Dave Zatz Time Warner has been talking up their pseudo-DVR service “Start Over” since first mentioned in the WSJ last year, with more details revealed this spring. Now that they’ve gotten NBC’s blessing (money talks), South Carolina digital cable subscribers will be getting first dibs next month. Start Over falls somewhere between VOD and a DVR in … Read more
MLB and Sportvision, the folks who brought us the the yellow first down line and glowing hockey puck, will introduce PITCHf/x today during Game 1 of the World Series. BusinessWeek says: Sportvision has been rolling out gadgets for all the major sports, including the PGA Tour, NASCAR, and Major League Baseball, for which it whipped … Read more
Netflix has run into the studio brick wall. At this point the studios have very little incentive to move their media via third-party download: DVD sales are a huge cash cow and they own existing services Movielink and CinemaNow. I imagine both Netflix’s rumored player and their partnership with TiVo are indefinitely on hold. At … Read more
EyeTV picks up some competition today, with Hauppauges release of myTV.PVR. The name grates, but the $149 price is attractive. As with all DVRs, success boils down to the software – we’ll find out soon enough if Eskape Labs got it right. I’m still waiting for a homebrew solution like this that throws in an … Read more
DirecTV and LG have announced a partnership to produce set-top boxes capable of decoding MPEG-4 HD broadcasts. As with the phasing out of analog TV, the conversion to MPEG-4 will most likely take some time – your current DTV hardware is safe… for now. Additionally, these new Linux-based LG boxes will support pre-existing MPEG-2 and … Read more
Another day, another HME application. Movie downloads? Nah, just movie ticket downloads.
If you were paying attention about 10PM EST last night, you would have caught a glimpse of Fandango‘s ticket ordering service. You know, for the one or two movies a year that might sell out. Put in your zip, buy some virtual tickets, show up at the theater to wait in line for real tickets. At least that’s how it’s supposed to work… a “Can’t Run” error spared me from the $1.25 ticket surcharge.
While the website isn’t officially owned or operated by TiVo, www.apps.tv is live and offers third-party Home Media Engine (HME) applications directly via broadband to Series 2 TiVo’s running 7.2x – no PC or Mac required. The current selection is small; However, a central clearinghouse of apps is a convenience that should encourage development and … Read more
Iomega‘s latest external hard drive, the 60GB ScreenPlay, picks up a few new tricks. It comes bundled with a remote to control the integrated photo, music, and video playback software. By hooking this puppy up to your TV using S-Video or composite cables, you can browse and enjoy a limited assortment of content. The ScreenPlay … Read more