TiVo Inc. is expanding its video recording service so users will be able to transfer recorded TV shows onto Apple Computer’s iPods, according to an Associated Press report. By adding support for the MPEG-4 video format, TiVo hopes to capitalize on the immense popularity of Apple iPods.
When TiVO launched TiVoToGo in January 2005, TiVO Series2 broadband subscribers gained the ability to transfer recorded shows to Windows PCs and Windows Mobile-based Portable Media Center devices such as the Creative Zen, Samsung Yepp YH-999, and iriver PMC-120. The new TiVOToGo servise will also support Sony’s PlayStation Portable. There is no information available at this time regarding support for transferring recorded shows to Apple Mac OS X personal computers, although one might infer that supporting MPEG-4 video will allow Macs to play such content.
Tivo’s TiVOToGo webpages do not currently mention support for the Apple iPod. The new service feature will be available “today” for current TiVo subscribers as a beta test and for others early next year, according to the Associated Press report.
“The ability to transfer shows between a TiVo and Apple’s market-leading iPod or Sony Corp.’s popular PSP ‘may help cement the idea that a TiVo is better than a generic DVR,’ said Stephen Baker, an analyst with NPD Group. ‘Their route to success is to differentiate themselves from generic DVRs,'” Julie Tamaki reports for The Los Angeles Times. “TiVo subscribers will need to purchase special software to tap the features, said Jim Denney, TiVo’s vice president of product marketing. The TiVo box would need to be connected to a home network and the program would first have to be transferred to a PC… Restricted content includes video-on-demand and pay-per-view, Denney added. TiVo also plans to make files traceable to discourage ‘people from distributing the content beyond their personal use.'”
Full article here.
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TiVo could obviously help expand the iPod’s sales and the MPEG-4 standard. I wonder if the Apple and TiVo companies will work on something together.
Yeah, but will there be a Mac version or will you have to have XP to transfer the content to an iPod?
I really hope this will finally allow Mac users the ability to use TiVoToGo on OS X. This is one piece of software I have been desperately wanting for about a year (when it was released on Windows).
What’ll it take to get Apple to swallow up TiVo and Elgato and stuff both into a Mac mini?
Tera Patricks
Mac360
Tera — Nice to hear from you again. It’s great that you’re back.
I might actually get a Series 2 now. Nice move TiVo.
Oh – of course TiVo would have to make TiVo to go work on OSX first.
They’re quoting Rob Enderle?
That’s it. I’m going to become a group.
The TheloniousMac Group.
Quote me.
El Payo, I figure it’s got to go through OS X to get to the iPod. If the iPod can play the video, then so should the Mac be able to.
Secret Word: Progress
“What’ll it take to get Apple to swallow up TiVo and Elgato and stuff both into a Mac mini?”
What’s TiVo’s market cap? What’re they worth?
theloniousMac,
How do you figure that? As the article says, right now you do it buy owning a Tivo2, a Windows PC, and an iPod video (they work on PCs)… they don’t ‘got to go through OS X’.
They should though…… dammit.
“The Journal said that using TiVo’s software to transfer a one-hour television program to an iPod could take more than two hours from the time users finish recording that program.”
That sounds a bit scary!
After all this time Tivo has what? 3.5 million users? Tivo desparately gives their hardware away in hopes of someday making a profit from their expensive service agreements. It’s a screwed up business model doomed to fail on its own.
It’s a smart move for Tivo to try and piggyback onto the iPods success without having to create another piece of hardware to sell.
Tivo needs to move fast and make their machines record native iPod-ready video. Long waits for software transcoding to iPod is not going to work in the long run.
Boring Boring Boring.
Like winmacguy says, it takes two hours to rip a one hour tv show to an iPod. That’s longer than it takes to write some of these lame-a** tv shows. It’ll get boring REALLY fast.
… Oh look, people already don’t care. That was quick.
Tivo on a Mac is a lot more advanced than most think. The Tivo Desktop application that is supposed to not work on Tiger, is working fine on my 10.4.3 desktop. Not only that, but I can download the .tivo files right off my Tivo to my computer. The only issue we face right now is converting a .tivo file to an understandable and usable file. Anyone with a networked Tivo can access the Now Playing menu from a web browser like so:
Replace the WXYZ with the last four digits of your Tivo’s Service Number
It will ask for a username and pass. The username is “tivo” and the password is the Tivo’s MAK. It can be found in the settings and account info page.
http://dvr-WXYZ.local./nowplaying/index.html
I am currently looking for a way to convert the .tivo files to mpeg on my PC, but I do not want to purchase a codec like tivo suggests. I hope to be able to convert on my Mac very soon (Not using Virtual PC)
TiVo is soo yesterday — lame.
Now as for el Gato’s eyeTV 200 or the HD recording eyeTV 500 — now this kick’s ass….no costly agreements, no hidden costs, just buy the unit and use it with a Mac only.
Yes, welcome back, Tera! I know things are better when you’re back on MDN. I agree with you. The first thing I thought of was the old rumor of Apple grabbing TiVo. I think the January announcements from Apple may be especially interesting. I have already heard that Apple will be adding some “interesting” iTunes content.
I’d love to see an Apple DVR. Ideally, they’d include tv programming information with .mac.
Then people could rave about how .mac is cheap at $99.
A nice feature for Tivo, provided it makes it to the Mac. However, with the time factor, it’s probably too little, too late.
From day one, Tivo’s problems have always been due to their inability to determine which master to serve. The consumer or the entertainment industry. When Tivo started, they were very a consumer oriented company, but they caved when the entertainment industry starting making demands. The way Tivo fell over themselves acceding to them, you would have thought the entertainment industry had won the Betamax decision.
Which is why it is doubful Apple will buy Tivo. Despite a lackluster “pro-consumer” rep (due turning a blind eye to tivo hacking, rather than supporting it), Tivo has too many entanglements and made too many concessions to the entertainment industry.
Why should Apple buy a can of worms when they can “can” what they want.
http://www.macupdate.com/info.php/id/19643
tivo to to for mac & more is HERE!
plus more
its open source and very nice!
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http://www.tivo.com/4.9.4.1-2_mac.asp
hello folks the softwear has been out for months, you have to buy it and its $80 but its made for tivo and does a bunch of other stuff theres even a link on tivos webpage. . Toast titanium is the version and it has the tivo to go built into it and will let you click to convert it into ipod (mpeg4) format and even put it into you itunes movies for you. heres tivos page to buy it from roxio.
http://www.tivo.com/4.9.4.1-2_mac.asp
i will warn ya though , it does take about an hr but i get it started before i go to bed. sync in the morning and i have “that 70s show” at my lunch break.
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