Read more Hydrapinion – Play – Tivo comes to Australia, but can it be trusted?

Tivo unveiled yesterday their newest feature available to subscribers. Now Tivo partnering with Amazon Unbox to allow subscribers to rent or buy movies online from Amazon Unbox. Tivo subscribers can download titles directly to their Tivo box over their home networks that are connected to the Internet with a broadband connection.

A couple of the key advantages to this new feature are that when you rent from Amazon Unbox is that unlike going to traditional video rentals stores, or even online video rental outlets for that matter, the movies you want are always in stock and new releases are available for purchase the same day they arrive on DVD. Amazon Unbox also carries your favorite TV series so you can always stay caught up on whats going on with your favorite shows.

Amazon Unbox on TiVo service takes convenience to a new level. You can access the Amazon Unbox from any Internet connected computer and order your movies or shows and they will be ready and waiting for you when you get home. A really nice thing about this is that you can have the latest release movies already purchased and waiting for you on release day and never have to stop at the store to pick them up.

Currently if you register for this new broadband service by April 30, 2007 and you can get $15 in free movies and TV show downloads. The average price to purchase a movie through Amazon Unbox is about $15, while rentals are $3.99 for movies and $1.99 for most TV shows, so this credit is basically a free movie purchase or 3 free rentals. Not bad for a trial run.

This method of movie purchase and rental is sure to be the next wave of the future. So if you are a Tivo subscriber now is a good time to get your feet wet with this exciting new feature available to you.
About the Author

Rick Roberts owns and maintains several websites including www.daelectronics.com and www.homehealthrepair.com

TiVo, the poster child of technological advancement for companies like Direct TV, is really nothing more than a middle-aged woman in a designer dress – with plastic surgery. The technology behind TiVo is really just a tweaked DVR, or digital video recorder. Other companies have it; but no other company has built as successful marketing package around their product as has Direct TV with TiVo.

What is TiVo, um, I mean a Digital Video Recorder?

Digital Video Recorders capture video in a way similar to old video recorders, but they do it digitally. Watchers can “pause and rewind live TV” because the speed and response time of DVRs, like TiVo, provide for a virtually seamless transition from live TV to recorded material. Based on user settings, up to 80 hours of television can be recorded. This can include your favorite show each week, or you can record everything you watch to make sure you dont miss anything. Remember, every DVR can do this, not just TiVo.

The difference is the way Direct TV has partnered with TiVo and positioned it for success in the highly competitive market of satellite television and accessories. The true success of TiVos marketing strategy lies in the fact that many people believe it is a unique product.

With product lines in competitive markets, positioning and packaging is king. Direct TV touts TiVo in nearly every major marketing campaign they put together. They offer discount TiVo technologies to new customers who are willing to commit to a one-year contract. My guess is that if you have ever heard of Direct TV and seen any advertisement they have produced, you have been exposed to the TiVo name and features.<H3>Have You Ever Heard of Tevas?</H3>

The three strap sandals that have come in and out of fashion over the last few decades are now known almost universally as “Tevas.” Chalk up a point for the company Teva that created and marketed their sandals extremely successfully. When was the last time you had jello actually a name brand of gelatin desert, or used a Kleenex trademarked name for a tissue? Do you ask for a “Coke” no matter what flavor of soda it is? The list goes on and on, including the most recent tendency to refer to all DVR technology as “TiVo.”<H3>What are you going to do about it?</H3>

If you own a small business or operate one out of your home, you might not be running your own unique product line. But if you do, what are you doing to package it and position it for success? Consider doing the following:

Name your product or service. It may sound silly, like naming your car “Betsy” or “Lechuga,” but a name is an essential part of successful repackaging. This is what TiVo did when they renamed their DVR technology. Rather than call it a car wash, try something like “Dirty Mikes 15-Point SuperClean.” Maybe five years from now people will say they need a “superclean” instead of saying they need a “carwash.” Keep reading below for legal considerations.
Before you start using a new slogan or title, double check to make sure another company does not already own the trademark or copyright. The last thing you want to do or pay for when you own a small business is a lengthy legal process over something you could have avoided had you done the research.
Get legal protection for your products, names, and slogans. At the same time you are doing your research, register your trademarks, copyrights, and where appropriate your patents. Registering your intellectual property with the government will go a long way when it comes time to stop others from infringing on your company name or intellectual rights.
About the Author

Nick Smith is an internet marketer specializing in online advertising. For more information about TiVo and DVRs, visit I-Satellite.

The Worlds first, best and easiest to use digital video recorder – that is TiVo in a nutshell. When it was first introduced, TiVo quickly gained popularity and became a smash hit in the world of home entertainment. Millions of American households are now enjoying the convenience and freedom that TiVo offers. In a huge way, TiVo has revolutionized digital video recording and made it more accessible to the public. This article discusses what TiVo is, as well as the advantages and disadvantages it offers.

What is TiVo?

TiVo is a brand of digital video recorder or DVR that allows user to capture television programming and record it to internal hard disk storage for later viewing. The TiVo basically functions just like video cassette recorders or VCR. The big difference is that TiVo uses a high memory, non-removable hard disk storage and has much more sophisticated software to record programs. In addition, live programs can be paused or rewound to repeat a sequence and unlike tape based recorders, a program that is on the process of being recorded can be viewed from the beginning. TiVo is powered by a 50 MHz PowerPC chip, IDE controller and specialized MPEG encoding and decoding hardware. A Quantum 13.9GB IDE hard drive 14 hr provides the memory used for recording programs. There are newer units that offer 20, 30 and 60 hours of recording time. Meanwhile, TiVo software is Linux-based which has encouraged some to hack TiVo.

Advantages of TiVo

Convenience – Now, you have total control of your entertainment. With TiVo, people will no longer have to schedule plans around a favorite TV program. Instead, they can set TiVo to record that particular program for later viewing and can be watched over and over again. With TiVo, you can select your favorite programs to record either by time, specific program title, as well as by genre, actors, directors and many others. The TiVo memory is massive allowing you to accommodate all your preferred programs which remain intact for viewing until you manually delete it.

Excellent User Interface – The TiVo interface is easier to use in many ways compared to a VCR. Even technophobes can easily get the hang of TiVo and will soon consider TiVo as a best friend. One great feature that TiVo has is the thumbs up/thumbs down button which is basically a user rating system that allow viewers to score television shows. Users can rate TV shows in a scale of three thumbs ups and three thumbs downs. These ratings are then used to determine the users preferences to suggest some shows and programs that are similar to the users interests.

Great Features – Aside from the great convenience and ease-of-use, TiVo offers a host of other exciting features TV addicts will love. Season Passes allow TiVo to record a show each time it is aired regardless of when the show begins. TiVo also feature Wish List searches and online scheduling which have made the TiVo a household necessity. All theses plus TiVos various home entertainment innovations make people wonder how they went for so long without this exceptional piece of home entertainment.

Disadvantages of TiVo

Privacy Concerns – Some users are concerned that TiVos capability to collect usage data may intrude into the privacy of its subscribers. However, TiVo assures its consumers that no information about individual viewing habits are being collected.

Ads – TiVo began including pop-up advertisements to explore it as an alternative source of income. Apparently, as the user fast-forwards through certain commercials, instead of seeing a blur of broken video stream, they will see a static image. This drew negative response from its subscribers who have previously enjoyed TiVos ad free viewing experience. ——————

Mitchell Medford is an author and product consultant for several consumer electronics manufacturers. Visit his websites for more information on Tivo and satellite tv.
About the Author

Mitchell Medford is an author and product development consultant for several consumer electronics manufacturers. Visit his websites for more information on home theater systems and exclusive deals on satellite tv: http://www.newtechnologytv.com http://www.1stboard.com

For a small subscription fee plus the price of the hardware, Australians will be able to pause live high definition TV, fast-forward ads, record shows and series from any of the free-to-air digital TV channels, and access broadband content such as video-on-demand.

The company today announced a partnership with the Seven Network, which will build the digital platform behind the service.

Read the full news story Skip the ads, TiVos coming to Australia