Church of the Customer Blog
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March 11, 2005
Dear TiVo...
I've been seeing another provider. I think you know her.
Comcast caught my eye with its HD service/DVR combo, and we've been seeing each other for over a month. You see, dear TiVo, you don't offer a high-definition, cable-based product that will record and store shows (although you do for your party friends at DirecTV), so it's better that we end things now.
I know, I know: You're much prettier than Comcast. Some say Comcast's looks and personality are downright ugly. In many ways, they're right. But I think Comcast is just in an awkward place right now; I think she's nearly ready for an extreme makeover, so I'm keeping fingers crossed.
TiVo, I just wish you'd hooked up with Comcast awhile ago. If you had, we wouldn't be having this conversation. But, you know, you're so stubborn...
And I wish you'd given me more reasons to hang in there, but your temper tantrums were a little much.
As of this afternoon, it's over. We had five good years together, and I hope you found my introductions of you to friends and colleagues during that time rewarding. Maybe we'll meet up in the future when our mutual needs merge again.
Until then, best of luck.
UPDATE: TiVo and Comcast agree to a relationship. Their spawn are expected sometime in 2006.
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"You see, dear TiVo, you don't offer a cable-based product that will record and store shows"
I think you've missed an important thing with your Tivo. You can plug your cable box into the Tivo and record cable shows just fine. I do this with my Comcast, so does most everybody else with a Tivo.
Maybe you have problems with this that you didn't mention but I hate to see anyone have to suffer with Comcast's DVR when they already have a Tivo. If you have a question, email me and I'll help you out.
Matt -- My post is that Comcast's HD DVR caught my eye, and the sentence you cite doesn't make that clear. I fixed that in the post.
For me and TiVo, it's the end of a 5-year relationship.
Oh yeah, HD is different. I just built a MythTV box to replace my Tivo for the HD content. It's too bad they didn't get on that sooner, I don't think we're the only ones to move away from Tivo for just that reason.
Hello Ben,
Just curious, why Comcast and not DIRECTV with HD plus TiVo?
Gabriel S.
HD Recording is so unbelieveably powerful -- once you experience HD recordings almost nothing else matters. It is almost a religious experience. To compare the best non HD PVR with the worst HD PVR still leaves no room to doubt as to the superiority of the HDTV unit.
Personally I went for the TiVo experience with HDTV by way of the DirecTV/TiVo Hughes HDTV unit -- and I couldn't be happier.
Actually, one of the reasons why I dumped Tivo was because it missed a number of channel changes on me via the IR blaster and that was completely unacceptable. It had only happened a couple of times with my SA box, but it was completely erratic with the Motorola box. That and the dual tuner made me switch to the Comcast PVR. The fact that it handles HD was a bonus. Having said that, the reason why I rejected the DirecTV/TiVo/HD combo is simple: $1000 for a box versus $0 for a cable box :)
Gabriel -- From my location in Chicago, the southern sky is partially blocked, thereby making DirecTV's signal indirect.
Randy -- I'm totally with you on the cost of the HD TiVo box. It's a huge barrier.
Nearly every day I look at my Motorola-manufactured Comcast box and say, "Why isn't TiVo providing those cable boxes to Comcast instead of Motorola?"
Wow! The power of the 'Church' blog brought to bear on TiVo and Comcast. This deal will give me something to think about for sure. I love my DishNetwork, but there are so many 'other' features that I'd like with my PVR.
LOL Rich, if only it were true!
Why isn't TiVo providing cable boxes to Comcast?
Here are the good news for you (copy/pasted from Marketwatch.com):
TiVo shares soar on Comcast deal
By Michael Baron & David B. Wilkerson, MarketWatch
Last Update: 4:21 PM ET March 15, 2005
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) - TiVo shares zoomed higher Tuesday after it and Comcast Communications, the nation's largest cable operator, disclosed that they would collaborate on a version of TiVo's DVR service.
TiVo finally goes B-to-B, where it should have been in the first place.
