NBC to Rely on TiVo For Consumer Data

The latest news in the “TiVo to Release Subscriber Data” Series is that NBC Universal plans to use this data to understand consumer viewing patterns better and also possibly to start interactive commercials with the people.

On Tuesday it was announced that TiVo’s interactive advertising platforms would now be used by NBC and new ones would also be created. The revenue generated would be split between the two companies.
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TiVo, and The End Of The Commercial?

TiVO allows users to record programs for watching them later. When users watch their programs later, they generally skip the commercials. This is the trend across all sections of users. Is this the end of the commercial?

20 percent of houses in the US owned DVR’s in Q2 2007. By the end of 2011 this number is likely to be 35% according to research. 60% of DVR owners skip ads. Media professionals and Ad Gurus are trying to combat this trend that is creating non viewership of ads and jeopardizing $65.4 billion in television advertising.

TiVo inc has made an effort in this direction. When a TiVo subscriber fast forwards a commercial, he will see a graphic overlay with the advertisers logo. If they want, sometimes, TiVo users can click the logo for further information.

Cox Communications is making an effort in this direction as well. Some programs will be offered free through video-on-demand. These viewers will be told in a five second message that fast forwarding past ads is not available.

Time Warner is innovating as well. New options called “Start Over” and “Look Back” allow viewers to watch certain programs on the precondition that they have to view commercials.

So is TiVo the end of the commercial? Not quite, methinks.

TiVo Faces Competition From SDV’s

The SDV or Switched Digital Video committments of Scientific Atlanta have swelled to over 7 million homes. This is according to a report from Cisco, the parent company of Scientific Atlanta. The plan is to extend the video and data network management to the optical node. In this manner the network investment will be maximized. QAM’s or quadrature amplitude modulators will be shared across bothe SDV and VoD (Video on Demand) traffic.

With plans like this TiVo is going to face stiff competition. The fact of the matter is that 7 million homes account for more than 10% of US cable subscribers. In addition reports indicate that Time Warner will provide SDV to more than 50% of their customer homes in this year.
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Tivo to DVD: How to Convert & Burn Your Files

One of the coolest features of Tivo is the ability to save your Tivo recordings to your computer or laptop by using the free Tivo Desktop software. If you want to go one step further and burn your Tivo recordings to a DVD, you will need a good conversion and burning software.

Tivo offers an option to get this task done through a partnership with Roxio. For about $50, you can download that software and convert and burn Tivo to DVD. We have found another option that is less expensive and does a good job of converting Tivo files and burning them to DVD format.  This software is called ConvertXtoDVD.

This software is priced at under $40 and is very easy to do. It offers many functions and can convert just about any video format to DVD format. This includes  AVI, DivX, Xvid, Mpeg1/2/4, Mov, VOB, WMV among others.

Click Here for more on ConvertXtoDVD (including FREE Trial versions).

Tivo to AVI: How to Convert Tivo Recordings to Avi Format

If you have a need to convert Tivo recordings to AVI format, you will want to checkout the Avex Video Converter Platinum.

This program makes it easy to take the Tivo recordings from your computer and convert them to formats supported by an Apple iPod or iPhone, a Microsoft Zune, a Sony PSP, a video supported cell phone or PDA and much more.

It is a really simple program to use and can quickly and painlessly convert your Tivo files so you can use them on the go.  Click here for a free trial version

This program can convert Tivo files into all sorts of other video types including:

• AVI
• MPEG
• WMV
• DivX
• Xvid
• Svid
• MP4
• Plus Many More!

This program is easy-to-use and priced just right. We highly recommend it for all your Tivo video recording conversion needs. Click Here to Buy it Now!

In addition to Avex, there are several other good video converter programs available that can easily convert video to Tivo format. A Good place to find these programs is to visit Video Converter Reviews.

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TiVo Inc Third Quarter Results

For those curious about how well TiVo is performing, it is slated to release its Q3 results on November 28, 2007, Wednesday.

If you have an interest in TiVo’s financials, it is going to discuss its Q3 results via a webcast and conference call. The discussion will happen at 2:00 am PT on November 28th. You can access the TiVo discussion at http://www.tivo.com/ir  by clicking the link for the webcast. If you miss it, much in TiVo style, you will not lose it. It will be available until December 5, 2007 on the website.
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Tivo to WMV: Can You Convert it?

If you are looking for a way to convert your Tivo recordings from the original Tivo format to WMV format, you will need a good conversion software.

One such software that we recommend is the Avex Tivo Converter Platinum. With it, you can convert your Tivo recordings that you have on your PC or laptop (transfered with Tivo Desktop) to just about any other video format including WMV, AVI, MPEG, MP4, DivX, Xvid and others.

This excellent program will allow you to take your Tivo recordings with you anywhere you go by converting them to formats supported by the iPod, the PSP, the Zune, the iPhone and more!

You can get the Avex Tivo Converter Platinum for $35. You can test it out for free with a FREE Trial version too.

Click Here to Buy Now.

Click Here for the Free Trial Version 

Discounted Tivo Subscriptions Available to Interested Students.

Washington State University (WSU) housing and on campus residents will now be offered TiVo digital video recorder services. This offer has been in the pipeline for a while.

According to Bob Tattershall, director of Housing and Dining Services, they have been wanting to offer this option for some time. This offer is to fill the gap in WSU which does not have a TV Guide type channel.

TiVo has proved popular since its inception. WIth TiVo, users can record their favorite shows. In addition live shows can be paused, replayed and slow motion is allowed s well. Also users can download movies and TV show episodes.

Students can sign up for this service with billing done between the student and company. The cost is $125 per year. Included in this cost is an 80 hr Series2 Dual Tuner DVR.

All the standard features that are offered to current TiVo customers will be offered to the students. The only difference is the discounted price.

This innovation is likely to be well accepted by the student community at WSU. It will allow students to work hard and at the same time keep in touch with their favorite TV shows. Many students are reported to be looking forward to the service.

TiVo Lifetime Service Plan is Back, Demographic Sales Spark Concern

The lifetime service plan, once popular with TiVo customers is coming back. TiVo Inc. is using this to make the most of the coming holiday season. Many current customers find the cost of TiVo prohibitive.

At present there is a monthly service charge along with the cable service charge which needs to be paid. TiVo is back in the running as a popular product now that it seems DVR’s are going to be made incapable of skipping commercials.

Customers are touted to benefit from TiVo’s lifetime service plan. Currently the monthly plan works out to $ 16.95 every month. If you opt for three year prepaid it will cost you $299. The lifetime plan on the other hand is worth $399. Read more

TiVo and Subscription Transfer

TiVo‘s first HD unit, the TiVo Series 3 was steeply priced at $799. Now it is worth $ 599 on the market. Except ardent TiVo fans, most people were not interested in this kind of pricing. At $299, the TiVo HD is closer to the Earth, so to speak. It makes more sense selling and promoting a gadget at this price.

 I decided to dive into HD when TiVo made a lifetime subscription transfer offer from my existing Series 2 for $ 199. I first bought HDTV last year. I thought a lot about going for digital cable service. What made up my mind was that TiVo was about to release a software upgrade that allowed you to use external eSATA storage on the TiVo.

 I would like to share my experiences of this transfer. A very polite CSR came on line after being put on hold for a while. I was targeted by him to gently upsell a TiVo offer where both my old and new units would have lifetime. This was not a good idea. Lets list what I understood about TiVo’s subscription transfer.

 1) You are automatically allowed to keep a Series 2 subscription for 12 months with a subscription transfer.

2) It is financially sensible to accept a second subscription offer only if you envision using your old TiVo for the next 3 years

3) If you are going to be using a cable that needs a converter your Series 2 will not be useful

4) Generally after 60 days the TiVo HD will have the lifetime plan and the Series 2 will have the monthly plan.

5) The monthly plan will only be cancelled if you inform TiVo to do so.

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