Will Tivo GO Retail only?

[Peter Parker]

http://yahoo.reuters.com/financeQuo...tfh50837_2005-01-23_18-36-28_n23622410_newsml

The firm insists that there is room for growth that way. But is there? With DTV pushing an alternative platform and cable selling DVRs cheaper what will happen to Tivo?

 

[CWS_kahuna]

I think Tivo will be just like Replay TV. It will have a following of long time supporters but I just don't see any room for growth. Tivo should have released their software to other platforms much sooner. At CES they had the Cable Card version of Tivo but like you said all of the cable companies are selling DVRs much cheaper than a Tivo. There still is no High Def stand alone Tivo which I think is insane when you think about how long Tivo has been around and the fact that their boxes & monthly subscription fee are not on the inexpensive side. It also makes no sense to only release a HD Tivo for D* when they have known for a long time that D* was planning to use their own DVRs.

One thing that burns me on Tivo is the lifetime subscription fee, the fact that it is non transferable sucks IMO.

 

[conflictofinterest]

One thing that burns me on Tivo is the lifetime subscription fee, the fact that it is non transferable sucks IMO.

TiVo reduces the fee on additional units. I paid $199 in 2000 for lifetime, upgraded my original TiVo hardrive, bought another Tivo and just pay $6.95 monthly on it. The new TiVo is a DVD unit also, and has a free DVR TiVo-basic if I ever want to stop paying, but I chose to pay for full service. I tape at high or best quality, as I can't bear anything lower.

A comparable Dishplayer in 2000 was hot, noisy, and wasn't a DVR until a software update was sent, and from what I read after that, buggy.

I tried Comcast. I realized I don't need lot of channels, didn't like Comcast's DVR nor do I want to pay $70/month to Comcast. I'm not adulating TiVo's business model, nor do I think the standalone unit is for everyone. I also don't care if the company goes under or not. If I started on the DVR bandwagon much later, I probably wouldn't have gone the standalone TiVo route, either, but I am satisfied on what I have.