Slashdot Mirror
The Rocky TiVo-DirecTV Relationship
Thomas Hawk writes "Phillip Swann's TV Predictions is out this morning alleging that before dumping their TiVo stock last year, Rupert Murdoch's DirecTV had made a pass at buying a controlling stake in TiVo. According to Swann, 'TiVo's top management did not like Murdoch's offer,' and Swann alleges that this is why you had a fallout between the two companies. As an interesting aside, Rob Pegoraro over at the Washington Post was out yesterday warning people to not buy an HDTV TiVo, as DirecTV will be changing their high-def signal later this year and that if you bought the HDTV TiVo that you might not be able to watch network TV in high def. As an owner of one of those expensive high-def DirecTV TiVos, I sure hope this isn't the case."
Mirrored links
Thomas Hawk writes "Phillip Swann's TV Predictions is out this morning alleging that before dumping their TiVo stock last year, Rupert Murdoch's DirecTV had made a pass at buying a controlling stake in TiVo. According to Swann, 'TiVo's top management did not like Murdoch's offer,' and Swann alleges that this is why you had a fallout between the two companies. As an interesting aside, Rob Pegoraro over at the Washington Post was out yesterday warning people to not buy an HDTV TiVo, as DirecTV will be changing their high-def signal later this year and that if you bought the HDTV TiVo that you might not be able to watch network TV in high def. As an owner of one of those expensive high-def DirecTV TiVos, I sure hope this isn't the case."
"I'd rather be a lightning rod than a seismometer." -Ken Kesey
Standardize on one format or another so we don't have to buy a new TiVo like device every 6-18 months?
You know, I have one simple request. And that is to have sharks with frickin' laser beams attached to their heads!
Directv is switching to MPEG-4 encoding this year with the launch of the spaceway sats. I'm sure there will be a transition period so your HDTiVo should work for a while, but there will come a point where you will have to upgrade.
A couple of good sites to find more info are:
http://www.dbsforums.com
http://www.dbstalk.com
http://www.tivocommunity.com
As DirectTV is moving forward on changing to Advanced Video Codecs (AVCs) such as H.264 the current HD Tivos will become obsolete as they can only recieve the current encoding of MPEG-2. Sorry, but tis true. I also doubt that Tivo will make an update to the MPEG-2 HDs to recieve the new codec. Also, I have heard that DirectTV is moving to the DVB-S2 transmission standard from their current DVB-S. Extra information and/or signal strength, their choice.
Fly me to the moon Let me sing among those stars Let me see what spring is like On jupiter and mars
This is why the CableCard is so important, so that multiple devices can operate like the company provided boxes. I have a cable company dvr, and it is really awesome, but if I wanted to use a brand name TiVo, I would be pissed at having to use IR blasters.
As far as I know, there's no cablecard equivalent for satellite boxes, but there should be. Ahh, the incredible balance between freedom and regulation.
With TiVo selling out to Comcast and pushing pop-up ads, I can't feel much positive about them anymore.
A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
With Murdoch taking over all of Tivo, we'll need a sort of different kind of Foxblocker for this. I suggest gluing a couple of cable TV jacks to either end of a wooden spool, and inserting this in your incoming co-ax cable.
Don't blame Durga. I voted for Centauri.
I am an owner of the HDTV box, and yes it was expensive, and it has already been broken and replaced once ...
But it is the *ONLY* box that does what it does. 2 OTA tuners, 2 Satellite Tuners, both OTA and Satellite HD...
But Mpeg4 is coming, and this box has NO way to deal with it. And even as an owner of the box, I welcome MPEG4, as this will give me what I really want... Not "digital quality", but "quality digital". Replacing all of the boxes out there is cheaper than building and launching a satellite. HD will be where they go first, but eventually ALL DirectTV will be mpeg4.
I am sad that there was a breakdown between Tivo and DirectTV, because the combo *is* the best way to watch tv today.
There is some promise apparantly for us HDTiVo folks to replace our boxes with something "as good or better". We shall see when it happens. For now, I LOVE my HDTiVo.
I doubt that they would make the devices like the article poster's non-functional too soon, seeing as people who buy stuff like that are often the kind of customer who would get the most pissed off.
Business before hate.
http://www.epa.gov/chemrtk/vccep/sponsor2.htm
pffft. Running water. All of you people out there with your runner water are just rotting your minds and bodies. In my family, we read books and discuss philosophy while making the 3/4 mile trek to our well. We don't use running water, and we're better people for it. Don't even get me started on electicity and your demon antibiotics.
I live in a fringe area with no cable. I can get broadcast channels using rooftop $150 antennas and signal boosters. I got a HDTV tuner and now can see of the channels crystal clear, that is when they are broadcasting, most aren't full time yet. I am only 45 miles from one city but the hills really block the analog signal, while the digital gets through. It might be worth your while to try next year when most will be digital.
Star Trek, there maybe hope.
DirecTV will be moving to a 8PSK signal modulation system and to MPEG-4 for HD for the SpaceWay satellite system, both of which are incompatible with the HD DirecTivo. You'll still get the old HD channels broadcast over the older satellites (Ku band, QPSK and MPEG-2), but none of the new fancy stuff (Ka band, 8PSK and MPEG-4).
The Doormat
If you're not outraged, then you're not paying attention.
Where oh where is the conservative answer to this? The "RatherNot (tm)" CBS news blocker. The "Clean the Air America" radio filter. The "Ted Turnoff" CNN filter. And last but not least, the "Moving Out" web filter that blocks moveon.org.
Don't blame Durga. I voted for Centauri.
...and thought "What the hell does Sylvester Stallone have to do with TiVo?"...
Bullwinkle: Hey, Rocky! Watch me pull a TiVo out of this hat.
Rocky: That trick never works.
/Bullwinkle reaches in hat and pulls out MGM Lion's head.
MGM Lion: ROOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRR!!!
Bullwinkle: Oops. Guess I need a new hat.
The first thing in MPEG4 will be HD locals, which you don't have now, so you won't really be losing anything. Up next will be the existing HD channels, and that's where you'll feel the first loss. The real kicker is when the full MPEG4 transition occurs-- this is where you're going to lose all your non-HD channels.
It's likely that they will offer you a replacement box (although this is just me speculating) for free or at a steep discount, since those of you with the HD-Tivo are highend customers. Unfortunately for the Tivo faithful, it won't be a Tivo.
I love the smell of self-immolating grammar nazis in the morning.
Don't blame Durga. I voted for Centauri.
I get DirecTV HD, but there's no way I'm spending one dime on anything so close to bankruptcy as Tivo.
If you have one of those DirectTV TiVos, DirectTV is the outfit that sold it to you in the first place. If they change their signal, complain to DirectTV, not the TiVo.
I'm glad to see I'm not the only excited about this upcoming switch! I mean, sure,
Ku band, QPSK and MPEG-2 are alright. But
Ka band, 8PSK and MPEG-4 are clearly going to blow them all away! (At least until Ko Band, ¥PSK and MPEG-7 come out...)
Does the FCC's new CableCard requirement help with DirectTV access at all? And yeah, I do know it's CableCard, but still...
We apologize for the inconvenience.
Here is the rumored trade-in plan to get the new HMCs. It is very generous but I hope they stick to it.
HMC Cost update.
Latest info:
Two base (HD HMC) units with different capacity.
1) 240 GB - $499 + $99 for SD units and $199 for HD remote units
2) 480 GB - $599 + $99 for SD units and $199 for HD remote units
Trade in Values:
HD-TiVo -> High capacity unit + 2 HD remote units
SD TiVo -> Low capacity Unit + 1 SD remote unit
SD Receiver -> Low Capacity unit and 1 SD for every three (3) SD receivers.
It's basically a price match. For example, if you have two SD TiVo's and an standard HD unit, you can obtain the High Capacity + 1 HD remote unit in exchange.
Values on units for trade in:
Standard SD Receiver - No value for HMC - 1 for 1 on SD remote units
Standard HD Receiver - Low cap HMC or 1 HD Remote unit
1 TiVo - Low Capacity HMC + SD Unit
2 TiVo - High Capacity HMC + SD Unit, or High Capacity + SD Unit
Dollar Value:
SD Receiver $99
HD Receiver $399
TiVo $199
HD TiVo - $899
No different than the mind control device that has managed to turn all people without a TV into automatons, reciting the same liturgy of disdain at every available opportunity. You are not morally superior, intellectually free or otherwise improved simply because of your rejection of TV.
Likewise, I'm not a better person because I choose not to drink alcohol. Does not drinking alcohol give me more time to pursue more "noble" activities each week that is unclouded by alcoholic distractions? Absolutely. However, so would a number of other choices like avoiding Slashdot. Is my wife a better person than you because she abstains from participating on this site? No.
TV is one form of entertainment out of many. And, despite the deep longings and ideal dreams of the anti-TV elite, removing televisions from homes will not result in 230 million Americans suddenly picking up Tolstoy. Rather, they'd simply turn to other forms of entertainment that demand equally little of their intellect.
I enjoy TV. I enjoy movies. I enjoy books. I have not stated a logical paradox in the previous 3 sentences.
The Glass is Too Big: My Take on Things
Last I heard, no CableCard Tivos until 2006, which is idiotic. Rumor has it that a rev to the CableCard spec to make it somewhat saner (and more desirable to end-users) is why, but I still think it smells like either (another) bungle by Tivo or cable stalling, or both.
I can't see why CableCard would help with satellite systems, since you can make the argument that the satellite signal format is a function of competitive advantage (channels, dish sizes, etc).
The real reason is that both Dish and DTV want their systems as incompatible as possible, as it is a barrier to migration to the competitive product.
I do like the idea, though, of an uber-smart 'cablecard' enabled Tivo that can tune digital cable, DTV and Dish simultaenously (presumably with two, self-aiming dishes).
You cannot *make* us watch your commercials, and the harder you try, the more we will hate you.
Let's take the recent commercial for Lime Coke. They have this neat little play on Harry Nilsson's classic song "Coconut", which is amusing already, and they made a cute little vignette out of it. But once I've seen it four or five times, I'm done. I never need to see it again. If I was going to try Lime Coke, and I was, I would already have tried it -- which I did -- and decided whether I wanted to continue buying it, which I do. The sale is over. Any *further* commercials they show me for Lime Coke are a complete waste of time. And that's a commercial that SUCCEEDS.
So when you start worrying about whether I'm going to skip your commercials and you won't get your money's worth, you need a reality check. I don't watch your commercials ANYWAY. When your commercials come on, I will either watch them -- the first couple of times -- or else I will converse with my wife, go to the bathroom, check my email, or grab a snack from the kitchen.
I am not going to sit and watch your commercials no matter WHAT you do. The most you can do is force me to wait for what I actually *want* to be doing, during which time I will be annoyed and impatient and looking at your product's name. How do you think I'm going to feel when I see your product in a store? Why, I'll feel annoyed and impatient, of course. And that *doesn't* translate to increased sales.
Microsoft cheerleader, blue flag waving, you got a problem with that?