Quarterly Subscriber Change, TVbytheNumbers TiVo held their quarterly call yesterday and, at first glance, I’m not seeing any surprises. Subscriber count continues to decline, from 3.2 million a year ago to 2.5m as of 4/30. But TiVo’s got plenty of cash in the bank (~$250m) and zero debt, along with a number of lawsuits and … Read more
After a few months of unintended leaks and 3 1/2 years since third generation hardware was introduced, the TiVo Series 4 Premiere has arrived. As with TiVo’s HD line, which is being cleared out, the Premiere will ship (next month) in two SKUs: A base model with 45 hours of HD storage (320GB) at $300. … Read more
TWTRCON, Jerad Hill Photographer We don’t typically cover personnel moves, but we’re making an exception this week as I’m personally bummed that TiVo Inc. is letting Shanan get away. Most know her as the long-time “voice of TiVo” … but she’s served a far more important internal role as consumer advocate. As TiVo seems to … Read more
As some of you may recall, I recently moved across the Potomac from Maryland into Virginia. In addition to picking up a new stand for our plasma, we also inherited a new cable provider. With a new set of challenges. I’ve mostly come to terms with that multi-hour CableCARD install ($30 per set) and general, … Read more
Ben Drawbaugh (who you probably know from Engadget HD) and I share a love of college football. While I was recovering Friday night, he caught South Florida’s upset of West Virginia. He also spotted a Series2 TiVo unit in the replay booth. Which is really no surprise – We’ve been hearing for years how TiVo … Read more
In honor of Father’s Day (and publicity), TiVo has partnered with Minor League Baseball and will be giving away up to 1,000 S2 units (via voucher) per market. Agree to a year of service, get a single tuner TiVo free. Add 30 bucks and upgrade to a dual-tuning model. Additional promotions (TiVo raffles) seem to … Read more
DVR marketing ridiculousness continues… First Verizon introduced FiOS Quantum DVR, touting a whopping 12 tuners for recording or feeding extenders throughout the home for live viewing. With the small caveat that two 6-tuner DVR rentals are required. Well, Comcast has upped the ante with a Gillette-worthy 15 tuner Xfinity X1 experience. Assuming you rent three DVRs (and pay the associated … Read more
My wife and I just can’t seem to kick this gypsy lifestyle and are on the move once again. While we’d initially contemplated moving closer in to DC or returning to Maryland, we’ve changed tack and will be venturing deeper into the Northern Virginia suburbs next month. And, as with our former home, we’re fortunate … Read more