We’ve been covering TiVo’s patent dispute with DISH/EchoStar for, literally, years. Heck, I even trekked down to the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in 2007 to catch some argument/testimony.
However, I’ve grown bored of the topic. And, as neither an investor in TiVo nor DISH/Echo, I’ve got no skin in the game. Having said that, the eventual outcome could have a significant impact on the DVR landscape and US patent system (or DISH’s livelihood). So, if you’re in need of a refresher of how we got here and where we may be going, check out IPWatchdog’s summary – pointed out to me by TiVo owner and shareholder Davis Freeberg.
Market seems to think there is no upside here for TIVO, future nov/dec/jan calls in the 12$+ range are VERY cheap. Back in April, we were trading in the 17-20$ ranges based on the previous verdict and future sales (even though their sales continue to decline YOY as do subscribers) which at the TIME was a nice little short.
But, for a the cost of a months service one could get long the calls and have a really nice return should a new positive verdict come down – or a merger – or a better tighter integration with a power player like Google/apple/sony/etc.
there’s speculation that the reason Dish’s new ViP 922 DVR a) has been brought to market before being ready and b) barely works, is that its core technology is not based on TiVo code and is therefore not subject to the dispute. if this is the case, it explains why the 922 has fundamental problems handling timers, timer conflicts and a lot more besides. in a rush of blood and wanting to get hold of the sling technology, i added one to our setup a couple of months ago, and the closest thing i can compare it to is the user experience with Windows Vista. now who wants THAT in their living room? hopefully Dish will get this box fixed because it has great potential, but right now it’s not aiding their cause one bit.