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Microsoft Takes on TiVo
CatsCradle writes "The Seattle Times has an article about Microsoft's Foundation and their new partnership with Comcast to provide a TiVo-like service."
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Is there anyone who can offer genuine non-zealous commentary on Microsoft's MCE2005?
I'm currently running SageTV (http://www.sage.tv) for my PVR needs. Before that I was running MythTV which I really liked, however it was really flakey.
I wonder how MCE2005 compares to either or both of the two.
TIA
"Control and customize your viewers' experience.
With Microsoft TV Foundation Edition's new UI Customizer tool, you can make changes to the viewer's user interface, preview the changes, and then almost instantaneously publish them to the viewer's set-top box."
Gee, thanks Redmond, I was looking for an outside corporation to control my "experience" (there's that damned word again from the dot-com era). I like how they'll just have the vendor just make bulk changes then push them to my set-top box without asking me if I want an update or not. I suppose that's part of the agreement, though. Looks like another MS service I'll be ignoring.
I'm sure "SlashdotMedia" will improve on all the wonders that Dice Holdings blessed us all with
Everyone who has a DVR (that I know) calls it TiVo, or says they'll "TiVo it" even though it's not a TiVo. They don't care where the product comes from, and that's Microsoft's entry point. They can take a loss on their product and beat out the competitors.
Wow, now there's a losing combination. Here in Chicago Comcast is long running corporate joke. Very poor service both in their TV and Cable modem divisions and a broadband network they can't seem to keep up for very long.
I switched to DirecTV w/ Tivo long ago and will probably give that up eventually as more shows become available on bitorrent. Considering I only watch perhaps three shows regularly, its overkill. Also, Rupert-Owned DirecTV with DirecTivo does have its downsides.
Then again, never underestimate the power of bundling services.
Not that I worry much about Microsoft. I worry more about Comcast. They control more of my life, in the format in which I receive my home internet connection and cable television, than any other entity right now.
What if, in their infinite wisdom, that Comcast requires that you use a Windows box to take advantage of "special features" of their device that MS creates propriatarily? In simpler language, I am used to Microsoft making things that don't fully integrate with my Mac OS arrangement (and generally, I usually don't care since I have plenty of alternatives with my platform). However, Comcast loves to charge its customers for things they don't or can't use, and it's hard enough to know exactly how they are sticking it to me as it is.
On the plus side, they may be a company that I worry about, but my cable internet from Comcast is 2.5MBits and whomps my office connection easily.
Vos teneo officium eram periculosus ut vos recipero is.
Microsoft was responsible for the software that runs on the Dish Network Dishplayer (7200-series). And they sucked at it too. The thing crashed constantly. At least now that Dish is responsible for the software directly, it works a little better, but they're still dealing with the horrible base that MS laid.
I don't think TiVO has a thing to worry about.
-Todd
"The details of my life are quite inconsequential..."
People are missing the point here. Now with comcast you can get an affordable HDTV DVR (as opposed to the $1000 diretivo model).
s p
Check it out:
http://broadband.motorola.com/dvr/dct6412.a
That's pretty good for $10/month.
Putting Microsoft between you and your content seems like a mistake... even if the hardware is cheap. You have 233 day and counting to get your broadcast flag free capture cards.
TiVo needs to position themselves as the Google of DVRs and adopt the "Do No Evil" policy.