Comcast iPad Customers to Get TV Service - Android on the Way

For Comcast customers, the concept of TV Everywhere took another step towards reality as Comcast announced the release of its Xfinity TV app for the iPad. The current app will allow you to use your iPad to search TV listings, change channels, and remotely schedule your DVR. By December, iPadders (or is it iPaddies?) will be able to watch pre-recorded video content on the iPad. Moves such as this one reinforce the opinion of many TV service providers that the iPad is the next "screen" for the consumer, as well as a growing revenue opportunity.

Lest mobile phone users feel left out by Comcast, the company plans to offer similar apps for the iPhone/iTouch, Android, and Blackberry platforms.

Uncertainty is Holding Back Consumer Spending on Digital Content

When it comes to paying for digital video, consumers are faced with a significant amount of uncertainty, enough to keep them from more actively spending.

If a consumer decides to watch a movie or TV program, they likely do not know if they have already paid for that content. So, they have to consider checking their channel listings (is it on Bravo or HBO currently?), their DVR (did I record that?), their Netflix subscription (is it an Instant View or do I have to wait for a disk?), free VOD or catch-up TV, and perhaps Hulu or other options. And this is all assuming that they know in advance the specific content for which they are searching. (If you add in the additional decision of which content that they might want to watch, the decision process becomes a real headache.)

Some in the industry are taking notice. TiVo is specifically addressing this issue by improving their search feature to allow searches across content sources (linear, DVR, online, etc.), allowing consumers to see the content to which they have access. By seeing what video is "theirs", will consumers be more willing to spend to add to their "collection" of available video?

NDS and SanDisk introduce Solid State Drive-based DVRs

This is the first time I've heard of SSD-based DVRs, but NDS and SanDisk think that 4, 8, and 16 GB set-tops that enable trick-play (pause, rewind) and VoD capabilities will help operators seeking lower-cost DVRs that can create new revenue streams.

New Term: TiVo Guilt

Great - now our consumer electronics products are giving us a complex. CNN reports today on "TiVo Guilt," where TV viewers who record shows on their DVRs feel an obligation to watch every single episode recorded and suffer guilt when cleaning out unwatched shows.

It got me thinking about the state of my TiVo and TV watching for the past few months. If I had to count the number of shows that we watch pretty regularly on a weekly basis, I'd say it's probably 5-6. There are another 3-4 that we'll watch with less regularity, but I don't get heartbroken if I miss a few weeks.

I do relate to actress Amanda Peet's comment about having "TiVo OCD." I'm the same way - I feel the need to get in there and clean out the old shows about every week.

I'll offer some free therapy to those who feel the TiVo guilt. The summer rerun season is long. There's plenty of time to catch up on those shows.

Parks Associates research shows U.K. the Leading European Nation for DVRs

Over 35% of U.K. broadband households own a DVR --

The United Kingdom is the first European nation to adopt digital video recorders (DVRs) in significant numbers, according to international research firm Parks Associates’ new study Entertainment 2.0 in Europe.

This five-country study examined entertainment trends across Europe and found over one-third of U.K. broadband households own a DVR. British households are also more likely than other European DVR households to record programs and skip commercials. At the same time, DVR use has not completely replaced use of broadcast TV. Even young U.K. consumers with a DVR continue to watch broadcast TV more often than recorded programs, part of the overall trend in Europe where households are less receptive than their American counterparts to television services.

A number of factors explain this gap between the U.S. and Europe. For example, strong public broadcasting has left less room in Europe for private, pay-TV services. In the U.S., poor free-to-air reception and a weaker public broadcaster have created a market for premium services.

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