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Comcast to Offer Digital Video Recorder Service Under Deal With TiVo

Posted on: Wednesday, 16 March 2005, 18:00 CST

Mar. 16--Comcast announced Tuesday a deal with TiVo that will allow the nation's largest cable provider to offer digital video recorder service from the former rival.

Comcast plans to roll out the service mid- to late 2006. Under the agreement, TiVo will adapt its software to work on Comcast's existing DVR box. Current DVR subscribers will be able to download the new programming services to their box once they become available, Comcast said.

The agreement gives subscribers a choice of services. Comcast will continue to offer its DVR product, which the company said is wildly popular. Comcast said it signed up about 140,000 new DVR subscribers for the fourth quarter.

The new DVR service will be available only to Comcast's subscribers who use digital cable, which is about 40 percent of its 21.5 million customers.

"We are focused on providing our customers with a 21st-century television experience," Brian Roberts, Comcast chief executive, said in a statement. "TiVo has revolutionized the way consumers watch and access home entertainment."

Financial terms for the nonexclusive deal were not disclosed.

Word of the agreement sent TiVo's stock soaring. It closed at $6.70, up $2.87.

After basically inventing the DVR market, TiVo has had to scramble to maintain its stature in a rapidly evolving space. Consumers have been able to benefit from the glut of DVRs on the market, with products from ReplayTV, Pioneer, Mitsubishi and others offered by cable and satellite providers.

With the upswing in competition, TiVo has scrambled to secure deals like Comcast's. About three years ago, TiVo inked a deal with DirecTV to sell its boxes. The relationship with the satellite company was TiVo's most profitable. Of the 698,000 subscribers TiVo added last quarter, 447,000 came from its relationship with DirecTV.

Although the partnership has been beneficial to both sides, DirecTV announced last month that it will soon sell a competing DVR. The contract between the two companies is set to expire in 2007.

"Broad deployment to millions of Comcast homes nationwide will enhance TiVo's recurring revenues," Mike Ramsay, chairman and chief executive of TiVo, said in a statement.

Industry experts say TiVo's service is one of the best on the market. It receives high marks for its advanced search and record functions and easy-to-learn control navigation.

The company has a program feature called Season Pass where the DVR records every episode of a certain show whenever it is broadcast. Some DVRs only allow one show to record at a time or do not allow recording by show title, only by day and time.

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Copyright (c) 2005, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Texas

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CMCSK, TIVO,

Source: Fort Worth Star-Telegram (Fort Worth, Texas)

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