The rumors are
already flying for that upcoming
March 2nd TiVo event, but a recently granted patent gives us one idea of what TiVo's been up to of late. The basic idea of the patent is to use embedded meta data in TV broadcasts, primarily the closed caption text, to create "event identification data" that makes the DVR -- when synced up against related data online -- smarter about the content. Example uses include overlaying interactive ads from the content provider, creating "tagged" video files for viewing on a portable device, extracting tagged clips, or even "sharing" segments with other TiVo users. Some of this info, like the commercial detection, is already in use, but the opportunity to "share" a sequence with a friend would be a powerful workaround for existing limitations from broadcasting companies that don't want users sending copyrighted content to each other. Using the TiVo to merely "tag" the relevant portion of something already recorded by a friend (hopefully with the addition of our helpful "OMG" and "LOL" commentary) makes a lot of sense, and even if we don't see it in this upcoming revision, it could be a pretty nice win for TiVo in the ongoing war between the well dressed, successful people who create our content and us schlubs who are trying to consume it conveniently.
posted February 12th 2010 11:49AM
As if there weren't enough ads on TV already?
@GaryZ and I'm first after an hour? what world did I wake up to?
I wonder if TiVo will have to get licensing to allow users to "share" clips. i.e. I want to share a clip from a channel with someone who doesn't have that channel in their service. Would the content providers want them to do that? I would think not as the user either needs to A) buy the service to watch that channel or B) watch it online on their website or other services (Hulu, etc.).
@benson peculiar
I think that is why they are doing this. They can't actually share the clips, but they can send data that points to specific parts of data that both people already have.
Like, if I have the superbowl on my Tivo. And someone posts on a blog that says 'OMG THIS COMMERCIAL WAS THE BEST' and you click the link, and it jumps to that spot on your TIVO which in turn plays it on your HDTV.
Kinda cool. People could come up with a LOT of neat stuff for this.
Like a blog on LOST .. People can watch the episode, then dismantle it frame by frame and in turn LINK to those specific parts and share them across a web site for people to look into, and so long as you have that episode on your Tivo, you can watch it yourself.
Granted, people do this kind of stuff on YouTube, but its not every legal and you have to edit it, and do all this crud. But not anymore.
@(Unverified)
Really, the more I think about this, the more giddy I am getting.
tivo://lost_s1_e5:12m56s15m45s/ could be embedded in your web site link and when someone clicked on it, and you have your Tivo connected to your pc, it'll tell the TiVo to go to Lost Season 1 Episode 5 and play it from 12minutes56seconds in to 15minutes45seconds. Then it appears on your TV if you have that episode saved on the Tivo.
@(Unverified) If that's the case, then sign me up! That's an awesome function.
@(Unverified)
Thanks for that insight as prior I was just not seeing the point.
I think you are right though, that while it won't promote 'sharing' it will possibly greatly promote a new and easier accessed social aspect to television.
Sort of 'sharing' our feelings, thoughts, and jokes with each other about something we already have.
It's a new take.
I love closed captions. Hope this encourage as many content providers to caption their videos.
All cool new features aside- again, Tivo: you had better announce you new DirecTV DVR or I might just go Daffy Duck all over the place. I've been through six DirecTV branded pieces of crap, and my MPEG-2 HR10-250 is about to die, and I've been really, really, really, really patient. And it better not be gimped!
All cool new features aside- again, Tivo: you had better announce you new DirecTV DVR or I might just go Daffy Duck all over the place. I've been through six DirecTV branded pieces of crap, and my MPEG-2 HR10-250 is about to die, and I've been really, really, really, really patient. And it better not be gimped!