We knew the issue was a contractual one, between Netflix and content owners. They did not have the rights to stream to MSO hardware. But it seems the issue was specifically with Starz, and now that Netflix and Starz have parted ways that obstacle is gone. Well, maybe. No one is sure if the Starz deal was the only obstacle, or if there are similar clauses in contracts with other rights owners, and Netflix isn’t commenting. But there is some hope:

The Starz deal was why RCN Corp. was unable to offer Netflix on TiVo boxes when the cable operator launched its TiVo offering in May 2010, RCN Senior Director of Video Product and Video Network Operations Jason Nealis tells Light Reading Cable. He says he’s eager to reopen the dialogue with Netflix now that that Starz deal has expired.

I suppose if anyone would have inside information it’d be Jason, since he’s the point man for RCN’s TiVo implementation.

Of course, TiVo could always implement DLNA, which would open the door to work arounds. Which is how ARRIS gets Netflix on their MSO Moxi units, via PlayOn running on a user’s computer, as stated in this video:

Or, when TiVo publishes their SDK, perhaps PlayOn could create an app for TiVo.

Given TiVo’s working relationship with Comcast, and their integration of Comcast’s XFINITY On Demand into retail units, I have to wonder if we might see support for Comcast’s Streampix streaming service land on TiVo as well. That’s something I certainly would not expect to see supported on units provided by other MSOs, but it would be a welcome addition to retail units. And it would make sense, seeing as Comcast’s deal is for support or retail units and I’d expect them to be happy to have their streaming service on those boxes.

Via Light Reading Cable.

Starting with the next software update, 21.x, which is expected in the spring (late-April or early-May), there are a few things TiVo is willing to confirm. (I’ve touched on this release before.) Aside from general polish, more screens being moved into the HD UI, bug fixes – aka the usual – the biggest news is probably the long awaited update to two streaming clients: Netflix and YouTube.

The TiVo Netflix app is getting a complete overhaul – or, rather, a replacement. The new app is actually written by Netflix and integrated by TiVo, using TiVo’s Adobe Air-based SDK. It will provide a completely modern Netflix experience, on par with other devices. TiVo says it will be similar to the Netflix client found on the Insignia Connected TV with TiVo Design, but not exactly the same.

YouTube is also getting a new client, which will be radically different. The new client will implement the YouTube ‘lean back’ style interface, and is probably most similar to the version found on Google TV. YouTube created the ‘lean back’ UI especially for home entertainment implementations, where you ‘lean back’ as opposed to ‘leaning forward’ over your computer keyboard, so this should be a nice improvement.

I did ask about an update for the Amazon app, but it will not be part of the next update. TiVo recognizes there is demand for support of the free Amazon Prime streaming in Amazon Instant Video, but to implement it they need to work with Amazon. Currently they’re in “active discussions” with Amazon about the implementation, but they can’t yet say when it might happen. But know that it is on their radar. They did want to stress that the TiVo app does have access to the complete Amazon Instant Video library via downloads, it is only the streaming that is currently missing.

I also asked about Spotify support for the US. TiVo queried US customers about interest in Spotify last July, and the Virgin Media TiVo units in the UK got Spotify in November, but there is still no sign of it in the US. TiVo doesn’t have an official comment on this at this time, aside from acknowledging the interest. Personally I think it is on the road map but they’re not ready to talk about it yet.

Something else that is coming in the next release is parental controls in the HD UI. Until now customers who wanted to enable parental controls needed to switch to the SD UI, so this is likely a welcome change for parents. This did, unsurprisingly, spark a discussion on TiVo KidZone and the future thereof. At this time there are no plans to bring TiVo KidZone to the HD UI. There are ongoing discussions within TiVo about the future of KidZone in general, and what form it might take, if it remains at all.

I got the impression that KidZone was never a high demand item and the justification for devoting the engineering resources needed to bring it to the HD UI is difficult to make. We may see fancier parental controls instead of a special KidZone implementation. Or perhaps it is something that might be addressed via user-based folders (which we’ve seen teased in screen grabs in the past), by tying access to folders to the parental controls and only allowing the kids access to their own folder. But that’s just speculation on my part.

Looking further out I tried to get some info on the new SDK, but they’re not ready to discuss that just yet. They did confirm that it is Adobe Air with ActionScript 3.0 (at least for the initial release, it seems like other environments may be added in the future), and they are very serious about supporting developers. They’ve hired someone for a new position tied to the SDK, so it will have dedicated attention. I’m hoping it fares better than the old public HME SDK. This time around I think TiVo has more appreciation for the importance of third party apps.

We also discussed Jason Wong’s interview at last September’s IBC show. I’ve already covered the transcoder box and IP STB in previous posts. The other big item, to me at least, that Jason mentioned was DLNA support:“Yes, using DLNA and DLNA approved DRM like DTCP, but yes.” This sparked an interesting discussion. First of all, TiVo clarified that Jason’s comments were within the context of the European audience of the IBC show. European units support DTCP but not the entire DLNA standard.

The discussion was over whether it makes sense for TiVo to support DLNA on the US units. My stance is that yes, it does – especially as a DLNA client. While it would be nice to have TiVo as a DLNA server, I actually don’t see it being as useful for most users. There aren’t currently a lot of devices that would act as a DLNA client for a DTCP-IP protected stream. Down the road a bit I think this will be more useful, as more cable MSOs implement this tech, thereby driving more consumer devices (like smart TVs) to implement the client side.

But going back to my original point, I think it would be useful for TiVo to implement DLNA client capabilities. Right now getting media onto a TiVo from local sources is a bit of a pain in the ass. You have to install TiVo Desktop, or one of the third party tools like kmttg, Streambaby, or pyTiVo, just to get your music, photos, and/or video onto the TiVo for display. But many devices already have built in DLNA server support and it would be plug-and-play if TiVo would only connect to these existing servers.

To me a huge issue is that so many modern smartphones have built in DLNA support. Any of the content you have on your DLNA-enabled smartphone could be streamed wirelessly over the local network to a DLNA-enabled TiVo. No need for HDMI or MHL cables, or docks, etc. Just connect to the local LAN and away you go. This is possible with most connected TVs, but that’s still a small market. TiVo could be the gateway for this content for many consumers; I think that would be very useful. Not to mention making it easier to display content from your PC, NAS, etc.

I think we had a good discussion about DLNA support and I’m hopeful TiVo will give some serious thought toward implementing it, at least as a client to start. But they are interested in gauging the demand from the market in general, so how about it? Is DLNA support, client and/or server, something you’d like to see TiVo add? And why?

So I contacted Gabe and he informed me that he’d emailed TiVo about the Netflix client and that’s what he was told. So I decided to reach out to my own contacts at TiVo before posting the news, and they confirmed it. TiVo is indeed working on a new Netflix client and it will support 1080p streaming. But TiVo is not giving out any release date, or even a rough time frame, nor are they providing details about any other changes.

I pretty much agree with that Gabe postulated in his post. The new client will most likely be written in Flash and only run on the Premiere platform. S3/HD users are probably SOL and won’t see any updates. The client will probably be on par with the current Netflix clients for Roku, PS3, etc. You’ll be able to control your queue, search the entire library, etc. Surround sound is uncertain given the encoding Netflix uses and the HW capabilities of the TiVo box. But there is hope. Closed captions will very likely be supported.

Again, TiVo will neither confirm nor deny any of this aside from the fact that a) there is an update coming and b) it is using the new Netflix SDK and will support 1080p. The rest is conjecture based on the TiVo platform, their recent development activities, the SDK’s features, and the competitive market. TiVo’s Netflix client was leading edge when it launched – in 2008. It hasn’t aged well though, and calls for an update have been increasingly loud. I’m sure S3/HD users will be less than pleased if they don’t get one, but the fact is the Premiere is TiVo’s main revenue stream these days.

I have to wonder if Netflix being excluded from MSO-provided units by contractual issues has lowered the importance of Netflix development for TiVo. Since retail looks to have a decreasing significance for TiVo as MSO deals ramp up distribution, it seems natural that features that are usable by their MSO partners would take priority over retail-only features. In any case, an update is overdue and welcome. I might even subscribe to Netflix since they’re bringing back Arrested Development.

Some more findings, as reported by CED Magazine:

• 80 percent of DVR owners rate the service 8 to 10 (on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being excellent) – compared with 80 percent last year and 77 percent two years ago.
• 62 percent of cable VOD users rate the service 8 to 10 – compared with 60 percent last year and 55 percent two years ago.
• 74 percent of premium on-demand (POD) users rate VOD 8 to 10 – compared with 54 percent of non-POD users.
• 63 percent of all Netflix subscribers rate the Watch Instantly feature 8 to 10 (on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being an extremely important feature or benefit of the Netflix service) – compared with 48 percent last year and 37 percent two years ago.
• 20 percent of Netflix subscribers use Watch Instantly daily, and 57 percent weekly – last year, 10 percent used Watch Instantly daily, and 43 percent weekly.
• 78 percent of Watch Instantly users use it to watch movies and TV shows on a TV set.
• 86 percent of Netflix households subscribe to a multichannel video service, and 43 percent with a multichannel video service subscribe to a premium service – similar to all households in the sample, and similar to Netflix households last year.

So while conventional television is still going strong, time-shifted access, VOD, and streaming services are clearly growing in importance.

Via CED Magazine.

I took a screencap of the notice, but the meat is this:

Dear Customer,

I have big news for Amazon Prime members – we’ve just signed a deal with FOX to add a broad selection of movies and TV shows to our unlimited instant streaming service later this fall. The new additions from the FOX library include 24, Arrested Development, The X-Files, Ally McBeal, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and – available on digital video for the first time – The Wonder Years. We now have deals with CBS, NBCUniversal, Sony, and Warner Bros, and adding FOX will bring the total to more than 11,000 movies and TV shows available for unlimited instant streaming.

Since launching earlier this year, we have now doubled the number of titles available in Prime instant videos, and there’s still more to come. Prime membership remains $79 a year, and of course features our unlimited free two-day shipping on millions of products. Prime is one of the best values anywhere.

Prime instant videos can be played on more than 300 HDTVs, Blu-ray players, and set-top boxes.

Right now there are 2,940 entries available for Amazon Prime streaming, but a lot of those are actually complete seasons of TV series, so the number of individual items is much higher. The Tech of the Hub Blog did a comparison of streaming services in August, looking at Amazon Instant, Hulu Plus, iTunes, Netflix, and Vudu. Netflix still has the content edge in numbers, but all content is not created equal and adding popular content gives a service more draw.

I do have a minor disappointment with this announcement, though it isn’t a new issue. The link in the announcement to“more than 300 HDTVs, Blu-ray players, and set-top boxes” in the announcement takes you to the Amazon Instant Video TVs and Devices page. On that page one of the entries is Compatible Digital Video Recorders – which are all TiVos, of course. But TiVo does not support Amazon streaming, only Amazon Instant Video downloads. So you cannot take advantage of the free Prime streams on TiVo, at least not yet. TiVo has said they’re working on an updated client to add streaming support, but we don’t have any word on when we might get that, and if it will be Premiere-only or if it will update older units as well. I hope no one is misled into thinking they’ll be able to access the stream from their TiVo today.

The screen capture of the announcement is below:

Of course, the Netflix App is currently really only good in the US and Canada, but they are expanding into other countries.

Via Mobiputing.

Netflix relies on Microsoft Silverlight for the Windows and MacOS clients. While there are Netflix clients for a number of Linux-based devices, such as TiVo, Android, and ChromeOS, as well as other platforms, like iOS, the PS3, and Blu-ray players, that isn’t the same as running on a Linux PC. Netflix relies on DRM to secure the streams, which they must do to satisfy the content owners who grant them the licenses to stream. Silverlight provides the DRM on Windows and MacOS, but on other platforms the DRM is generally provided by the hardware itself. That’s not an option on a generic PC, so the client would have to provide it.

Via Liliputing.

Although the launch itself seems to have a few glitches so far. The two new models are up on Best Buy’s website, the 32″ NS-32E859A11 and 42″ NS-42E859A11, but the prices given are $599.99 and $999.99 – when they are actually a much more palatable $499.99 and $699.99, respectively. And, interestingly, the online product descriptions don’t mention TiVo at all. In fact, they’re kind of weak, and don’t really cover the full capabilities of the product. They really need to be spruced up to better reflect the breadth of features available.

Furthermore, the packaging displays a ‘Mobile Code’ (a QR Code), which Dave Zatz helpfully has a nice photo of, but the page isn’t active. I scanned it and it resolves to http://bby.us/?c=BAEB1, which currently redirects to http://bby.us/TBD and an error not found. Someone at Best Buy is asleep as the switch, I think. Hopefully Best Buy will resolve these issues ASAP to avoid any bad first impressions or confusion.

The TVs themselves look like good values (at the correct pricing), especially the 42″ model. They’re fairly inexpensive for LED HDTVs (the industry calls LED-lit LCD sets ‘LED’ while ‘LCD’ sets have conventional backlighting – but both use LCD panels to create the actual image) and they are well stocked for connected TVs. The bundled apps include Netflix, CinemaNow, YouTube, Insignia OnDemand (which is powered by Flingo), Pandora, Napster, Photobucket, Facebook, Twitter, and more. But the real app power comes from support for Chumby apps, which provide over 1,500 app options. It’s no iOS App Store, or Android App Market, but it is a much broader selection than other connected TVs offer. And Chumby’s Flash environment is open to third party app developers, so they can start targeting apps to the big screen. Since the work has been done to integrate Chumby apps with the TiVo platform for these TVs, I’m hoping this will trickle down to the DVR units as well. The addition of Chumby apps would provide a huge jump start to TiVo’s anemic app selection.

As far as the specs go, they’re both Energy Star rated 1080p sets with 120Hz refresh, with four HDMI inputs and one each DVI, PC/VGA, component, composite, and RF antenna inputs. Interestingly they lack a media card slot (no CF/SD), but they do have a USB port. I’m not sure if the USB port supports mass storage for media access, but I’ll note that TiVo DVRs with USB ports do not. Both sets include audio technology from Audyssey and SRS. They also include a slot for a card to support Best Buy’s Rocketboost wireless audio system, which interfaces with Insignia Rocketboost enabled wireless speakers, etc. Network connectivity is via Ethernet or the built-in dual-band 802.11n WiFi. Both sets come with a two-year warranty, which is rather good.

I’m a little disappointed that the remote control isn’t a TiVo Peanut and that it lacks QWERTY (given the connected nature of the device), but it looks decent enough. It is a more conventional rectangular remote with a combination of conventional buttons and TiVo buttons. There’s a TiVo button, as you might expect, as well as an ‘Apps’ button to jump straight into the apps screen, the obligatory thumbs up/down, etc. A bit more busy/cluttered than a normal TiVo remote, but it looks functional. It is also a universal remote, and supports both RF (Z-Wave, not Bluetooth) and IR. It can be programmed to control up to three other devices – such as your cable DVR, a receiver, and an audio source – via on-screen menus, without having to enter codes.

An interesting feature of these TVs is that they are designed to work with your existing STB. The TV’s themselves lack CableCARD support, and are not DVRs, of course. But that’s where the universal remote comes in. When you want to access linear content you basically switch to your existing STB, but can control it from the same remote. I was disappointed to learn that there is a very limited EPG on these sets, just three hours of OTA. I wonder if if it is even downloading the EPG or just using PSIP. The TiVo Search capabilities are limited to the broadband accessible content, unlike a conventional TiVo where they encompass broadband and linear TV. I was hoping for something where you would have the full EPG just like on a DVR, and maybe integration with STBs via IR blasters. But these TVs are really focused on OTT content, leaving linear content to your existing sources. With the network remote on the TiVo S3+ they really could’ve done some transparent integration, the TV’s UI could’ve proxied for the DVR completely.

The elephant in the room is interoperability with existing TiVo units, specifically the TiVo Premiere. And right now the answer is – we don’t know. We have a pretty darn good idea, but there is nothing official. Unofficially it is expected that when TiVo officially launches streaming from the TiVo Premiere, these TVs will be able to act as a client. That would allow these TVs to be used as extenders in other rooms, streaming from a central TiVo Premiere – or TiVo Premiere Elite. Dave Zatz reports his sources indicate that not only is TiVo streaming is under discussion – but also DirecTV RVU, which would allow streaming form DirecTV DVRs in the home. (Maybe the new DirecTiVo will also support RVU? OK, that’s a big leap to make.) We do know TiVo is used MoCA in forthcoming products, and DirecTV also uses MoCA for their whole home DVR (which some people incorrectly call DECA – that’s the adapter, the protocol is still MoCA). There’s no mention of MoCA in these sets, but a DECA (DirecTV Ethernet-to-Coaxial Adapter) or ECB (Ethernet-to-Coaxial Bridge, for the non-DirecTV systems), would solve that.

There is no MRV, of course, as the TVs lack local storage and MRV makes a local copy. All of the services included on the sets are streaming – note no Blockbuster or Amazon video support either, as both systems are primarily download to play. Best Buy says they’re looking to add additional services in the future, I hope that includes Hulu and support for Amazon Instant Video. I think they missed a trick by not including and SD slot. They could’ve used it as many Blu-ray players do for BD-Live content, as user-added storage. Stick in a blank SD card and download a movie, use MRV, etc. Maybe they can use the USB port.

The other nugget from Zatz’s report is that the TVs include an all-new, redesigned Netflix app. That’s something TiVo users have been asking for for ages, so I hope it trickles down to existing units. I suspect it is Flash based, like everything on this platform seems to be, so it may only come to Premiere owners.

As part of their press push, Best Buy also released some ‘B-Roll’ footage for video bloggers, TV spots, etc., to grab clips from. I thought it was an interesting curiosity, so I stuck it on YouTube to share with you all. Warning, it starts with a test pattern with a piercing ‘beep’, just for a moment.

Right now I’m interested in a TiVo Premiere Elite for my main room and two TiVo Preview units – for the bedroom and my front room. If these TVs get TiVo streaming support, I’d seriously consider them. But it depends on how well the streaming works. If I can stream all my recordings and downloads from the main unit that’d be an easy choice. But I’d like to see some way to access Amazon and Hulu – this household no longer has a Netflix account but we do have Amazon Prime and Hulu Plus accounts. If the Preview provides access to those, but the TVs do not, it’d make the choice less clear.

While there is no confirmation, or refutation, of the July 31st launch date, but his sources indicate pricing for the 32″ 1080p LED HDTV will be $599 and the 42″ 1080p LED HDTV will be $999. Those prices may sound high, but these are LED HTDVs, and for LED models those prices are pretty reasonable. And, if they’re accurate, they’re probably MSRP – and who pays MSRP? Dave also believes he’s found the specs: 1080p, 120Hz LED LCD, dual band 802.11n wireless, 4 HDMI ports, 3 speakers. Not bad.

Shortly after making his post, Dave was contacted by a tipster who provided a number of photos of the 42″ model’s packaging. The photos confirm most of the information, and provide even more. The new branding is ‘TiVo Design’, which seems like TiVo’s version of ‘Intel Inside’. The remote is, unfortunately IMHO, not a TiVo peanut, but looks like a button farm brick.

The TV’s have no DVR, as we knew, just using the TiVo HDUI from the Premiere to access OTT content and for the guide. There will not be a subscription fee to use the service.

But what is really interesting are the included apps. This is a TiVo-powered TV, so you might expect expect services like Photobucket, Pandora, Netflix and YouTube, and they’re there. But so are Twitter, Facebook, Napster, CinemaNow, Insignia OnDemand, and Chumby apps. Best Buy owns Napster & CinemaNow, and of course Insignia, so these aren’t much of a surprise. But what makes these interesting is that the work must have been done to integrate then into the TiVo UI for these HDTVs. And if that work has been done, doesn’t it make sense to leverage it for the standalone TiVo units like the Premiere? We’ve heard mention of Twitter and Facebook apps in conjunction with MSO deals in the past, but this looks like it will be the first public appearance of such apps.

And, to start a rumor:

• TiVo has talked about apps as part of their new platform.
• Chumby’s app development environment is Flash.
• TiVo’s new platform also just happens to use Flash for apps.

Could TiVo jump-start their app library, as well as their developer base, by adopting Chumby’s app environment for their platforms outside of the Insignia TVs? It would certainly give them a shot in the arm. They’d benefit from the established library of apps, and the combined platform would provide a larger user base, which is more appealing to developers.

Certainly something to think about.

One of my pet peeves is their handling of Over-The-Top (OTT) content aka streaming and downloadable video from the likes of Netflix, Amazon, Hulu, etc.

Let’s start with TiVo’s Netflix support. When it launched, back in December 2008, TiVo’s Netflix implementation was basically as functional as its contemporaries. There were some serious limitations – not being able to add titles to your queue, limited searching, etc. But those were limitations shared by all Netflix streaming implementations. Fast-forward two and a half years and TiVo’s implementation – is still pretty much the same as it was at launch. Meanwhile other implementations – on Blu-ray players, gaming consoles, streaming boxes, etc., have made great leaps forward. Roku’s new player on the Roku 2 line supports 1080p video, 5.1 surround sound, and subtitles – none of which TiVo supports. Not to mention features that have been in there previously such as searching the available titles and adding titles to your queue.

When the TiVo Premiere launched over a year ago, in March 2010, it was called “the One Box to Rule Them All”. Even then I felt that was undeserved hyperbole, and I feel that even moreso today. It was touted as being your one-stop-shop for content:

It’s the One Box: TiVo Premiere is your new cable box, movie box, web box, and music box; it’s the one box that gives you access to everything you want to get on your television and all with one remote. It’s a true one stop shop for entertainment.

Yes, the selection of content is respectable enough – Netflix (despite the horrendously out-dated player), Amazon Instant Video (despite still lacking streaming support), Blockbuster, Hulu (on the Premiere only, natch), YouTube, Music Choice, and web videos. But it is far from market leading. Most decent Blu-ray players and game consoles include a similar lineup these days, and often more. But this is hardly a market leading lineup. Let’s even include TiVo’s list of web videos. It still doesn’t measure up to, say, Roku’s content options. TiVo, while you’re updating the geriatric Netflix client, and implementing streaming for Amazon Instant Video so TiVo users can join every other platform with free videos for Prime members, how about MLB.com? Crunchyroll? Flixster? Movie Vault? NASA TV? You get the point. Oh, and fix the damn YouTube client too, some of the functions in there have been broken for what seems like forever.

To put it simply, if someone is looking for a DVR which also provides some OTT content, I’d recommend TiVo. But for anyone who is mainly interested in OTT content, I would never recommend TiVo. I’d probably recommend a Roku as their best option. TiVo isn’t even in the top five. I’d put connected TVs, gaming consoles, Blu-ray players, and other STBs like Boxee before I’d recommend TiVo to someone seriously interested in OTT content. Again, if they really want a DVR and would like the ability to access some OTT content, sure, TiVo is my first recommendation. But I could not in good conscience recommend TiVo to someone who had a serious interest in OTT.

I gave my now fiancee a Roku HD-XR, the high-end box from their second generation (the Roku 2 is actually the fourth generation), for Xmas 2009, shortly after we started dating. She watched Netflix streaming a lot at the time, but was doing it all on her 15″ laptop while she had an HDTV across the room. So I gave her the Roku to use instead. Since she moved in with me last fall I’ve set up the Roku in the bedroom, but it doesn’t get much use. We use the TiVo for most OTT content, with the PS3 as secondary, as they’re both on the main TV in the living room.

But I have played with the Roku just to experience it, and I think their ’tile’ interface is far superior to TiVo’s. And their content selection simply puts TiVo to shame. If TiVo is serious about playing in the OTT market, they really need to get more content, especially real-time content, on board. I’m increasingly tempted to move the Roku, or get a second one, to be able to access content like NASA TV, Crunchyroll, and other content on our main set – instead of using the TiVo. Or Amazon Instant Video’s free streaming for Amazon Prime users, which TiVo has promised but not yet delivered.

Any content TiVo offers I believe is also on Roku – and often in a superior format. TiVo’s list of officially sanctioned web videos is littered with cruft – stale podcasts that are long since defunct. Some of the podcasts they list are SD versions when there are HD versions available. They’re simply lacking real-time streaming content outside of the ‘big boys’ Netflix, Hulu Plus, and YouTube. NASA TV would be a great addition. You can download the SpaceVidCast podcasts on TiVo – but on Roku you can watch the streaming live shows and access their premium content.

TiVo’s interface to select web video content has not aged well. The content is grouped in ways that often don’t make sense to me. I’ve grown increasingly frustrated with it over the years, as things that used to be ‘quirks’ have aged into ‘major annoyances’. For example, if you browse by ‘all’ why are some shows grouped – like NY Times content – but also listed individually? And why aren’t other logical groups also there? Why isn’t there a group for all CNET shows? (I don’t mean the one item where you can subscribe to them all, I mean a folder like the NY Times has.) Or Revision3 shows? It would be better for users and the content providers if it were easier to find all of their shows in one folder.

Why are there so many defunct podcasts still listed, cluttering the list. especially in the bunch at the end that require TiVo desktop to transcode? Some of them have been dead for a year or two now. Why are some podcasts listed only in HD versions, some in both HD & SD, and others only in SD? And I don’t mean those that are only available in one or the other, but those that have HD & SD options. Even among the HD podcasts from the same provider it seems sometimes different HD variants may be used.

It is a frustrating mess. Worse, it is a buggy, frustrating mess. If I scroll up and down too much, especially in long lists of podcasts, it will inevitably crash and kick me out to TiVo Central. Sometimes I’ve discovered ‘poison listings’ where if my cursor so much as highlights that title it will crash out to TiVo Central. And I can reproduce it every time I highlight that title. These issues come and go, it is a little bit of random fun – will it crash on me this time? Let’s find out!

And how about the pitiful RSS support? You can enter an RSS feed for a podcast that isn’t listed – but all that does is store the feed for you and you have to remember to manually check it to see if there is a new episode up. How is that at all TiVo-like? It is pretty much anti-TiVo. Why can’t it work like the ‘blessed’ podcasts and periodically check for new episodes and download them? That’s kind of what RSS is for. So you don’t have to manually check for new content on each site.

If TiVo is serious about being ‘the one box’ and remaining competitive with the explosion of connected TVs, Blu-ray players, gaming consoles, and cheap media boxes like Roku, they need to seriously re-evaluate their approach to OTT content, IMHO. Personally I’d love to see them license Roku’s platform. The UI would need some massaging to blend in better with TiVo’s HDUI, but it’d be a vast improvement – as would the explosion in content offerings. And TiVo would be in a unique position to integrate all of that content into their search platform. That would be truly powerful. (Or maybe TiVo can use some of their new windfall cash reserves to acquire Roku outright.) Beefing up their OTT offerings should make them an even more attractive partner for MVPDs who are facing cord cutters and those simply cutting back on their package levels, using OTT to fill in the gaps.

Offer content creators an API to publish their content on TiVo, without jumping through too many hoops or getting blessed. Create a system to sell premium content, subscriptions, etc, to the user – and TiVo can take a cut. Like Amazon and the Kindle – anyone can self-publish their book, blog, or the like to the Kindle. Amazon collects the fees and takes their cut, passing the rest on the the creator. TiVo should be able to do the same, with or without Roku. TiVo seems to be more and more Apple-like, acting like a walled garden and not the platform to end all platforms they claim to be.

You may have read about the Virgin Media TiVo in the UK and the way it integrates OTT content like BBC iPlayer and ‘catch up’ features into search and the guide. TiVo in the US could do much the same using OTT content – missed a show? Scroll back in the guide and it links to Netflix, Hulu, the network site, wherever that episode is available. Watching game you recorded? TiVo could pop up links to related content on MLB.com. Watching anime you recorded off Adult Swim? Maybe it suggests a related show from Crunchyroll.com.

Now that would be one box to rule them all – and not a pretender making unsupportable claims on the throne.

But that’s just my two cents. You may not agree.

After the trial Blockbuster will offer the one-disc plan for $9.99/month and the two-disc plan for $14.99/month. While Netflix’s one-disc plan is $7.99/month, Blockbuster claims some advantages. Their deals with the studios gives them new release titles up to 28-days before Netflix and other services. And, for those who still have a Blockbuster brick-and-mortar store nearby, they offer in-store exchanges of their by-mail DVDs. So you can return your rent-by-mail DVD and walk out with a new movie, for no additional charge.

If you want to take advantage of these offers you can do so online or bring the tear-off from a Netflix mailer to a participating Blockbuster store.

Via TWICE.

Warning: The subtitles may not be safe for work.

If you’re not familiar with the “Hitler reacts to…” meme. Uh, welcome to the Internet? You must be new here.

Netflix has decided to overhaul their subscription plans, splitting their disc- and streaming-plans into separate options. For those who use just one or the other, it isn’t such a bad move. The base one-DVD-at-a-time plan is now $7.99/month, and the unlimited streaming plan remains $7.99 a month. But you might see the problem already. If you want to use streaming and have the option of getting a DVD, it is now $15.98 a month – it used to be $9.99.

This is exactly the option my fiancee was given in an email today. Her solution? Drop Netflix entirely. She used to use Netflix a lot before she moved in with me last September, but she didn’t have a DVR at her place and here we have TiVo. So she almost always has something recorded she can watch. (Not to mention I have a frighteningly large DVD/BD collection.) She also recently signed up for a Hulu Plus account, which is only $7.99 for her (she’s in grad school, so she qualifies for the student rate), and she finds Hulu Plus has more of what she wants that Netflix streaming. The initial idea was just to try Hulu Plus out, to see how it was, now it looks like it is the one she’ll be keeping.

Without this price change we probably would’ve kept Netflix out of inertia, since we do use it from time to time (her more than I). But since they made the change and forced her to think about the new plans, it gave her reason to reconsider subscribing at all.

And she’s not alone. It looks like Dave Zatz, over at Zatz Not Funny, was faced with the very same choice – and made the same decision to cancel. It looks like Hulu Plus was also the big winner in his case. Along with Amazon, Apple, and Redbox. And there’s more.

What about you? What do you think about the new Netflix plans and pricing? Has it made you reconsider your options?

Picked up from Gadget Lab at Wired.

The new ‘Broadband HDTVs’ will support HD Netflix streaming directly over their built-in Ethernet connections. These new LCD and plasma HDTVs, along with five new Blu-ray players and home theater systems, will join the BD300 in LG’s Netflix-enabled lineup.

The press release is below:

Jan 5, 2009 07:00 ET

LG Electronics First to Unveil ‘Broadband HDTVs’ That Instantly Stream Movies From Netflix

Netflix Members Can Instantly Watch Movies Directly On New LG Plasma and LCD HDTVs

ENGLEWOOD CLIFFS, N.J. and LOS GATOS, Calif., Jan. 5 /PRNewswire/ — LG Electronics today extended its groundbreaking partnership with Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) , as the two companies announced the first broadband-enabled HDTVs with Netflix streaming software embedded directly in the TV, requiring no external device. LG’s new LCD and plasma “Broadband HDTVs” will display the growing library of movies, TV episodes and high-definition (HD) content that Netflix members can watch instantly directly on the TV with Ethernet connectivity.

Available this spring, the new LCD and plasma HDTVs will join the LG BD300 Network Blu-ray Disc Player, the first Blu-ray disc player to stream movies instantly from Netflix. These products – and five new models of Blu-ray Disc players and home theater systems planned for 2009 – will offer consumers a variety of ways to enjoy more than 12,000 choices of movies and TV episodes instantly from Netflix. Netflix members owning one or more of the devices pay as little as $8.99 per month for unlimited instant streaming and unlimited DVDs from a catalog of more than 100,000 DVD titles in more than 200 genres.

LG Electronics and Netflix will demonstrate these broadband HDTVs this week at the 2009 CES®, Booth #8214, Central Hall, Las Vegas Convention Center.

“Embedding the Netflix streaming software in the television is a natural progression of our partnership with Netflix and our innovative product line,” said LG Electronics USA President Teddy Hwang. “This is an LG industry-first, which provides another flexible option for consumers seeking to access exciting content directly through their HDTV.”

“LG Electronics was first to embrace Netflix as a streaming partner a year ago, and was first in 2008 to introduce a Blu-ray disc player that streams movies from Netflix,” said Netflix CEO Reed Hastings. “So it’s fitting that LG is the first to introduce Netflix instant streaming directly to the TV with these next-generation HDTVs.”

Netflix began offering its instant streaming functionality on the PC in January 2007 and made the leap to the TV last year via Netflix ready devices such as the LG BD300 Blu-ray disc player. With today’s announcement, Netflix will be streaming, for the first time, directly to the TV with no external device required.

Instantly streaming content from Netflix to the LG HDTVs will rely on a broadband connection and Queue-based user interface. Netflix members will use the Netflix Web site to add movies and TV episodes to their individual instant Queues. Those choices will automatically be displayed on members’ TVs and available to watch instantly through the HDTV. Once selected, movies will begin playing in as little as 30 seconds. With the accompanying remote control, Netflix members will be able to browse and make selections right on the TV screen and also have the ability to read synopses and rate movies. In addition, they will have the option of fast-forwarding and rewinding the video stream.

“The partnership between Netflix and LG Electronics continues to give consumers more and better options for home entertainment,” said Hastings.

About LG Electronics USA

LG Electronics USA, Inc., based in Englewood Cliffs, N.J., is the North American subsidiary of LG Electronics, Inc., a global force and technology leader in consumer electronics, home appliances and mobile communications. In the United States, LG Electronics sells a range of stylish and innovative home entertainment products, mobile phones, home appliances and business solutions, all under LG’s “Life’s Good” marketing theme. For more information, please visit www.LGusa.com.

About Netflix, Inc.

Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) is the world’s largest online movie rental service, with more than eight million subscribers. For one low monthly price, Netflix members can get DVDs delivered to their homes and can instantly watch movies and TV episodes streamed to their TVs and PCs, all in unlimited amounts. Members can choose from over 100,000 DVD titles and a growing library of more than 12,000 choices that can be watched instantly. There are never any due dates or late fees. DVDs are delivered free to members by first class mail, with a postage-paid return envelope, from over 100 U.S. shipping points. More than 95 percent of Netflix members live in areas that generally receive shipments in one business day. Netflix is also partnering with leading consumer electronics companies to offer a range of devices that can instantly stream movies and TV episodes to members’ TVs from Netflix. For more information, visit http://www.netflix.com/.

Source: LG Electronics USA, Inc.

CONTACT: John I. Taylor of LG Electronics USA, Inc., +1-847-941-8181,
jtaylor@lge.com; or Nathan Friedman, +1-312-397-6009,
nathan.friedman@ogilvypr.com, for LG Electronics USA, Inc.; or Steve Swasey of
Netflix, +1-408-540-3947, sswasey@netflix.com

Web site: http://www.lgusa.com/
http://www.netflix.com/

But the real interesting addition here is CinemaNow, and not so much that it is being added but how it is being added. CinemaNow will be streaming to the Blu-ray players. That’s very interesting – as far as I’m aware this is the first indication we’ve had that CinemaNow was adding streaming support to their content. To date CinemaNow has been all download-based, not streaming, including on TiVo. Right now on TiVo only Disney content is available from CinemaNow, but it has been stated that additional content would be added. Since TiVo supports streaming, as used by YouTube and Netflix, I have to wonder if CinemaNow content will also be available via streaming on TiVo.

In general we’re certainly going to be seeing more of this kind of thing, adding content sources to devices to make them multi-function. Just to support Blu-ray content and to comply with the BD-Live specification a Blu-ray player has to be capable of decoding MPEG-2, H.264, and VC-1 video in high definition, as well as handing a number of audio formats. The hardware used to do this is more than capable of handling most online video formats. BD-Live requires an Ethernet connection and 1GB of local storage, which is plenty to handle streaming buffers. And the BD-J programming environment allows for complex applications. It makes a lot of sense for Blu-ray players to pick up additional features like streaming video to make them more competitive and appealing to consumers.

Press release:

Dec 30, 2008 09:00 ET

LG Electronics Announces New Streaming Content Partners for Its Network Blu-ray Disc Players

LG to Offer Consumers Unparalleled Access to Streaming Entertainment from CinemaNow, YouTube and Netflix

ENGLEWOOD CLIFFS, N.J., Dec. 30 /PRNewswire/ — LG Electronics today announced the expansion of network entertainment options for its Network Blu-ray Disc players through new alliances with CinemaNow and YouTube™.

Available on new LG Network Blu-ray Disc Players in the first half of 2009, these new services complement LG’s instant streaming from Netflix and advanced Blu-ray capabilities to deliver consumers an exceptional entertainment experience. (In 2008, LG was the world’s first manufacturer to stream movies instantly from Netflix on a Network Blu-ray Disc Player.)

CinemaNow – an innovator in digital entertainment technology, delivering high-quality movies, TV shows and videos to users through online connectivity – and YouTube – a leading online video community for people to discover, watch, and share originally created videos – will be available in LG’s 2009 line of Network Blu-ray Disc players to be unveiled next week at the 2009 International CES®.

“As millions of U.S. consumers view and download movies or TV shows through the Internet, they are demanding easier ways to access content and more home entertainment options,” said Tim Alessi, director of product development, LG Electronics USA.

“From Blu-ray to instant streaming from Netflix to CinemaNow and YouTube, LG is bridging the gap between packaged media and video-on-demand services to provide entertainment solutions for consumers’ demand for content,” he said. “With these new alliances, LG continues its innovation leadership by allowing consumers easy access to multiple entertainment options in one device.”

CinemaNow: Instant Streaming of Hollywood’s Latest Hits

CinemaNow has pushed the envelope of digital video distribution, becoming the first Web site to offer Pay-Per-View movies from major studios and the first broadband distributor of high definition (HD) content. Collaborating with CinemaNow will enable LG Electronics to offer consumers access to more than 14,000 titles from the major movie studios, broadcast and cable television shows, more than 250 independent film titles and music videos from all major labels. Key benefits include the capability to:

— Browse the entire CinemaNow premium content catalog, including latest Hollywood hits,
— Instantly stream content to enjoy on compatible devices, and
— Access and watch movies purchased from other CinemaNow-powered stores.

“We are extremely pleased to be providing CinemaNow premium content services to these innovative new products from LG Electronics that are helping to drive convenient consumer access to digital entertainment at home,” said Mark Ely, executive vice president of strategy, Sonic Solutions (NASDAQ: SNIC) , parent company of CinemaNow.

YouTube: Original Streaming Video Content

Leading the way in providing unlimited access to online content, LG’s alliance with a prolific online video community, YouTube, will allow consumers to instantly stream millions of Web videos directly from the Internet to an LG Network Blu-ray Player for viewing on their television (without a personal computer). Key benefits include:

— Unlimited access to millions of videos on topics such as current events, instructional videos for hobbies and interests, comedic and viral videos and
— Easy searching, thumbnail previews and multiple screen size viewing options.

Netflix: High Definition Instant Streaming

Now available to consumers as a free on-line upgrade, LG’s first Network Blu-ray Disc Player (BD300) now delivers a growing number of Netflix titles in high-definition (HD). This new access to high-definition streaming content enhances the existing standard-definition streaming service that LG and Netflix first brought to consumers in 2008.

Future LG Network Blu-ray Disc Players will also offer consumers a variety of ways to enjoy more than 12,000 choices of movies and TV episodes from Netflix. Netflix members owning these devices pay one low monthly subscription for unlimited DVD rental and unlimited streaming.

LG’s full line of Network Blu-ray Disc Players, additional new content alliances and other new products will be revealed at the LG Electronics CES press conference on Jan. 7, 2009 at the Venetian/Sands and will be on display at the 2009 International CES – Booth #8214, Central Hall, Las Vegas Convention Center.

About LG Electronics USA

LG Electronics USA, Inc., based in Englewood Cliffs, N.J., is the North American subsidiary of LG Electronics, Inc., a global force and technology leader in consumer electronics, home appliances and mobile communications. In the United States, LG Electronics sells a wide range of consumer electronics (digital display and digital media) products, digital appliances and mobile phones under LG’s “Life’s Good” marketing theme. For more information, please visit www.LGusa.com.

About CinemaNow

CinemaNow, part of Sonic Solutions (NASDAQ:SNIC) , delivers high-quality Hollywood movies, TV shows and music videos to users across multiple platforms. CinemaNow is partnered with some of the biggest brands in consumer electronics and digital entertainment including ARCHOS, Dell, EchoStar Communications, Hewlett-Packard, Macrovision, Microsoft, Pioneer, Samsung, Technicolor and TiVo to deliver thousands of video titles directly to consumers. CinemaNow works with more than 250 licensors including 20th Century Fox, Disney, EMI, HDNet, IFC, Lionsgate, MGM, Miramax, NBC Universal, Paramount Pictures, Sony, Sundance Channel, Vivendi Entertainment and Warner Bros. For more information: www.CinemaNow.com.

Headquartered in Marin County, Calif, Sonic Solutions (www.sonic.com) enables the creation, management, and enjoyment of premium and personal digital media content through its Hollywood to Home™ products, services, and technologies.

About YouTube

YouTube is the world’s most popular online video community allowing millions of people to discover, watch and share originally created videos. YouTube provides a forum for people to connect, inform and inspire others across the globe and acts as a distribution platform for original content creators and advertisers large and small. YouTube, LLC is based in San Bruno, Calif., and is a subsidiary of Google Inc.

* Specifications are subject to change without notice.

Source: LG Electronics

CONTACT: John I. Taylor, +1-847-828-2777, jtaylor@lge.com; or Ojas Naik,
+1-312-397-6008, ojas.naik@ogilvypr.com, both for LG Electronics; or Chris
Taylor, chris_taylor@sonic.com, for CinemaNow

Web Site: http://www.cinemanow.com/
http://www.lgusa.com/
http://www.sonic.com/

Folks, thanks for your patience and we apologize for the launch issues that some of you have experienced.

Volume has been much higher than anticipated. We’ve been working around the clock to resolve these issues. As part of the solution, we are quickly moving to add more capacity to the system.

Our entire team will be monitoring closely tonight, and over the last few days we have put in place measures that should improve performance and stability. However, we know that tonight some of you will continue to see failures (although the problems should be less frequent).

If you do see problems, we ask that you try again later. We do expect that starting tomorrow, we will be able to fix performance and you will no longer see these issues with any regularity.

In a separate issue, some of you have reported issues with particular videos, such as lip sync issues with a show such as 30 Rock season 1 episode 1. We believe these issues are related to the video assets and we are working closely with Netflix to correct any bad videos as quickly as possible. Netflix does have a list of videos with known issues that have been reported, and they are working as fast as they can to correct all of them. In the meantime, they request you contact them to report any problems you see with a particular video. (If a video always skips or breaks up at a certain point, no matter what time of day, that’s most likely a bad video issue that only Netflix can address.)

We know you’re excited to use the Netflix application — we are excited as well and we apologize for these problems. I’ll keep you updated here on the forums with our progress in correcting the issues. Thanks again for your patience.

Best regards,
Stephen

I’m sure TiVo and Netflix will get these issues ironed out soon. It isn’t unusual to have some teething issues with the launch of a new feature. But this is such a high profile feature that I’m sure fixing the issues will have a very high priority.

But they have one more surprise up their sleeves – high-definition content! From the press release (below) it looks like they’ll be launching with some HD content available to stream to TiVo. As stated previously, the Netflix service is only available on broadband connected TiVo Series3, TiVo HD, and TiVo HD XL units. The Series2 platform unfortunately is incapable of supporting the video codec Netflix uses. Only the newer units have the required hardware, sorry, that’s just how it is. It isn’t like Series2 units don’t have options – Amazon VOD, CinemaNow/Disney, and Jaman are all available.

This is likely why the HD units started getting the new software revision last week, to prep them for the launch of Netflix.

Press release below:

LIGHTS, CAMERA, ACTION! MOVIES AND TV EPISODES FROM NETFLIX DIRECTLY TO THE TV THROUGH TIVO DVRs AVAILABLE TODAY

Just in Time for the Holidays, Offering Brings Budget Conscious Entertainment to Consumers

ALVISO, Calif. – December 8, 2008 — After announcing a groundbreaking partnership in October with Netflix Inc., TiVo Inc. (NASDAQ: TIVO), the creator of and a leader in television services for digital video recorders (DVRs), today announced that subscribers to both Netflix and TiVo® Series3, TiVo HD, or TiVo HD XL can now access thousands of movies and TV episodes instantly streamed from Netflix directly to their TVs.

The service is being offered at no additional charge to customers who subscribe to both services. This morning subscribers can browse through an expanding library of more than 12,000 movies and TV episodes at www.netflix.com, add them to their Netflix instant Queue, and then watch them on TV with just a click of the TiVo remote. The library includes titles from every genre, with a modest selection of HD content available as well. Both standard and HD titles are expected to grow in the weeks and months ahead.

“With so much talk focusing on the economy these days, this partnership makes more sense than ever because it brings people more movies at home, offering substantially more entertainment options than cable or satellite,” said Tara Maitra, GM and Vice President of Content Services at TiVo Inc. “TiVo offers consumers everything they need from just one box. Not only great content from Netflix, but also movies from The Walt Disney Studios and Amazon, music from Rhapsody, videos from YouTube and even pictures from Picasa Web Albums and Photobucket. And that’s all in addition to TiVo’s core functionality that made us a favorite in the first place. It adds up to a one-of-a-kind value.”

“Netflix offers an unbeatable combination of convenience, selection, and value, which now extends to TiVo customers,” said Netflix Chief Marketing Officer Leslie Kilgore. This partnership is a win-win-win for Netflix, TiVo, and consumers alike.”

Movies are streamed from Netflix through TiVo DVRs via wired or wireless broadband connection and a Netflix Queue-based user interface. Members visit the Netflix Web site to add movies and TV episodes to their individual instant Queues. Those choices will automatically be displayed on subscribers’ TVs and are available to watch instantly through the TiVo service. With the TiVo remote control users can browse their instant Queue, make selections right on the TV screen, as well as read synopses and rate movies. In addition, they have the option of pausing, fast-forwarding, rewinding and re-starting whenever they wish.

For more information on how to have movies instantly streamed from Netflix via your TiVo DVR visit www.tivo.com/netflix.

That means that the Profile 2.0 / BD-Live BD-P1500 is only $199.99, a fantastic deal on a full featured player. And that’s not all, if you’re also in the market for an HDTV you can buy one of ten Samsung HDTVs and this player and save $200 – you get the player free. Very nice.

Alternatively, the Profile 2.0 / BD-Live BD-P2500 is $299. What do you get for the extra $100? Internal Dolby TrueHD and DTS HD decoding (both models can bitstream) and 7.1 audio analog outputs (the BD-P1500 has only 2.0 analog outputs). Not a big deal if you have an A/V receiver with decoders, since the BD-P1500 can bitstream the formats over HDMI, which is more convenient anyway.

But that’s not all, the BD-P2500 is also one of the Netflix streaming Blu-ray players. And it not only streams Netflix video, but it will soon support Netflix’s new HD streaming video. Since the dedicated Roku Netflix player is $99, for the price of a BD-P1500 and a Roku box you get all of the functionality in one box.

Of course, Netflix has already moved beyond the Roku box, streaming to Blu-ray players from LG Electronics and Samsung, TiVo, and soon Xbox 360. And, of course, PCs and now Macs.

Blockbuster just can’t seem to catch up, let alone get ahead.

Picked up via Format War Central.

Via EngadgetHD.

Picked up from TiVo Blog.

Netflix streaming is coming to TiVo – very soon. It is great news, but it isn’t too surprising. TiVo and Netflix first talked about partnering over four years ago, though that initial deal seemed to fizzle when Netflix had trouble getting content rights.

In the meantime the market has completely changed. Netflix has rolled out their streaming service and TiVo has added streaming support to their platform for YouTube. And, of course, movie downloads from Amazon and Jaman, with CinemaNow/Disney expected any day now. Content providers are much more open to digital distribution than they were four years ago, and the technology has improved as well. A lot of us have been expecting TiVo and Netflix to bring streaming to TiVo. Especially after Netflix made deals with LG and Samsung to stream to some their Blu-ray players.

This now gives TiVo content from four major services – Amazon, Jaman, CinemaNow (soon), and Netflix. The only major service left that I can think of is Blockbuster/Movielink. And, honestly, they’re not exactly the market leader. I suppose TiVo could work with VUDU to build a VUDU client into TiVo, but with all the other content I don’t know that it would be worth it for TiVo. More benefit for VUDU I’d think. The only thing left to make TiVo *the* platform for movies is HD content, and I’m sure that’s coming.

As Amazon VOD also offers streaming, I expect TiVo to bring that to their platform in addition to the downloads available today. And we’re all just waiting for HD content. There have been repeated hints and mentions of work toward bringing HD content downloads from Amazon to TiVo, and more recently Jaman and Cinema now. And just today Netflix announced they’ll be streaming in HD to Xbox 360. So maybe we’ll see Netflix in HD on TiVo as well.

What’s next for TiVo and broadband content? I think we’ll see them making deals with more content portal sites and networks, like Hulu.com and CBS.com. It is just logical, and TiVo already has the infrastructure to support such streaming sites. I think TiVo is making the right moves.

The Netflix streaming, like YouTube, will be coming to the TiVo Series3, TiVo HD, and TiVo HD XL. It isn’t clear if they’ll be using H.264, like YouTube, or if the streams will be using VC-1 – which Netflix uses for their PC and Mac streaming. The TiVo hardware is capable of supporting both codecs, but VC-1 hasn’t been used to date. Why no Series2 support? As with YouTube, the hardware doesn’t support the newer codecs.

Picked up from Zatz Not Funny.

The press release:

TIVO AND NETFLIX ANNOUNCE PARTNERSHIP TO INSTANTLY STREAM MOVIES AND TV EPISODES FROM NETFLIX DIRECTLY TO THE TV THROUGH TIVO DVRs

Deal Provides Netflix with New Content Distribution Channel, Solidifies TiVo’s Leading Position as One-Box Solution for Simple Navigation and Delivery Of the Best Entertainment Content to the TV

ALVISO, Calif. and LOS GATOS, Calif., October 30, 2008 — TiVo Inc. (NASDAQ: TIVO), the creator of and a leader in television services for digital video recorders (DVRs) and Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX), the world’s largest online movie rental service, today announced that they are teaming up to provide Netflix and TiVo® Series3, TiVo HD, and TiVo HD XL subscribers with the ability to have thousands of movies and TV episodes instantly streamed from Netflix directly to their TVs.

The two companies said they are initiating a test of the new capability today in several thousand U.S. households and expect it to be broadly available in early December, in time for the holidays. The ability to instantly watch content from Netflix on the TV via TiVo DVRs will be offered at no additional charge to customers who subscribe to both services.

The agreement provides Netflix with an important new technology partner to instantly stream a growing library of more than 12,000 choices of movies and TV episodes directly from Netflix to the TV. It also solidifies TiVo’s leading position for simple navigation and delivery of the best entertainment content to the TV.

“For Netflix and TiVo subscribers, this collaboration offers a fabulously easy way to enhance the enjoyment of watching movies in the comfort of their living rooms,” said Reed Hastings, co-founder and CEO of Netflix. “Subscribers to Netflix and TiVo are avid movie watchers and this combination gives them immediate access to all of the great content available through TiVo and the thousands of additional choices available to be streamed instantly from Netflix.”

“Joining forces with Netflix creates the ultimate video on demand service and solidifies TiVo’s leading position as the one-box solution for aggregating, searching, and delivering the best content available anywhere right to the TV,” said Tom Rogers, president and CEO of TiVo Inc. “Adding Netflix to our already vast library of content differentiates TiVo even further from any other offering in the market today.”

Integrating the Netflix streaming functionality into the TiVo experience will result in quick and easy access to a growing list of movies and TV episodes that can be watched instantly at Netflix. Movies streamed from Netflix via specified TiVo DVRs is done through a wired or wireless broadband connection and a Netflix Queue-based user interface. Members visit the Netflix Web site to add movies and TV episodes to their individual instant Queues. Those choices will automatically be displayed on subscribers’ TVs and available to watch instantly through the TiVo service. With the TiVo remote control, users will be able to browse their instant Queue, make selections right on the TV screen, and also have the ability to read synopses and rate movies. In addition, they will have the option of pausing, fast-forwarding, rewinding and re-starting whenever they wish.

For more information on how to have movies instantly streamed from Netflix via your TiVo DVR visit www.tivo.com/netflix.