New features seem pretty sparse, though there will be some limited video export capability to enable transfer of some video content to portable devices, like the PSP and iPod. There are two purchase options available: a software, tuner and remote package for the totally unequipped and a software-only package, retailing for $199 and $99, respectively. Each package comes with a year of TiVo service, after which renewal will be a flat fee of $99 a year. Nero LiquidTV/TiVo PC will be available from October 15th. [WSJ]

Cablevision sees RS-DVRs as a way to reduce the price of service and offer more storage, and the option to expand your storage if you can't bear to part with your saved seasons of Big Brother, seasons 20-26. I see a potential bandwidth problem considering how often my Time Warner on demand is "unavailable." Either way never a terrible thing to see tech defeat ridiculous copyright haggling. [Reuters]

Following Sciacca's advice, I ran a Google search for "'Survivor' 'dvr' 'didn't record'", and found several message board posts detailing similar problems. The issue is present in other DVR types as well, including DirecTV and standalone TiVo. However, some other users say that they haven't experienced any problems with their time-shifted Survivor eps at all. To make sure this problem was confined to Survivor, I checked other popular shows like Lost and American Idol, and came up empty-handed.

We've put in a call to CBS to explain this paranormal activity, and the folks there are looking into the problem. Sciacca suggests that this may be a case of altering show metadata to instruct DVRs to stop recording—in the past, networks have been known to alter their programming to stop DVR users from getting content (and skipping ads)—but we will reserve judgment until we hear more. In the meantime, if you've been experiencing similar problems, please share. [Sound & Vision]

Live TV to Tivo Central - around 1 sec faster
Now Playing Scrolling - around 1 sec faster
Channel Change Up - around 1 sec faster
Confirm recording-> Confirm - around 3-5 sec faster
Create Season Pass - around 5-10 sec faster
Season Pass Manager - Priority - around 30 sec faster

The upgrade will roll out nationwide in the weeks to come, but soon you'll be able to get on a priority update list (you know, for people who pay attention to this kind of thing) on tivo.com. Check back here later today, cuz we're trying to get the direct URL for you. [TiVo]

Starting today, TiVo users can subscribe to and watch a broad range of video content available through Real Simple Syndication ("RSS") feeds, including everything from network nightly newscasts and The Sesame Street Podcast to Daily Headlines from MTV News and College Humor from CHTV. The application also gives consumers access to niche interest and hobbyist videos covering areas far more specialized than cable and satellite channels.

The new Web video capability requires TiVo Desktop Plus 2.6, an update to the Windows application which also converts TV shows recorded on a TiVo DVR for viewing on portable devices including iPod and Sony PlayStation™ Portable. TiVo Desktop Plus 2.6 is available for a one-time fee of $24.95, and is a free upgrade to earlier versions. "TiVo continues to work with Roxio on delivering equivalent functionality on the Mac platform."

With this new feature, users can choose web videos downloaded on the home PC using web browsers, RSS video clients such as iTunes podcasts, or other video download software to automatically copy to their TiVo DVR's Now Playing List alongside recorded broadcast and cable TV shows. TiVo is also providing an on-screen guide of select Web video sources for users to browse and select as individual episodes or get a Season Pass™. Subscribers can even use the TiVo service's Season Pass functionality to get their own personal video folders on their PC, where they save their home movies and other video downloads. High Definition television enthusiasts will appreciate that TiVo preserves the original quality of high-resolution web videos, up to 720p, when delivered to TiVo Series3 or TiVo HD DVRs.

CANAL+ Chooses the Latest Generation of NDS Middleware to Transform Subscribers' Set-Top Boxes into Digital Video Recorders

¶ Highlights: ¶ — CANAL+ GROUP has deployed the latest generation of NDS' MediaHighway(R) middleware, allowing subscribers to easily transform their HD set-top boxes (STBs) into HD digital video recorders (DVRs) ¶ — CANAL+ and CANALSAT subscribers in France can now add an external hard drive via the USB port on their HD STB to have a fully functional HD DVR ¶ — CANAL+ has also deployed NDS' MediaHighway to support its latest dual-tuner HD STB
LONDON & PARIS —(Business Wire)— Feb. 26, 2008 NDS (NASDAQ:NNDS), the leading provider of technology solutions for digital Pay-TV, today announced that CANAL+ GROUP, France's leading Pay TV provider, has chosen the latest generation of MediaHighway(R) middleware to enable subscribers to transform their HD STBs into DVRs. CANAL+ launched its first HD STB two years ago and currently there are about 250,000 HD satellite STBs installed in subscribers' homes.

CANAL+ subscribers can connect an external hard disk to their HD STB via the USB port. Only external hard disk units which meet the requirements of CANAL+ for performance, stability and security will be integrated to provide the service. On its website, CANAL+ GROUP publishes a list of approved hard disks that are now available to buy in retail outlets.

As part of the adoption of the new version of MediaHighway, the middleware has automatically downloaded new software to each HD STB. The HD STBs now detect the addition of a new external hard drive and format the drive for use as a DVR. Subscribers may use more than one external hard drive if they wish.

CANAL+ has kicked off a marketing program to encourage customers to upgrade to HD and DVR functionality.

In addition, NDS today announced that CANAL+ has deployed NDS' MediaHighway to support its latest satellite dual-tuner HD STB for the French market.

MediaHighway is the market-leading middleware for digital pay TV worldwide. There are currently over 76.4 million NDS middleware clients deployed, and there are over 10.4 million NDS-powered DVRs in viewers' homes around the world.

"MediaHighway was the only middleware that enabled CANAL+ to offer its consumers the choice of industry-leading pay-TV solutions it required. MediaHighway has demonstrated yet again that it can handle complex requirements," commented Caroline Le Bigot, NDS Vice President, EMEA.

About CANAL+ GROUP

CANAL+ GROUP is the leader in Pay-TV in France with more than 10 million subscriptions to a wide range of offers including CANAL+, CANALSat and the former TPS. Within its offer, CANAL+ LE BOUQUET, the first multi-channel premium offer in France, available via satellite, cable, digital terrestrial television and ADSL networks, features six premium content channels built around the leading premium general-interest channel, CANAL+. CANAL+ GROUP also produces a range of channels dedicated to subscribers' favorite themes which include films (CineCinema), sport (Sport+, Infosport), news (i>Tele), series (Jimmy), documentaries (Planete) and programs for young people (Piwi, Teletoon). CANAL+ GROUP distributes CANALSAT as well, a multichannel offering available on satellite, cable, ADSL, DTT through a minipack and adapted for third generation (3G) mobile telephones. CANAL+ GROUP is also a major producer of French pay-TV channels and, through StudioCANAL, a significant contributor to the financing, acquisition and distribution of films. A pionner in new technologies, CANAL+ GROUP is the first Pay TV operator to have launched HD programs via satellite in Spring 2006 and have today the largest offering in the French TV market with more than 10 HD channels.

About NDS

NDS Group plc (NASDAQ:NNDS), a majority owned subsidiary of News Corporation, supplies open end-to-end digital technology and services to digital pay-television platform operators and content providers. See http://www.nds.com for more information about NDS.

UPDATE: Also, TiVo is offering 3 months free service with the purchase of their TiVo HD.

JAMAN AND TIVO EXPAND INDEPENDENT AND INTERNATIONAL FILM ACCESS DIRECT TO THE LIVING ROOM

Jaman Internet Movie Service to be Available on the TiVo® Service

ALVISO and SAN MATEO, Calif. - January 17, 2008 - Jaman.com, a leading Internet movie service, and TiVo Inc. (NASDAQ: TIVO), the creator of and a leader in television services for digital video recorders (DVRs), today announced that TiVo subscribers will soon be able to access thousands of American independent and international film titles directly from the TV screen via their TiVo DVR. The service will be available in the coming months to broadband-connected TiVo Series2™ and Series3™ subscribers. Viewers will be able to browse and select from Jaman's premier library, featuring internationally-acclaimed titles such as Oscar-nominated "Paheli," "Loverboy" (Sundance) with Kyra Sedgwick, "All About Lily Chou-Chou" (Berlin International Film Festival) and Dardennes Brothers' "La Promesse" (Cannes/Toronto), helping to open up a new world of content to TiVo subscribers.

TiVo and Jaman's relationship significantly expands the number of independent and international titles available to TiVo subscribers while providing a perfect complement to TiVo's popular Amazon Unbox offering, which currently boasts thousands of movies and TV shows. The combination of high-definition content from Jaman, with the convenience and familiarity of TiVo's intuitive interface, will provide users with the ability to discover and enjoy films from around the world.

"By capitalizing on TiVo's vast big-screen user experience, we're making it even easier for people to discover, browse and enjoy our catalog of high definition, edgy and award-winning films on their TVs," said Jaman's CEO Gaurav Dhillon. "This venture cements our position as a leading online provider of movies, offering unique and original content that viewers can't find anywhere else."

The relationship with TiVo extends Jaman's broad cross-platform leadership with support for set-top boxes, PCs, Macs, SanDisk's TakeTV and DivX. It also illustrates the continuing emphasis TiVo is placing on providing unique broadband services to their customers. Whether it's thousands of movie and TV shows from Amazon Unbox, or millions of songs available through Rhapsody, TiVo lovers have more ways than ever to get great content on their TiVo DVR.

"We're delighted to introduce the availability of Jaman to our TiVo subscribers and we think it'll prove to be an exceptionally popular addition to our already robust broadband offerings," said Tara Maitra, Vice President and GM of Content Services at TiVo Inc. "This joint alliance significantly increases the selection of international and award-winning movies made available to TiVo subscribers, giving them more choices and easy access to premium content not available elsewhere."

With Jaman on TiVo, viewers will be able to both rent and purchase films starting at $1.99, with a number of shorts and full-length films that are available to download for free. Visit www.jaman.com to check out the vast library of movies that will soon be available on TiVo DVR. TiVo boxes are available at leading consumer electronic retailers including Best Buy and Circuit City. See www.TiVo.com for details.

The sample size will be 20,000 homes, which for now is comprised of volunteers enticed into letting loose their persona details by a raffle offering the chance to win a free Tivo. The group is six times larger than Nielsen's sample of 3,000. It's also one-upping Nielsen in that it "will offer marketers the opportunity to survey some of its users via an online poll to ask deeper questions about their viewing habits and their feelings about both the ads and the marketers."

Though the info brigade is all-volunteer for now, Tivo's considering allowing advertisers to compare their customer database's with Tivo's, "which would help the advertisers see in greater detail how people's viewing habits affect their purchases." It's increasingly looking like your lifetime subscription might guarantee you Tivo for life, but it's sure not going to guarantee your privacy for that long. [WSJ (sub req'd)]

WD(R) Delivers Hundreds More Hours to High Definition TiVo(R) DVRs

My DVR Expander(TM) External Hard Drives Verified Compatible with TiVo Series3(TM) HD And TiVo HD DVRs

LAKE FOREST, Calif., Oct. 23 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Expanding consumers' TV recording capabilities by as many as hundreds of hours, WD(R) (NYSE: WDC) today announced that its My DVR Expander(TM) external hard drives are verified compatible with TiVo(R) HD and TiVo Series3(TM) DVRs (digital video recorders). Available now at Best Buy retail stores and online at TiVo.com/store, the My DVR Expander external hard drive is capable of storing up to 300 hours of digital standard-definition (SD) or up to 60 hours of high-definition (HD) television programming based on 500 GB of hard drive storage(1). Users can instantly expand their recording capacity by simply attaching the My DVR Expander drive to their TiVo HD and TiVo Series3 HD DVRs. The My DVR Expander external hard drive is designed for TiVo subscribers who want even more room to store not only broadcast content, but also broadband content that TiVo makes available through TiVoCast partners, including movie and TV downloads via Amazon Unbox(TM) on TiVo.

"We're thrilled to team up with WD to enhance the personal viewing experience on TiVo by providing subscribers with an easy-to-use solution that allows them to get even more out of their DVR with extra hours of space for more of the content they enjoy," said Jim Denney, vice president of product marketing, TiVo. "With the growth in HD content available today, DVR capacity becomes more important to our subscribers who do not want to miss a minute of their favorite TV shows."

"As the adoption of storage-hungry HDTV continues to grow, the demand for additional storage becomes increasingly important to consumers," said Jim Welsh, vice president and general manager of WD's branded products and consumer electronics businesses. "WD's My DVR Expander external hard drive enables consumers to have greater control and convenience over their entertainment options."

Compatibility

The My DVR Expander external hard drive, a TiVo Verified(TM) product, has been tested for compatibility with TiVo HD and TiVo Series3 HD DVRs. It is certified compatible with Scientific Atlanta 8300 Series digital video recorders (including models 8300 HD, 8300 MR and 8300 HD-MR). Further compatibility of the My DVR Expander drive is planned as other cable and satellite DVR manufacturers enable the eSATA (external SATA) ports on their currently-deployed DVRs.

Availability and Pricing

WD's My DVR Expander external hard drive is available now in the United States from Best Buy retail stores and by ordering online from TiVo.com/store. MSRP for the My DVR Expander drive with 500 GB is $199.99 USD.

More information on the My DVR Expander external drive may be found at http://www.tivo.com/expand.

Because DVRs make skipping over commercials so easy, Nielsen is now rating commercials themselves, based in part on how often people stop fast-forwarding and watch them. According to a New York Times report, DVRs have also affected show ratings themselves: after a single night, a show like How I Met Your Mother might have a 2.7, but by the end of the week, when everyone with a DVR has watched it, the rating might be much higher, at 4.1. The trouble is, both of these new ratings take weeks to process.

There here are some issues that the article didn't mention, though.

1) What about dual-tuner DVRs? On a Sunday night, I can watch Family Guy and Cold Case, even though they are on opposite one another. Since DVRs in general only make up about 20 percent of the viewing audience, it may not be significant yet, but that's going to really screw up ratings as we know it.

2) What about the DVR providers? TiVo and the like must have ridiculous realtime information about who watches what and which commercials are funny enough to stop for. Nielsen has a pretty elaborate system that has worked for networks and advertisers for many years, but TiVo or the cable co's could walk in with a few realtime charts and shut that thing down quick, right?

Maybe part of the reason TiVo has lasted so long through thick and thin is that it gets serious Nielsen consulting fees. [NYT]

Press release:

TiVo Service Now Available to CABLEVISION Subscribers in Mexico City

- Spanish language version of TiVo user interface helps CABLEVISION further differentiate services and expands TiVo's international presence -

ALVISO, Calif., Sept 13, 2007 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX News Network/ —

TiVo Inc. (Nasdaq: TIVO), the creator of and a leader in television services for digital video recorders (DVRs), and CABLEVISION, S.A. de C.V. (CABLEVISION), Mexico's largest digital cable operator, announced that beginning today TiVo(R) DVRs and the TiVo(R) Service are available for the first time to CABLEVISION's digital cable subscribers throughout Mexico City.

CABLEVISION subscribers can now access the first Spanish language version of the Emmy(R) award-winning TiVo user interface, which includes internationally recognized TiVo features like SeasonPass(TM) recordings, WishList(R) searches and TrickPlay functionality, which enables users to pause, rewind, instant replay and slo-motion live TV.

Chief Executive Officer of CABLEVISION Jean-Paul Broc said, "The combination of TiVo's state-of-art technology and breadth of services with CABLEVISION's superior digital cable programming creates an unmatched television viewing experience for our subscribers in Mexico City. We are extremely enthusiastic that the opportunity to bring the TiVo service to Mexico City has come to fruition and are confident that the TiVo brand will not only increase customer loyalty but serve as a driver of new cable subscribers."

"TiVo continues to make sustained progress across international markets and CABLEVISION in Mexico is another example," said Tom Rogers, President and CEO of TiVo. "Growing our business with the right partners is critical and our strategic distribution relationship with CABLEVISION, and its parent Televisa, is proof of that. TiVo will enable CABLEVISION to further differentiate its pay television service and maximize its programming packages. The combination of TiVo and CABLEVISION will offer the best entertainment experience for subscribers in Mexico."

CABLEVISION is introducing the TiVo service to Mexico City consumers through a broad-based media campaign including cross-channel and broadcast television, print, online, radio and outdoor advertising. In addition, CABLEVISION plans to leverage its extensive programming assets and celebrity spokespeople to promote TiVo capabilities on air.

TiVo service is being offered to CABLEVISION subscribers as a package with a monthly charge covering both service and box rental.

Most DVRs offer gray bars and gray letterboxing as a way around this dilemma, because gray is the color of average, even screen wear. It is odd that DirecTV would allow for a breach this major so deep into the game. That said, I am sitting here wondering if this is less an indictment of DirecTV's homespun DVR box, and more an indictment of plasma technology. I've owned a plasma for some years, and have always been careful not to do anything that might introduce uneven screen burn, but now that LCDs are looking so tasty, I'm wondering if what was once a minor sacrifice is now a fatal flaw. [HD Guru]

As a Cablevision subscriber with all of the channels the carrier now offers, all I can say is, "Please, dear God, no more programming!" Why would I say this?

The story mentions that Comcast and DirecTV are also building up capacity for HD, but not once does the story mention how the hell anyone intends to access this veritable sh'load of content. Cablevision, based mostly in and around the New York metropolitan area, uses the same Scientific Atlanta Explorer 8300HD that its archrival Time Warner Cable NYC uses, yet with an even worse user interface, if you can imagine it:

• There's no way to search for shows (without growing a full beard in the process)
• There are 17 redundant options for scheduling a season pass, yet no way to skip recording one given episode
• By default, old content stays and when capacity is reached it stops recording new content, with no warning
• DVR and VOD options are separate channels, so there's no good way to do contextual search, among many other problems

I have been contemplating it, but now I will solemnly vow it: I will walk the fiery-coal path towards a Cablevision CableCard, to use with DVRs from TiVo and Microsoft. I will do so in the name of Giz, and in the name of 500-channel shitty-DVR sufferers everywhere. Down with the CableCo-mandated EPG!!! – Wilson Rothman

Cablevision could air 500 HD channels by year-end [Reuters]

Here's what CNN says we need to keep an eye on for the next few (months? years? the article doesn't specify): RFID, hybrid cars, HDTV, DVDs (as in Blu-ray and HD DVD), DVRs, Cellphones, E-ink and wireless networks.

CNN is stuck in 2004 it seems.

Let's see here... hybrid cars have been around for a while (try sounding masculine while saying "Prius") and the same goes for HDTV. Cellphones are currently mired in "feature creep" mode while next-gen DVDs have all but committed seppuku. The best has to be wireless networking. If your house doesn't already have at least one insecure wireless connection, I doubt you even know how to spell "technology," let along know how to implement it.

Thanks, CNN, for telling us what to keep an eye on. Maybe next time they'll tell us that something called "video game" are popular with youngsters. – Nicholas Deleon

Thanks, Richard!

Trends in technology [CNN]

As a result, Cablevision said yesterday that it was halting the introduction of its network DVR, which was supposed to launch in the near future. It seems that the increasingly irrelevant "fair use" clause that Cablevision tried to invoke didn't help them out at all. The mighty hammer of Hollywood has stuck yet again. Honestly, though, are you even surprised? – Nicholas Deleon

Cablevision to Halt Video Recorder Test [AP/New York Times]

In other news, Big Oil is looking to shut down the sun because it provides free energy to the planet.

Cablevision has accused the studios of having no idea of how the underlying technology works, which is probably correct, and of being total jerks. As always with these lawsuits, stay tuned for more info as it develops. – Nicholas Deleon

Cablevision sued over planned DVR service [BusinessWeek/Associated Press via Zatz Not Funny]

Maybe this website update is a signal that the pace is picking up at TiVo. The company finally showed us an HD-capable, four-tuner stand-alone DVR at CES that might even ship this year, so bring on the HD, TiVo—we're getting sick and tired of these second-rate TiVo-wannabe HD DVRs.

TiVo Online Scheduling Gets Makeover [eHomeUpgrade]