November 6th, 2005
Yahoo!-TiVo service debuts: precursor to Yahoo! buying TiVo?
Yahoo! and TiVo have just rolled out TiVo Online Scheduling, a new service that let’s you prompt your TiVo to record programs- even if you are not at home to operate your TiVo in person.
Here’s how it works.
From any Yahoo! TV episode page, you will click "Record to my TiVo box".
Your request will be automatically sent to your home the next time your TiVo box connects to the TiVo service.
If your TiVo is connected to broadband through your home network, the service will need only about an hour’s lead time before the program begins to set up the recording.
If you have your TiVo set up to retrieve updates via a straight dial-up connection, you may need up to 36 hours in between your request and the time the program you wish to record begins.
And hey, if you want broadband, Yahoo! has that via partner SBC.
I wonder if this is a precursor to, say, Yahoo! buying TiVo? I believe that TiVo will sell, and both Google and Yahoo! would be interested. Now, we have to figure out which alliance would offer the more compelling valuation:
A Google-TiVo that would tie in viewer locality data with revenue-generating Google AdWords and AdSense, or;
A Yahoo!-TiVo that would tie in television program listings - some of which would be heavily promoted via alliances with networks - to conveniences and incentives for TiVo users to record them.
What do you think? Would you use this service? TalkBack to us.
Russell Shaw is an enterprise computing journalist, analyst and author based in Portland, Oregon. See his full profile and disclosure of his industry affiliations.
