Give the magic: HP dv5tMarch 28, 2005 5:17 PM PST
TiVo tests pop-up-style ads
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TiVo, Comcast reach DVR deal
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TiVo looks to tune in to advertisers
March 23, 2004
The company confirmed late Monday that it released the first in a series of advertising features to a random and limited number of subscribers to the digital-video recorder service. The first test feature--a tag--pops up on the screen when a viewer is fast-forwarding through an advertisement.
If viewers press the thumbs-up or select button during the half second the tag is displayed, they will be redirected to a menu that leads to more information about the advertised product. The tag takes up about 25 percent of the screen, according to the company. TiVo said it is working with only one advertiser, a movie studio, on the trial balloon.
TiVo has been developing interactive advertising technology for some time, and while advertising accounts for just a fraction of TiVo's overall revenue, it could become more substantial. The interactive features would give advertisers information on consumer interest and, possibly, better access to couch potatoes.
Interactive advertising was part of TiVo's distribution deal with Comcast announced earlier this month.
The tools will be tested only on Series2 TiVo owners, but once completed could be applied to Series 1 and DirecTiVo customers. Subscribers can't opt out of the feature, but they can ignore the tags.
"Our goal is in no way to interfere with the TiVo experience," TiVo spokesman David Shane said.
Some viewers initially experienced technical problems with the advertising tag, according to Web postings, which TiVo confirmed and said only affected a small group of those involved in the test.
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Take cable or Satelite TV for instance. You have to pay a monthly fee for the service and very few channels are commercial free, sometimes none depending on the monthly plan chosen. Why are we paying in order to have commercials on our channels. Commercials should be for free TV only, as in broadcast TV.
I'm getting so sick and tired of being bombarded with ads everywhere I turn. Sports events and stadiums now have commercial names attached to them. Email and websites are loaded with ads. I can understand it for any free service, for it's now infiltrating pay services and I guess we just keep putting up with it like dumb sheep.
Enough is enough already!!
Dennis L
Take cable or Satelite TV for instance. You have to pay a monthly fee for the service and very few channels are commercial free, sometimes none depending on the monthly plan chosen. Why are we paying in order to have commercials on our channels. Commercials should be for free TV only, as in broadcast TV.
I'm getting so sick and tired of being bombarded with ads everywhere I turn. Sports events and stadiums now have commercial names attached to them. Email and websites are loaded with ads. I can understand it for any free service, for it's now infiltrating pay services and I guess we just keep putting up with it like dumb sheep.
Enough is enough already!!
Dennis L
The beauty of the VCR is that once you buy one, there is no monthly fee. You can use it as much as you want -- until it wears out. This is why VCR's became so popular -- they are cheap and reliable. As far as I can tell, a Tivo is no better than a VCR. Therefore, I will not be wasting my money on this foolishness.
What I will be doing instead is building a MythTV setup with HDTV tuner cards (which I will be buying well before July 1st, just in case broadcast flag is not overturned). I encourage anyone to check out eff.com for more info.
At one time I actually considered buying a Tivo. It is a good concept (recording television to a hard drive rather than tape) very poorly executed (required subscription, encrypted recordings, and now apparently additional advertising). It seems obvious that Tivo is nothing more than a sellout to the content recycling companies. Tivo can cry me a river, I now look forward to their eventual demise.
- Not all TiVos are analog. The DirecTV and new Comcast boxes store the programming in all of its digital glory. They also make HDTV TiVos now, too.
- Comparing TiVo to a VCR is facetous. TiVo has tons more features. The short list: 1) Quality of audio and video, 2) Wishlists, 3) No cluttery media, 4) Random access to content, 5) No programming, 6) No blinking 12:00, 7) Dual tuners on some models mean you can record two shows and watch a third prerecorded show, all simultaneously, 8) Home media option allows you to record once and watch anywhere, 9) "Suggestions"--I've actually forgotten to set my TiVo to record something and found that it recorded it anyway, 10) Go read TiVo ads if you really want more reasons.
- MythTV is a SERIOUS pain, even to tech savvy people, and when all is said and done, it is very expensive. Compare the cost of buying a computer to the cost of a good deal on a TiVo. It's cheaper to buy a TiVo with the lifetime subscription (no monthly fees) than to build a MythTV box. Hey, don't get me wrong, I love MythTV, and if you can set one up, more power to you. But it's not for the same type of user.
- As for the advertising thing, as I said, I don't like the decision either. But it will be showing up only when you're fast-forwarding through commercials, so it's not like it's imposing on the programming you're trying to watch (unless you REALLY want to see those fast-forwarded commercials). Yes, all ads are bad, but let's not make mountains out of molehills.
I have a TiVo (and as mentioned above, a MythTV box). Is TiVo perfect? No. Do they make only good decisions? No. Would I give up my TiVo? Only if you pry it from my cold dead fingers.
The beauty of the VCR is that once you buy one, there is no monthly fee. You can use it as much as you want -- until it wears out. This is why VCR's became so popular -- they are cheap and reliable. As far as I can tell, a Tivo is no better than a VCR. Therefore, I will not be wasting my money on this foolishness.
What I will be doing instead is building a MythTV setup with HDTV tuner cards (which I will be buying well before July 1st, just in case broadcast flag is not overturned). I encourage anyone to check out eff.com for more info.
At one time I actually considered buying a Tivo. It is a good concept (recording television to a hard drive rather than tape) very poorly executed (required subscription, encrypted recordings, and now apparently additional advertising). It seems obvious that Tivo is nothing more than a sellout to the content recycling companies. Tivo can cry me a river, I now look forward to their eventual demise.
- Not all TiVos are analog. The DirecTV and new Comcast boxes store the programming in all of its digital glory. They also make HDTV TiVos now, too.
- Comparing TiVo to a VCR is facetous. TiVo has tons more features. The short list: 1) Quality of audio and video, 2) Wishlists, 3) No cluttery media, 4) Random access to content, 5) No programming, 6) No blinking 12:00, 7) Dual tuners on some models mean you can record two shows and watch a third prerecorded show, all simultaneously, 8) Home media option allows you to record once and watch anywhere, 9) "Suggestions"--I've actually forgotten to set my TiVo to record something and found that it recorded it anyway, 10) Go read TiVo ads if you really want more reasons.
- MythTV is a SERIOUS pain, even to tech savvy people, and when all is said and done, it is very expensive. Compare the cost of buying a computer to the cost of a good deal on a TiVo. It's cheaper to buy a TiVo with the lifetime subscription (no monthly fees) than to build a MythTV box. Hey, don't get me wrong, I love MythTV, and if you can set one up, more power to you. But it's not for the same type of user.
- As for the advertising thing, as I said, I don't like the decision either. But it will be showing up only when you're fast-forwarding through commercials, so it's not like it's imposing on the programming you're trying to watch (unless you REALLY want to see those fast-forwarded commercials). Yes, all ads are bad, but let's not make mountains out of molehills.
I have a TiVo (and as mentioned above, a MythTV box). Is TiVo perfect? No. Do they make only good decisions? No. Would I give up my TiVo? Only if you pry it from my cold dead fingers.
And as far as them losing an audience, I find it hard to believe. I am bombarded by ads all day long. On a typical commute, I am confronted by hundreds of billboards and radio ads. Even airplanes dragging ad banners behind them. I can't even go to the john in some places without having to look at an ad. They are even on the floor of the grocery store. My advice to the ad industry is to shutup. Just because you are not reaching one of my senses every moment I am awake does not mean that you are losing anything. Those rare times when I am not being assaulted by your uncreative and annoying schlock are pure bliss. Stay out of them.
They're going to overdo themselves into oblivion if they keep this up. :)
And as far as them losing an audience, I find it hard to believe. I am bombarded by ads all day long. On a typical commute, I am confronted by hundreds of billboards and radio ads. Even airplanes dragging ad banners behind them. I can't even go to the john in some places without having to look at an ad. They are even on the floor of the grocery store. My advice to the ad industry is to shutup. Just because you are not reaching one of my senses every moment I am awake does not mean that you are losing anything. Those rare times when I am not being assaulted by your uncreative and annoying schlock are pure bliss. Stay out of them.
They're going to overdo themselves into oblivion if they keep this up. :)
attempt by TiVo to try to find some sort of useable income from
an obsolete product. (The DVR concept is fine - the TiVo is just a
lousy and out-of-date implementation)
attempt by TiVo to try to find some sort of useable income from
an obsolete product. (The DVR concept is fine - the TiVo is just a
lousy and out-of-date implementation)
Ya want a dvr worth while....use your pc. Get a tv tuner card or special video card for your pc to record video to your computers' harddrive. This will give you alot more control over the situation. You can not only record, but edit and transport any recording. Doing this will increase the flexability and functionality of anything you choose to record. Once you buy a device to record video to your computers' harddrive, it's paid for...NO subscription fees.
Why would anyone want to pay money for all the useless crud that comes with the use of dvr's?
It's all going "computer" anyway. Why not do it in such a way that gives you more control?
For those of you who swear by Tivo....you can have it, Tivo has no place in my home (never has and never will).
Ya want a dvr worth while....use your pc. Get a tv tuner card or special video card for your pc to record video to your computers' harddrive. This will give you alot more control over the situation. You can not only record, but edit and transport any recording. Doing this will increase the flexability and functionality of anything you choose to record. Once you buy a device to record video to your computers' harddrive, it's paid for...NO subscription fees.
Why would anyone want to pay money for all the useless crud that comes with the use of dvr's?
It's all going "computer" anyway. Why not do it in such a way that gives you more control?
For those of you who swear by Tivo....you can have it, Tivo has no place in my home (never has and never will).
Either the adds support my use of the service by giving little or no monthly fee, or my fee buys me out of seeing the ads.
I WILL NOT PAY TO BE FORCED TO VIEW ADS!
Either the adds support my use of the service by giving little or no monthly fee, or my fee buys me out of seeing the ads.
I WILL NOT PAY TO BE FORCED TO VIEW ADS!
Premium channels don't (or shouln't I should say).
So why do I want to pay $ 12 / month to view more publicity?
So is either free with publicity or for a fee with a clean
experience.
It feels somewhat invasive
- So make the service free then
-
by emiliosic
March 29, 2005 7:05 AM PST
- So, analogous to TV channels, air channels have publicity.
-
Reply to this comment
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See all 64 Comments >>Premium channels don't (or shouln't I should say).
So why do I want to pay $ 12 / month to view more publicity?
So is either free with publicity or for a fee with a clean
experience.
It feels somewhat invasive