider, for example, Mauchly and Eckert when they began building the first working electronic computer. Atanasoff may have built a digital computer of sorts in Iowa a few years before, but he was rejected by the
Re:Brilliant technology? (Score:1)
Not everything under the sun should be patentable. All they did was take existing technology and put it to use in a very obvious way. If any Tivo engineers or programmers are reading this, don't get me wrong, you did a marvelous job. The product is amazing, I love it.
Re:Brilliant technology? (Score:2, Interesting)
Not really. The concept of simultaneously reading and writing a computer file that happens to be video data was patented back in 1993 [uspto.gov] by somebody else. It's a very broad patent, and is not easily worked around like most of the patents that TiVo actually filed.
Now TiVo owns the rights to that patent, but it's because they bought it out a couple of years
Re:Brilliant technology? (Score:1)
2.) The rest of it is just a very well designed interface on top, that pretty much exposes everything that it should be able do as a consequence of 1.
For myself, it wasn't until I used it first hand that I understood everything that is encompassed in 2. Here are a few main points:
Note: I have DirecTV, so I have two tuners in
Re:Brilliant technology? (Score:1)
Re:Brilliant technology? (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Brilliant technology? (Score:2)
Will it bring their technology outside the US (Score:2)
What amazes me too is how Tivo doesn't seem to be able to license its technology to other players in the m
EchoStar should buy them out... (Score:1)
Re:EchoStar should buy them out... (Score:2)
Not only that, but they would also get to licence the technology to Time-Warner, Hughes, Commcast... All their competitors.
When _hasn't_ TiVo been a takeover target? (Score:2)
Oh, and btw, since the last software update I've had to reset my 30-second skip like 10 times now. I assume that this is the prelude to removing 30-second skip.
Warning to Tivo: DO NOT FUCK WITH 30-SECOND SKIP.
Cisco Should Buy Them (Score:2, Insightful)
Or Not (Score:2)
I don't agree. We don't need TiVo to have DVR's. And with the way TiVo is both trying to force their units (patents at least) on all other competitors, and keeps caving into the content industry (automatic deletions, no 30-second commercial skip without a hack that may be closed on any forced update) I foresee a TiVo-based future of ever higher prices for ever less control over one's content.
YMMV.
Go directly to Comcast, do not collect $200 (Score:2)
Google, please buy TiVo (Score:2)
And for added bonus, the logo colors are practically identical.
It just seems like such an obvious fit. If only they could see it.
Re:I said it before ... (Score:2)
Re:I said it before ... (Score:2)
Layoff the entire staff, move the BUs to india and be done with.
I swear to god if I hear "I tivo'ed that episode" one more time I'm gonna be linked to some fairly hefty crimes against humanity.
Tom
Re:I said it before ... (Score:2, Funny)
Re:I said it before ... (Score:1)
Re:I said it before ... (Score:3, Funny)
Re:I said it before ... (Score:1, Funny)
Re:This is a must see Post!!! (Score:2)
Re:Tivo Saves me Money (Score:3, Insightful)
For my wife, the best part of the whole thing are the suggestions. It's likely the reason
Re:Tivo Saves me Money (Score:2)
I suppose if it had folders I might bea able to convince the wife to let go of her box and we could reduce the costof our monthly sub to DTV, but th
Re:Tivo Saves me Money (Score:1)
With this vastly complicated system (not to mention expensive, I paid almost $3 for that splitter) I am able to record all my regularly scheduled programs, while letting my daughter watch Dora the Explorer live on TV. Granted, she has
Re:Tivo Saves me Money (Score:2)