TiVo coming to Cox

[abomb]

But only to the non-HD Motorola boxes.

August 24, 2006
TiVo Coming To Cox
Filed under: PVR / DVR, Industry, TiVo — Dave Zatz @ 9:10 am
TiVo always implied they wanted to be a software and services company rather than a hardware manufacturer. Not only do deals with Comcast, DirecTV, and now Cox further those goals, they ensure TiVo’s business viability in the face of OCAP of SDV. As with Comcast’s Motorola 6412 boxes, TiVo software will be a download option for select Cox DVRs when available in 2007. I assume the TiVo brand name, advertising features, and patent portfolio helped secure this deal which Cox was evaluating in May.

TiVo Inc. (Nasdaq: TIVO), the creator of and a leader in television services for digital video recorders (DVR), and Cox Communications, the nation’s fourth-largest cable television company, have entered into an agreement to make TiVo’s leading DVR and interactive advertising service available to select Cox subscribers.

Under the terms of the agreement, TiVo will customize its cable software for deployment on compatible Cox DVR set-top-boxes. TiVo’s downloadable software will allow Cox to deliver the TiVo(R) service in Cox subscriber homes without replacing existing DVR boxes, and without an install appointment. In this way, current Cox DVR customers who wish to enjoy the award-winning TiVo service, can quickly and easily add the benefits of TiVo to their DVR subscription.

“We are excited to add TiVo to the portfolio of Cox entertainment services,” said Steve Necessary, vice president of video product development, Cox Communications. “Cox is committed to offering our customers the best television experience possible. Our new joint service will allow us to build on the popularity of the TiVo brand while continuing to provide our customers with the simplicity of our products and the award winning customer service they have come to expect.”

Cox Digital Cable customers with DVR service who choose to add TiVo to their Cox subscription will enjoy the renowned TiVo user interface as well as new innovations that link the capabilities enabled by Cox’s broadband network like On DEMAND and High Definition service, with exclusive TiVo features like Season Pass(TM) recordings, WishList(R) searches and the recently announced TiVo KidZone. KidZone gives parents an easy way to safeguard their kids from video content while also helping them discover and choose great educational and age-appropriate shows. The service is expected to launch in select Cox markets in the first half of 2007.

Tom Rogers, TiVo’s CEO, said, “We are excited to expand our presence in the cable industry by partnering with Cox, a clear leader in driving consumer adoption of the DVR. By combining Cox’s marketing prowess and top-quality customer service with TiVo’s superior technology and product offerings, we have unleashed a highly scalable way of delivering the best television viewing experience to its customers.”

The agreement also provides for Cox to distribute TiVo’s interactive advertising platform which enables an industry proven advertising solution that is seamlessly integrated with the award-winning TiVo subscriber experience. The new advertising relationship extends Cox Media’s leadership in the advanced advertising arena and further expands TiVo’s national advertising footprint. Cox Media is the advertising sales arm of Cox Communications.

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

 

[dreamcastrocks]

Non-HD motorola boxes =

How many of them do they have in the valley?

I am considering switching to satellite because of it.

 

[D-Dogg]

bomb, where does it mention the motorola non hd boxes? Is that from another story or am I just blind?

 

[dreamcastrocks]

TiVo always implied they wanted to be a software and services company rather than a hardware manufacturer. Not only do deals with Comcast, DirecTV, and now Cox further those goals, they ensure TiVo’s business viability in the face of OCAP of SDV. As with Comcast’s Motorola 6412 boxes, TiVo software will be a download option for select Cox DVRs when available in 2007. I assume the TiVo brand name, advertising features, and patent portfolio helped secure this deal which Cox was evaluating in May.

It says select, but I have heard the same thing online as well.

 

[D-Dogg]

cox has motorola boxes? Mine's the hd scientific atlanta. Weird they'd have boxes from two manufacturers instead of an exclusive deal with one.

 

[abomb]

cox has motorola boxes? Mine's the hd scientific atlanta. Weird they'd have boxes from two manufacturers instead of an exclusive deal with one.

IIRC, the Motorola boxes are the non-HD DVRs and SA are the HD DVRs.

 

[dreamcastrocks]

I have both types of boxes, just digital cable boxes, and also an HD DVR. Both are SA, but most areas of the country have these motorola boxes, rather than the SA ones.

Most of the valley is pretty much screwed.

 

[abomb]

I have both types of boxes, just digital cable boxes, and also an HD DVR. Both are SA, but most areas of the country have these motorola boxes, rather than the SA ones.

Most of the valley is pretty much screwed.

We are also screwed with On Demand. San Diego has had dozens of HBO shows and movies available on demand for over two years now.

 

[jenna2891]

bomb, where does it mention the motorola non hd boxes? Is that from another story or am I just blind?

holy crap, i'm gonna call him bomb all the time now.

 

[abomb]

bomb, where does it mention the motorola non hd boxes? Is that from another story or am I just blind?

It wasnt in that story, but in an old press release. Manufacturer appears to differ by market;

http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=76341&p=irol-newsArticle&t=Regular&id=596691

ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 27, 2004--Cox Communications (NYSE: COX) announced today that customers in more than 95 percent of its markets will have access to digital video recorder (DVR) service by the end of 2004. Upcoming market launches include Orange County, Calif.; Omaha, Neb; Roanoke and Hampton Roads, Va.; New England; New Orleans and Baton Rouge, La.; Macon, Ga.; Tulsa, Okla. and Middle America Cox. DVR service in these markets will be delivered via the Motorola DCT-6412 set-top box.

Also, this one;

Cox Joins Comcast in TiVo Guide Deal
Subscribers to Comcast and now Cox will eventually be able to choose the TiVo navigational system as the primary guide for their digital cable service, thanks to a TiVo/Cox deal etched last Thursday.

Customers who choose TiVo over Cox's existing navigational system will be able to do so without a box swap, TiVo officials said. Cox's digital set-top footprint is about 50/50 Motorola and Scientific Atlanta; SA's boxes are expected to lead the deployment. Meanwhile, over at Comcast, which is about 90 percent Motorola, work continues to get the TiVo system ready for widespread deployment, probably sometime in '07.

For as long as the TiVo service has been in market, observers have wondered: Why can they not strike a mutually agreeable deal with cable providers? No great surprise: Money, in the form of per-unit licensing fees, appears to have been the hang-up. However, TiVo CEO Tom Rogers, who is considerably more "plugged in" to the cable side than prior TiVo honchos, aims to correct that.

Et tu, Time Warner Cable? That'd be a tough one, given the MSO's deep investment into its own navigational platform, know variously as "MDN" for "Mystro Digital Navigator," and "ODN," for "OCAP Digital Navigator," which is basically the MDN written in Java such that it is OCAP-compatible.

 

[abomb]

And from one more article;

Cox users wanting a TiVo powered Cox DVR will have to wait as the service isn’t launching till the first half of 2007, in select markets.

 

[D-Dogg]

Ok, but where is it saying that those with HD Sci Atlanta boxes won't get to download the Tivo software?

 

[abomb]

Ok, but where is it saying that those with HD Sci Atlanta boxes won't get to download the Tivo software?

I interpret it as anyone who has Cox, regardless of definition or brand, will get the software upgrade in 2007.

 

[D-Dogg]

That's a good thing then.