last100 » TiVo

Internet TV news: BlackBerry, Blockbuster and TiVo, Netflix on PS3?

Steve O'Hear — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 16:22:37 +0000

A few Internet TV-related stories have been doing the rounds over the last few days that I’ve not yet had a chance to comment on. Here’s a quick catch-up.

BlackBerry to launch video download service

Research In Motion is close to launching a a full-episode television service for the company’s line of BlackBerry smartphones. An official announcement could come as early as next week at CTIA, reports NewTeeVee. Interesting tidbits include:

It will be an unlimited monthly subscription service for a fee
Once a user orders a program, the content will be downloaded in the background over Wi-Fi
Multiple broadcast and cable networks have licensed content for the service

As NTV notes, utilizing WiFi rather than 3G to deliver episodes to the phone enables RIM to bypass carriers, while at the same avoiding the inconvenience of side-loading content via a PC (iTunes style). Obviously it would be preferable to offer both options – WiFi and 3G – but that would likely mean sharing revenue, something that RIM, like Apple, is keen to avoid. As it stands, any direct paid-for content offering from RIM won’t sit well with carriers who still insist on owning the customer.

Blockbuster downloads coming to TiVo

Blockbuster’s On Demand movie rental service is coming to TiVo in the second half of this year, the two companies have announced. As part of the deal, TiVo set-top boxes will be sold at Blockbuster stores and via the video rental chain’s own website. This despite the fact that TiVo is fast becoming video download store agnostic, with Blockbuster joining existing services, Netflix, Jaman, Amazon and CinemaNow. The TiVo partnership is the latest evidence of Blockbuster playing catch-up in its move to expand into digital, following the lackluster launch of its own set-top box, and the more promising recent announcement that it is partnering with Sonic Solutions to reach portable media players, Blu-ray Disc players, personal video recorders (PVRs), set-top boxes, mobile phones and Web-connected television sets.

Netflix on PS3?

Despite having a close and successful relationship with Microsoft’s XBox 360, it looks like Netflix is still exploring customer demand to bring its ‘Watch Instantly’ streaming service to Sony’s PS3 games console. A recent customer survey talks up the possibility of purchasing a $9.99 Netflix disc for the PS3 to unlock access to ‘Watch Instantly’, presuming that you’re an existing subscriber of course. Were this to ever come to market it’s unclear if Netflix would need Sony’s approval – although I suspect they would – and it would also mean an end to XBox 360 exclusivity, something that Microsoft wouldn’t be too keen on. A lot of ifs and buts then, so we’ll see.

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TiVo gets its Netflix fix

Steve O'Hear — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 17:04:21 +0000

The roll out of TiVo’s support for Netflix’s ‘Watch Instantly’ Internet TV service is now complete, reports Zatz Not Funny. As of today, “TiVo Series 3, HD, and HD XL subscribers who also partake in an unlimited Netflix plan will be able to stream a wide variety of video content at no additional cost.”

Dave Zatz’s verdict:

While the hybrid Netflix+TiVo interface isn’t as snappy as my Xbox or Roku boxes, receiving Netflix digital video on a DVR – a primary television set-top box – is extremely significant. Also notable, this represents the first time TiVo has facilitated high definition Internet video.

Dave’s only real complaint is that there’s not enough compelling content available through Netflix’s streaming catalog, something that should improve over time.

As I noted when Netflix first made the announcement, adding support for TiVo marks an impressive six months for the company in which it has delivered on its promise to bring its Internet TV offering on to many devices beyond the PC: Netflix streaming is now available on game consoles (Microsoft’s XBox 360), set-top boxes (Roku), DVRs (TiVo) and Internet connected DVD players (LG and Samsung).

Check out ZNF’s video demo of Netflix on TiVo after the jump…

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TiVo bridges the pizza to TV gap

Steve O'Hear — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 20:56:12 +0000

Not content with trying to solve the PC to TV problem, TiVo has teamed up with Dominoes Pizza to “give broadband connected TiVo subscribers the ability to order pizza for delivery or pick-up, and track delivery timing, right from their TV sets.”

While ordering a pizza directly through the TV, all without leaving the couch, seems like a neat idea, it’s utility maybe limited, particularly for the laptop generation. As Dave Zatz points out, the 10 foot UI of a TiVo will have a hard time beating the efficiency of the 2 foot browsing experience provided by a PC. And since many people, myself included, already watch TV with a laptop (or netbook) at hand, why not just visit Dominoes’ website or any takeaway delivery service of choice, and place an order that way.

However, for those users that don’t always have a PC on their lap, the Dominoes integration could provide an additional revenue stream for TiVo, presuming the company is getting a healthy kick back from Dominoes. On that note, the pizza tie-in isn’t the only e-commerce feature integrated into the company’s set-top box. Users also have the ability to “find and purchase products on Amazon.com related to a customer’s favorite TV show” and can purchase cinema tickets through Fandango – all via their TiVo remote.

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Zatz Not Funny: TiVo, Flip MinoHD, CES Unveiled and more

Steve O'Hear — Sun, 16 Nov 2008 18:43:30 +0000

A periodic roundup of relevant news from our friends at Zatz Not Funny (one of my all time favorite blogs)…

Flip goes HD, adds FlipShare software

Mari Silbey: Pure Digital unveiled its anticipated Flip MinoHD today packaged with new FlipShare software for editing and sharing… One of the issues with the Flip camcorders to date has been keeping a sharp focus for close-up shots. According to a Flip spokesperson, the MinoHD doesn’t necessary solve that problem, with the minimum focus range staying at 80 cm. However, it’s likely not a significant concern for casual users, particularly with the new HD resolution.

(Ed. I looked at purchasing a Flip but after reading multiple reviews I’ve plunged for the more expensive Sanyo HD800 – review coming soon).

Dave dumps XM (again)

Dave Zatz: See ya, XM. I was on the fence and you pushed. Our time together has been mostly positive, but the massive lineup modifications yesterday without any advance notification isn’t the proper way to treat your customers. So I’m walking.

The phones of CES Unveiled

Dave Zatz: Though CES Unveiled was a modest 3 hour event, both Samsung and Motorola were promoting their latest wares… While visiting Sling’s table, I also spent some time with their still-under-development Blackberry client. The Slingbox software’s currently in private beta, but is looking good – especially on the gorgeous Bold screen.

The CES Unveiled Proofs of Concept

Dave Zatz: I ran across two very interesting and diminutive products at CES Unveiled earlier this week — Micro “personal” projectors and “thin client” computers. While the technology is compelling, I suspect the implementation will have to improve and the challenge these products solve will have to be clarified before we’d see any sort of mainstream or mass market adoption. Generating positive attention and finding commercial success are two entirely different matters.

Unboxing Nero Liquid TV TiVo

Dave Zatz: Announced about a year ago, the Nero+TiVo collaboration has finally borne fruit. Here in North America. Interesting, as this was originally positioned as a means of international TiVo expansion.

Obama brings YouTube to the White House

Mari Silbey: Obama appears to be planning a weekly video address to be distributed on the White House’s own YouTube Channel. During the campaigns both political parties used online video extensively, but we’ve had no real indications until now of how much the government-based “new media” rage would continue post election.

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iPhone app climbs Apple’s ‘walled garden’ to display photos on TiVo

Steve O'Hear — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 16:42:12 +0000

DVRPics is a new application for iPhone and iPod touch that enables you to stream photos to a networked TiVo so that they can be viewed on the TV.

Currently only one photo can be selected at a time — a limitation the app’s developer blames on Apple, since third-party developers aren’t given direct access to the iPhone’s photo library. However, a version of DVRPics that supports photo slide shows is next on the app’s road map. The app costs 99 cents from the iTunes AppStore (iTunes link).

Interestingly, DVRPics isn’t the only TiVo-related app for the iPhone. After a quick search I discovered an app called DVR Shows (iTunes link) that enables you to see what recordings are stored on your TiVo via an iPhone or iPod touch, including full program details. Unsurprisingly, you can’t actually stream those recordings to the iPhone or even use the iPhone as a TiVo remote a la iTunes or the recently released iPhone app for Sonos.

Apple’s ‘walled garden’

The workarounds and limitations of both apps reinforce the need for Apple (and TiVo) to become members of the Digital Living Network Alliance (DLNA) and support industry standards for sharing media around the home. As I noted in my recently published guide to DLNA goodness:

Missing in action is a major player like Apple, a company that has done more than most to simplify our digital lifestyles but whose ‘walled garden’ approach to digital media is apparent in its lack of UPnP AV support.

Unless Apple has an unlikely change of heart and decides to support the DLNA’s UPnP AV or similar standards for sharing media between devices, developers will be forced to to climb walls, with limited success.

Image credit: TiVo Community

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After on-off relationship, Netflix streaming comes to TiVo

Steve O'Hear — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 14:30:40 +0000

It may have taken four years but they got there in the end. Netflix and TiVo today announced that the two companies have began rolling out access to Netflix’s ‘Watch Now’ video streaming service on Internet connected TiVos.

As Dave Zatz notes:

The process probably hasn’t played out exactly the way TiVo and Netflix anticipated when they initially inked a development agreement in 2004… In fact, the struggle to find content and move this project forward drove Netflix CEO Reed Hastings to declare there’s “no work going on,” “no content,” and “no point” in 2005. Fast forward a few years and it’s pretty clear that the landscape has drastically shifted. Content is everywhere and Netflix intends to serve as many platforms as possible: “We want to be integrated on every Internet-connected device, game system, high-definition DVD player and dedicated Internet set-top box.”

It’s pretty impressive that over the last six months Netflix has delivered on its promise to bring its Internet TV offering on to many devices beyond the PC. What sounded like pie in the sky – especially in light of the company’s on-off relationship with TiVo – has actually panned out, in which Netflix streaming is available on game consoles (Microsoft’s XBox 360), set-top boxes (Roku), DVRs (TiVo) and Internet connected DVD players (LG and Samsung).

Want to hear more from Netflix’s CEO? We got a spare ticket for NewTeeVee Live in San Fran. on Nov 13 where he’ll be speaking. (See: NewTeeVee Live: last100 reader discount and ticket giveaway)

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Don’t call it a hobby: Netflix and TiVo continue to push Internet TV into the living room

Steve O'Hear — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 15:33:24 +0000

No longer content with dissing his company’s own offering, Apple CEO Steve Jobs is now calling the whole product category a “hobby”. But that isn’t stopping others from forging ahead to bring Internet TV into the living room, with both TiVo and Netflix rolling out partnerships this week to give their customers more content and hardware choices respectively. But first back to what Jobs said during the company’s Q4 earnings call on Tuesday.

“I think the whole category is still a hobby right now. I don’t think anybody has succeeded at it and actually the experimentation has slowed down”, said Jobs in answer to one analyst’s question about how Apple sees the digital living room opportunity in the next year. “A lot of the early companies that were trying things have faded away, so I’d have to say that given the economic conditions, given the venture capital outlooks and stuff, I continue to believe it will be a hobby in 2009.” (via Seeking Alpha)

That’s a fairly dire prognosis from Jobs, and suggests that the company might purposely be taking its eye off the ball when it comes to the living room, especially as Apple pursues more developed and profitable markets such as that of the iPhone (although you should always be careful when taking what Jobs says at face value). Either way, for those companies that are still in the market, now seems like an ideal opportunity for greater experimentation and to give consumers more non-Apple choices. On that note, let’s return to those announcements.

Netflix finally revealed that its much touted fourth set-top box partner is Samsung. Two of the company’s new Blu-ray players, the Samsung BD-P2550 and BD-P2500, can now access Netflix’s ‘Watch Now’ streaming service, either out of the box or via a firmware update (’unlimited’ Netflix subscribers only). Samsung also announced that the BD-P2550 was adding support for the streaming music service Pandora (a last100 favorite). Samsung joins LG, Roku and Microsoft (Xbox 360) as Netflix’s current hardware partners.

Meanwhile, TiVo is moving forward with its previously announced plans to add further paid-content to its Internet-connected DVRs beyond films and TV shows from Amazon’s UnBox service. Jaman’s indie and foreign film content launches today, reports Dave Zatz, while Disney film rentals via CinemaNow will arrive next week.

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How big of an impact is Internet-delivered video making in consumer living rooms?

Daniel Langendorf — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 06:32:36 +0000

I’ve often wondered this, but my math skills suck. How big of an impact is Internet-delivered video really making in the consumer living room?

Dan Rayburn, the EVP of StreamingMedia.com and the blogger behind BusinessofVideo.com, crunched numbers in a post for GigaOm today and decided that the impact is not nearly as large as we think.

“While it is good to see more content options coming to consumers, adding up all of the install numbers for these devices gives a stark picture of just how small the install base really is,” Rayburn wrote. “The market is still too fragmented, with too many different devices, all limited by a lack of premium content.”

Rayburn bases his analysis on market penetration rates. His point is that the best technologies don’t always win — it’s what consumers adopt. The numbers for TV-connected devices are interesting.

From Rayburn:

Xbox 360: 10.5 million units sold in the U.S.
Netflix: 8.2 million subscribers
Netflix Player by Roku: 10,000 units sold (estimate)
TiVo Series 3: 250,000 units sold (estimate); 750,000 Series 2 and Series 3 units are connected to the Internet via broadband (two-thirds are estimated to be Series 2 devices).
PlayStation 3: 4.9 million units sold in the U.S.
AppleTV: 350,000-400,000 units sold in the U.S. (estimate)
Vudu: 15,000 units sold in the U.S. (estimate)

Adding up the numbers, Rayburn estimates that 19.3 million Internet-to-TV content delivery devices have been sold. Rayburn breaks down the numbers further and concludes: “The real number of consumers capable of getting these content offerings is much smaller — so small, in fact, that they barely register.”

What Rayburn failed to supply is perspective. These numbers are rolled up since when? The Netflix Player by Roku is new. The TiVo Series 3 is relatively new. AppleTV and Vudu are about a year old. PlayStation 3 and Xbox are in the process of rolling out Internet video-to-TV services.

How long did it take other technology advances like the color TV, the fax, the telephone, cell phones, or cable TV — to name just a few — to reach critical mass? Their market penetrations and adoption rates were probably not that much better in their first years.

The fact that Microsoft, Netflix, TiVo, YouTube, Roku, Sony, Apple, and others are rushing to market all sorts of Internet-to-TV products is a sign that they believe Internet-delivered video will be making a big impact in the consumer living room — maybe not now, but soon enough.

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Video: YouTube finally arrives on TiVo

Steve O'Hear — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 17:54:40 +0000

Although announced back in March, it’s only today that TiVo users can finally access YouTube through their set-top boxes — and a minority of TiVo users at that. The new feature is made possible because of YouTube’s decision to re-encode its library of content to H.264 video, a format that only TiVo Series 3 and HD models can support. The result, says Streaming Media’s Dan Rayburn, is that of TiVo’s four million subscribers, only 750,000 get access to YouTube, and even then only if they have their set-top box connected to the Internet, which many don’t.

Nonetheless, for those that can get it, YouTube access will be a welcome addition to TiVo’s existing lineup. And typically, TiVo appear to have implemented it well. Don’t take our word for it though, and instead judge for yourselves by watching the video after the jump (courtesy of our friends over at Zatz Not Funny).

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Catching up with Time Warner Cable, Blockbuster, TiVo, iTunes UK, and Netflix

Daniel Langendorf — Sat, 31 May 2008 05:30:50 +0000

Another day, another set-top box.

This one comes courtesy of Time Warner Cable CEO Glenn Britt, who told those at the Stanford C. Bernstein Strategic Decisions Conference in New York that the company planned to market equipment to its subscribers to make it easier for them to watch Internet video on their televisions.

Naturally, Britt offered few details, other than to say:

“Right now it’s pretty hard to get Internet stuff on your TV,” Britt said [via Reuters]. “We’re actually going to have equipment we make available to subscribers. It’s actually going to be a new wireless cable modem that will allow you to network everything in your house.”

Naturally, Britt didn’t elaborate or say when the set-top box would be available to subscribers.

“Within a relatively short time . . . it’s going to be very easy to get Internet TV on your big screen TV.”

OK. So Time Warner is throwing its hat into the ring with the likes of Apple and the AppleTV, TiVo, Netflix/Roku, Vudu, Microsoft, Sony, the cable companies, and seemingly hundreds more. As long as we’re watching the vendor sports between these players, we might as well throw Time Warner’s set-top box scheme into the mix.

Catching Up

After the break, a few stories of interest from the just-concluding week.

Blockbuster kiosks

Blockbuster is hoping that all the Archos digital media player owners in your area will drive to their local stores to download movies from in-store kiosks. In time, the kiosks will be an “open system” compatible with a range of devices.

Say what?

Amazon, Microsoft’s Xbox Live, and Netflix already deliver movies directly to computers; TiVo, Vudu, AppleTV, and cable and satellite services offer video-on-demand to TVs, so what makes Blockbuster think that people will want to drive to their local Blockbusters — when gas is more than $4 a gallon — to download movies from an airport-like kiosk?

But, hey, Blockbuster Chairman and CEO James Keys insists that the company is “well ahead of broad consumer demand for such services.” [via Crave]

Whatever.

Two thumbs up!

Here’s an idea that caught my eye and I kind of like, although its implementation is far from perfect at the moment.

TiVo is partnering with the Chicago Tribune to allow subscribers to automatically record the recommendations of TV critic Maureen Ryan. For the moment, the service is mostly proof-of-concept and available to about 100,000 subscribers in the Chicago area.

What I like about the idea is more from the newspaper side than TiVo. It’s a great extension of newspaper content that’s not just using the Internet. Imagine the major metro paper in your area supplying content from its TV, movie, and pop culture critics right where you consume it.

Best of all, you don’t get ink on your fingers.

Hollywood, iTunes in the U.K.

Let’s face it. We want movie downloads to cost much less than DVDs. After all, we don’t get the packing and extra content, so why should we pay nearly the same for the bytes that we do for the bits?

Apple is set to announce that films from four major Hollywood studios will be available for download in the U.K. at prices that are on par with DVDs — £6 to £25. [via TimesOnline] Many of our friends overseas seem to think this is a bit pricey.

But what do you expect from Disney, Paramount, Twentieth Century Fox, and Warner Bros., the studios supplying content to iTunes for digital download in the U.K.? Doesn’t matter which country they operate in; they still want the big bucks.

What is nice, though, is that this will be the first time that Hollywood films have been available to our British friends — and our buddies in Canada — in such a manner.

Pointing to the future

Most of the stories this week continue to point to a time when digital distribution becomes dominant, whether the content comes from a kiosk like the Blockbuster idea, a set-top box like Warners or Netflix/Roku, Amazon’s streaming service, or no set-top box at all.

Reed Hastings, the CEO of Netflix, thinks that time will come within five years, when the company’s signature DVD-by-mail business model will peak, officially ushering in the era of digital distribution. [via Reuters]

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Details are scant, but Amazon will be launching online video streaming service soon

Daniel Langendorf — Thu, 29 May 2008 02:54:44 +0000

The details, unfortunately, are scant. This is what we know:

Amazon, the world’s largest Internet retailer, will be launching an online streaming video service in the next several weeks, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos said a little too matter-of-factly at the D: All Things Digital conference. (Reuters)

One detail: The streaming service will start immediately for viewers, unlike Amazon’s Unbox product, in which users are required wait a period of time as content downloads.

Another semi-detail: The streaming service will operate a-la-carte, but we don’t know what this means exactly. Can viewers stream movies on a pay-per-view basis, presumably at the industry standard $3.99 per rental? Or will this service operate ala Netflix, where people pay a monthly subscription fee (like $15) for a certain number of movies?

We’re sure additional details will be forthcoming in the coming days, or weeks.

The one thing that’s clear about Amazon’s move is that the retailer is beefing up its digital media offerings in order to compete with rivals Apple (iTunes rentals and purchases, AppleTV, portable media players like iPod Touch), Netflix (rentals via mail, online streaming, the Netflix/Roku set-top box), and others in this crowded, competitive space.

Also see: Amazon in your living room: today and in the future

Besides the online streaming service, Amazon has the video download service Unbox, an agreement with set-top maker TiVo (so downloaded content can be watched on TVs, not computers), the digital music store (AmazonMP3), and the electronic book reader Kindle.

So when the time comes that digital distribution is dominant, Amazon is ready.

[A slight update from Silicon Alley Insider: It's a pay-per-view service similar to the existing Unbox. "The only difference is the delivery/storage method, and the fact that you can watch movies right away -- instead of waiting for them to download." No word on if the service will work on Macs, unlike Unbox, or if they'll be a tie-in with TiVo.]

[Photo credit: Asa Mathal at AllThingsD.com]

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