Slashdot Mirror
Engadget Interviews TiVo CEO
r-blo writes "We've got an interview of Mike Ramsay, CEO of TiVo, by Engadget correspondent J.D. Lasica. He's rather candid in his thoughts on Hollywood, Netflix, the FCC, the INDUCE act, their competition, and their latest technology, TiVo ToGo, which lets you take your TiVo-recorded shows with you on your laptop (or PC, as it were)."
My favourite part -
;)
We developed a security mechanism around that, submitted it to the FCC under the broadcast flag initiative, and the Motion Picture Association and the NFL went ballistic and lobbied incredibly hard. But guess what? It got approved. The FCC supported our technology.
Should the FCC be in the business of regulating new technologies like this one?
Definitely not. It's scary when you feel that you have to go to the FCC for permission to do something. So we're not very comfortable with that. I think the broadcast flag stuff is less onerous than some other things, like the INDUCE Act. That we're much more concerned with because that could lead to prosecution of individuals who induce copyright infringement. That just opens up a whole can of worms. If you upset consumers enough, they'll become pirates, and that law has the potential to do that.
You'll notice that everything on the table in Washington being pushed by the media companies doesn't target regular television. It's targeted at things like ripping DVDs, how long you can keep movies pay-per-view movies, and so on.
Yay! I'm glad that atleast there are _some_ companies out there who feel this way.
Yes, if you upset the consumers enough, we'll all become pirates -- and what do you do when every one out there is a pirate by the **AA's definition?
It's about bloody time that the rest of the media companies out there realize this -- what're they going to do, arrest everyone? Stupidity.
I'm surprised at the resistance that the corporate world is showing in this regard -- they seem to be simply unwilling to adapt to new technologies and new media, and those that do (such as TiVo) actually do well.
I've always liked TiVo, but after the way TiVo handled the recent DRM troubles, I've really begun to respect them a real lot.
Way to go, guys. Goodluck, and may you continue kicking ass
I don't know if I can truly answer your question, but:
*I have a TiVo (DirecTiVo to be precise)
*TiVo runs Linux, and the GPL is one of the appendices in the owner's manual
*It's an awesome little box that makes TV watching a much nicer experience
*At 100 dollars (as an existing DirecTV customer) I couldn't possibly match the price with a home-brewed PC-based PVR.
*My wife is entirely capable of operating it.
It was a joke! When you give me that look it was a joke.
*My wife is entirely capable of operating it.
;-)
Not only is she able to operate it, she took complete control of it.
Once you start using a PVR (TIVO or something similar) you will never look at TV the same way again.
Life is way too short to spend time watching commercials, or programming that you don't really care for but there was nothing else on.
With Tivo I no longer zap between channels looking for something to watch, instead I just select from already recorded programs.
The ability to watch TV while still being in full control of your time on your own terms is refreshing, and you realize that you never again want to become a slave under the TV networks programming/advertizing.
-- This sig is awaiting credit card approval...
I'd like to comment on this. About a year ago (maybe more) I messed around with MythTV on an old (and too slow) Linux box. It was fun and I learned a lot by reading the mailing lists (they were trying to figure out how to block commercials at the time). I love messing with things, and I would love to be able to hack MythTV. After a while I gave up for two reasons: hardware (mine was too slow, didn't want to pay for better hardware at that time for a little side project) and interest (it was fun, but after a while I lost interest).
Later that year (about one year ago now) I got a DirecTiVo. I don't like monthly payments, because often I feel like I'm getting ripped off. I have to say that the $5 a month I pay for my DirecTiVo (yep, cheaper than stand alone) is well worth it. I'd pay $20, easy. One of the reasons that I went with a TiVo was the "plug in and enjoy" factor. At the end of the day, I had stuff to do and I just wanted a tool I could use without having to tweek all the time. Even if you LIKE constantly tinkering with your stuff (as I do in some circumstances, like my PC), you owe it to yourself to get a TiVo over a MythTV box. The interface is just so perfect. It works just so well. It's not just something that does what it should (like a VCR), it doesn't it's job amazingly well. I don't think I've ever had a product that went so high above my expectations. And if you considder that my brother already had a TiVo (same house as me, so I've used it) and I had read all the great stuff here on Slashdot, I didn't know that was possible. It IS that good.
Note that while a TiVo may be great, a DirecTiVo is to die for. Just like a TiVo (same interface, technology, etc), except that you have TWO tuners, so you can record TWO shows at once (take that NBC who wants to start shows 1 minute off the hour to screw up TiVos, I can record your shows ANYWAYS). It's fantastic. Not only that, but it's all pure digital (straight off the sat) so all the channels look just like they would if you used a normal sat box, and EVERYTHING gets recorded with the signal (that means it stores the Dolby Digital tracks from movies on Showtime and such) which is great.
I have owned many consumer electronic devices, some work great (my VCRs are all fine), but some are terrible. I owned a Digital Cable box from my cable company (Comcrud) and it was terrible. Slow to change channels, slow to show the guide, slow to do anything, and it would crash. Best of all not only did I have to pay extra to rent the box, THEY PUT ADS ALL OVER THE USER INTERFACE FOR IT. It seems that as technology gets more complex, it gets harder to make things "just work". TiVo has got it right. Please support them and try out an awesome product (you have no idea how much your chained to TV schedules untill you don't have to care anymore).
Comment forecast: Bits of genius surrounded by a sea of mediocrity.
r-blo (ryan block) is the editor of Engadget and also the submitter of this story. I would prefer he disclose this when submitting stories to slashdot in order to hype his own site. Which, by the way, are the only story submissions he makes to Slashdot and he never discloses his connection to Engadget when submitting them..
$5 / month hosted VPS on linux = awesome!
In other words, Replay did exactly what 99.9 percent of Slashdotters claim that they want companies to do - give customers what they want and not kowtow to big businesses - and yet you're slamming them for it and recommending their competitors because of that very fact?
Wow. There's no pleasing some people.
"Accept that some days you are the pigeon, and some days you are the statue." - David Brent, Wernham Hogg
Where to start. How 'bout the box. I OWN my box. I can upgrade it if I want. Second is the UI. The TiVo UI is beautiful. Easily the best I've ever used on a consumer electronics device. Second is the fee. $13 a month? I pay $5 for my DirecTiVo. And I can record two shows at once, digital quality, Dolby Digital tracks and all. I can't program mine over the internet either, but there are other features.
How do you schedule recordings? Do you tell it to record every Saturday at 6 for an hour? Or do you tell it to record CSI (just an example)? I can tell it to do EITHER. I can also tell it to record any programs with the world "Moose" in the title, or anything with Andy Dick or any other actor. Can you have yours record only new episodes? I can. I can set mine to record any special one time event that comes on TV (and I can combine that with other thigns like the actor, series, or title filters). I can tell my TiVo to record Law and Order, new episodes, on ANY channel. So if I can't get it off NBC (due to scheduling conflicts, rare thanks to two tuners), it will pick it up off USA.
How 'bout suggestions? Mine lears what I like to watch and suggests things. It's not always perfect, but it works. It's found specials on things that I didn't know were comming on that I liked. It has introduced me to some series. Does it keep the drive full of programs? My TiVo tries to keep the drive full with programs that I like or that it thinks I liked (based on thumb ratings). Lots of great stuff on my TiVo. And the new ones hold 37 hours of programming. And because I own the box I can expand that... a TON (up to 240 hours). How many hours does yours hold?
And in the future, they are working on TiVo2Go so you can watch your programs that have been recorded on your PC or your PDA. They are partnered with Netflix so you will be able to have the movies you want to see downloaded to your TiVo for you, no need to wait for the mail. Cool stuff.
Are there ads on your box? When I got digital cable from my cable co (which I cancled because the boxes were terrible, not that their service was ever any better) were filled with little ads. Yet I still got to pay them for the privilage of using the box. No ads all over my TiVo, just one off a link on the "home" screen that you never have to visit (and they are cool ads too, video and you can push a button to have literature deleiverd straight to your house if you want).
Last of all, cost? You complain about cost? Ignoring how much cable costs and how they like to raise their rates, a DirecTiVo is superior to a generic cable company PVR and is cheaper. If you are a new customer, you can get a three room system including one TiVo for FREE. Box cost, $0. The DVR Charge on the bill is $7, no matter how many TiVos you have. Not $7 per box, $7 total. Don't want a DirecTiVo? You can get a TiVo for $50, not the $250 you say (that would be a top of the line box with hundreds of hours of space). Let's review.
DirecTiVo (possibly best of all SD TiVos):
box = $0 (plus 2 free DirecTV recievers, worth about $100 total)
service = $7/mo
Cable Co
box = $0
service = $10
$3 cheaper per month (and I'm guess you pay $10 PER BOX, so if you got more than one it's even better). The box costs the same. You OWN the box. The UI rules. Record TWO SHOWS AT ONCE.
It's not greed. If you had used a TiVo for a month (free trial dude, give it a try) you would be more than willing to pay them that fee. They are not being greedy. I bet most people with TiVos would gladly pay more (I know I'd pay over $20).
Your right. My TiVo is cheaper, I OWN it, almost certanly better UI, I can record two things at once, and more. Why the hell would anyone want a TiVo when your cable company gives you a worse deal?
Comment forecast: Bits of genius surrounded by a sea of mediocrity.
I agree that ReplayTV is more of a "hacker's" option. Being able to easily upgrade the hard drive and copy shows, along with the built-in Ethernet, is great. You can also link them up without having to pay extra (unlike TiVo). You can also share programs with other ReplayTV users over the net.
There's no season pass, but you can tell it to record based on time slots (definitely helps avoid repeats), and specify the number of episodes to retain. Older units (like the 4xxx and 50xx series) will allow you to automatically skip commercials.
The remote unfortunately sucks. TiVo's has a lot better layout, and it sits nicely in the palm of your hand. With the Replay, you almost always have to use it with two hands.
I was a little nervous about buying a ReplayTV unit, given their history of changing subscription models at a whim, and the amount of times the company's been bought and sold. But considering that you can get a refurb model now for about $50USD direct from the manufacturer, it's definitely an appealing option.
Karma: Dyn-o-mite!(mostly affected by Jimmy Walker reading your comments)
Yay! I'm glad that atleast there are _some_ companies out there who feel this way.
Yes, if you upset the consumers enough, we'll all become pirates -- and what do you do when every one out there is a pirate by the **AA's definition?
That hits the nail on the head, but why isn't it obvious to everybody? We live in a _democracy_, and can make any rules we want. That is the theory of how the system is meant to work...
Thus, if the majority of people feel a certain way, about any issue, then the rules should reflect that.
The real question is _why_ most people break the law. If, in the long run, their breaking of the that law isn't harmful to society, then the law is broken. If you determine that that law is required for the long-term sustainability of something valuable, then the legal framework and technologies should be designed so that the average person isn't in the dysfunctional position of supporting a law that makes them a criminal. Anything else indicates a break in the system.
Are rich people gaming the system for their own benefit... and forming a legal framework to support their interests, or do people feel that copyright laws and systems are fair and that they are compulsive infringers.
When you put it that way, it seems that the former is happening and the (democratic) system is broken, and some people are more equal than others. I don't think anybody disputes that (in general), but I'd like to see someone acknowledge that fact, and _then_ frame laws to protect IP content producers. That would give the system credability.
I feel that we can continue to expect the IP cartels to extend their assets and rights - they have the only incentive they need: money.
I welcome our new IP overlords. Please give me a job, I am also chasing money, it's very instinctive.
Like all pain, suffering is a signal that something isn't right
The answer is really pretty simple -- it's a question of where the merchant is able to get their money.
... the Tivo as subsidized by DirecTV is as cheap, if not cheaper, than the cable alternatives. However, any stand-alone system that's not tied to your provider not only has to at least cover its costs, but it darn well better make the company some money! :)
As others have pointed out, you can purchase a DirecTivo for $50 as an existing customer, with a $5.00 per month charge -- and there are various deals around to make that cheaper.
The reason DirecTV can do that, and that cable companies can offer similar deals on their DVRs, is that they're getting you to commit to their service. They can afford to take a loss on the single sale, knowing that you're paying $50.00 (usually more) per month for several years following.
That's why it's not a Tivo versus non-Tivo thing
--Tom