Regular readers know I can get a little cranky when it comes to TiVo’s advertising initiatives. So my quotes showing up in various AP-syndicated papers should come as no surprise. Unfortunately for TiVo, the reporter covering the evolution of television advertising called the week I was bombarded with pause menu mascara ad after pause menu mascara ad. Targeted advertising? Really?
Dave Zatz, a 37-year-old network engineer in Herndon, Va., isn’t happy about it because he bought a TiVo digital video recorder and pays a subscription to skip ads. “It’s obnoxious,” he said of the ads that appear when a TV program is paused. He said other ads have been on the periphery or appear on the menu page. This is the first time he’s noticed TiVo layering an ad on top of an actual program. He said he’s been wondering, “Who are TiVo’s customers?” People like him, or advertisers? “They’re getting paid on both ends.”
An interesting tangent… There’s been another flare up regarding the Associated Press’s intent to sell content excerpts online to bloggers such as myself. To quote the AP quoting me, I’m theoretically on the hook for $25. Forgetting fair use news reporting and commentary for moment, I gotta believe I’m entitled to some sort of waiver in this case. ;)
