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TiVO

Marc and Scoble wonder why TiVO hasn't taken off yet.

While I agree with Robert that the technology is too expensive and complex. I think TiVO also suffers from a major case of pathetic marketing.

Ask people who are not technology-savvy about the advantage of TiVO over a plain old VCR. They won't know, and probably won't care. TiVO is marketing itself as a replacement for the VCR, but in fact is nothing more than a companion to it.

“I can't go to my favorite video store and rent a few flixs to play on my TiVO, can I?

You mean I also need a VCR?

How about DVDs? I need a DVD player too?

Sheesh… What is this thing good for?”

You can buy a VCR for around $40 nowadays, versus $200 for a TiVO box. That's another losing proposition.

I've seen a few TiVO units with build-in DVD players, but what about a build-in video player? Last I looked Blockbuster and Hollywood Video still have more VHS offering than DVDs. Everybody has a VCR, yet, TiVo, its wanna-be replacement, is really not compatible.

A few years back, I received a flyer from my old cable company, AT&T Digital Cable, promoting their TiVo-enabled unit. I recall sitting there in my living reading it and wondering what market they were actually trying to target. $10-a-month cable subscribers are not going to spend that kind of money, no matter what.

It's all about technology, but technology is a hard sell. Let me play devil's advocate for a sec…

Commercial Skip — My 4 years old VCR has something called commercial-marking, works like a charm.

Scheduling — Once, again, my 4 years old VCR can easily record a show on a daily, weekly or monthly basis. I just have to remember to change the tape when full. With VCR+ I just pickup my TV guide and find the code, not too hard. I think even my wife can do that. Well… maybe not. (Sorry, honey.)

Pausing Live TV — I can't do that. But I can record a show while watching another live, a single-tuner TiVo unit can't.

Instant Live TV Replay — I really can't do that. Don't call me while I watch TV, please.

Digital Recording — Yeah, cool, but so what?

Of course TiVO makes everything a lot easier, but as far a John Doe customer is concerned it is certainly not compelling enough.

TiVO needs a hook, like Apple with the iPod's coolness factor. Relying on movie stars blabbing about how much they like their TiVO on late night talk shows is not going to cut it in the end.

Where did the links go? Visit my new Linkblog.