“Today, TiVo will announce technology that will let users transfer any TV show stored on their TiVo recorder hard drives to their iPod. According to The Wall Street Journal, this enhancement of TiVo’s TiVoToGo technology will be available to subscribers for a one-time, $15 to $30 fee – and is being made without Apple’s approval. When I heard that, my ‘uh-oh’ alarm went off,” Russell Shaw reports for ZDNet i a blog posting, “Unauthorized TiVo-iPod recording tech will bring out the lawyers.”
“I have to think that as proprietary as both Apple and Disney are – and as sensitive to rights, fees and royalties as both of those companies are as well -the Apple-Disney deal had been massaged at a very high level to take into account the sensitivities of everyone from the Apple legal team to (“Desperate Housewives” co-star) Teri Hatcher’s management team,” Shaw writes. “So when I read about deals that use Apple’s technology without their approval, not only am I seeing a direct, in your face challenge to a deal that has been heavily vetted, but I am starting to envision meetings between one Mr. Jobs and Apple’s corporate counsel. Not to mention meetings between one Mr. Iger (Disney CEO Robert Iger) and his legal eagles.”
Full article here.
The Wall Street Journal article (subscription required) here.
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TiVo has simply added support for the MPEG-4 video format which the video-capable Apple iPod supports.
Related article:
TiVo adds Apple iPod support to TiVoToGo – November 20, 2005
Free DVD to Apple iPod video ripper HandBrake 0.7.0 released – November 05, 2005
How to fill your Apple iPod with video content – November 02, 2005
Rip your DVDs for playing on Apple’s new video-capable 5G iPod – October 31, 2005
Free AppleScript converts Quicktime Player’s frontmost movie into iPod-readable video – October 28, 2005
Podner will reformat your movie collection for Apple iPod and iTunes – October 27, 2005
Using QuickTime Pro to create videos for playback in new Apple iPods – October 13, 2005
Although not made with Apple’s approval, Apple gives the right to anyone, including TiVo, to encode in MPEG-4 H.264.
Non-story. Move along.
heh. Maybe Apple will end up owning Tivo without even having to buy it? ahaha.
Why does anyone think this is a big deal? Moving one permissible recording to another storage device for the same person’s use. I can already do that with other recordings I “license.”
MW: “next” as in “what’s next? ‘Uh oh, I can ctually use my iPod to entertain myself?”
[Snuffleufugus]
Snoooorrrrrrreeeeee . . . xrrrsillgwfphmph . . . drool . . . snore
[/Snuffleufugus]
TiVo’s offering is GOOD because it isn’t encrypted. iPods only decode Fairplay, which Apple isn’t licensing, so these TiVo MPEG-4 videos must be non-DRMed (and really, why would they be?) so TiVo don’t need no stinkin’ permission
You spell big bird’s elephantlike friend’s name “Snuffleupagus”
I don’t see how apple can stop this. Unless they ask the studios to start all the law suits that tivo has always risked by doing what it does. But as long as dvr’s don’t hurt ad revenue I don’t think the studios will. I hope Apple doesn’t make an ass out of itself by trying to stamp this out. I am getting tired of Apple acting like the big guy, they have been the little guy for so long you would think they would remember how it felt.
MDN magic word: same, as in: Apple has been in the same place tivo is now.
It also can play on Sony’s PSP as well. I think it can only help both platforms having more available content.
Two words: Fair Use
Apple would be foolish to try and stop this…
I can’t see where Apple or anyone can dictate to me what i can and cannot put on my iPod. This is now starting to get out of hand. I will always defend Apple against FUD and ignorance, and defend their right to innovate, but when they start dicatating things like this, i draw the line.
BTW, they ARE real but they AREN’T that spectacular.
Hammer,
“I will always defend Apple against FUD and ignorance, and defend their right to innovate, but when they start dicatating things like this, i draw the line.”
.. hate to pop your anger balloon, but Apple haven’t “dictated things like this,” it is just speculation on the part of the WSJ. So get off your high horse until they actually do so
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Im not on my high horse tommy boy so pretty please, go pop your own balloon
I like the way that the Wall Street Journal sees a need to explain who Teri Hatcher and Robert Iger are with the use of paranthetical descriptors, but not with Steve Jobs. It’s like, “Hey! Everyone knows who Jobs is.”
here is between the content people and TiVo. I’m sure the studios and the networks are not happy that TiVo is doing this.
Apple certainly has a business issue in that they want to make $ from offering video content, which this circumvents. However, I don’t know what legal issue they could have.
Jay,
Let’s wait for Apple to actually do something before whining about their heavy handed response.
Hammer is just another a troll
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Ironically, this is going to be Windows only at first. Mac users will have to wait. Again.
http://www.macobserver.com/article/2005/11/21.8.shtml
Frankly, I don’t think that Apple cares whether TiVo is doing this. If anything, they’re quite happy that TiVo is doing this–it may sell more iPods. As long as TiVo isn’t somehow using FairPlay to protect the content–and I doubt they are–Apple could care less. Just like Apple doesn’t really care of Playboy/Penthouse makes video of naked women available.
To use the music analogy, Apple doesn’t restrict me from playing ripped CDs on my iPod. Why should Apple care if I play ripped video on my iPod video?
WIll this spell doom for the iTunes Video store? Nope. The store still sells your favorite TV shows commercial free and it’s far more convenient to use. Which would you rather do?
1. Retrieve the video from the TiVo.
2. Edit the video to remove all commercials.
3. Import the video into iTunes and transfer to the iPod.
Or:
1. Spend $1.99 and buy the episode and have it transfered to your iPod.
2. There’s no step 2. There’s no step 2!
Much ado about nothing.
I doubt Apple will be upset by TiVo, but may be networks will be upset. They will be asking for royality from iPod sales and Apple will respond it is not how Apple intended iPod Video will be used, so go sue TiVo. By the time the lawyers figure out who should pay who, the technology will move on to new technology (hard disk to flash memory) and the process starts all over again.
Of course, this is all speculation.. Tivo hasn’t actually made anything available yet. They would likely not be in any legal trouble with Apple as long as they’re just permitting MPEG-4 transcoding. Apple could see it as a threat to their own (speculative) DVR device, though..
On the other hand, the friction between the content providers and TiVO could increase.. already, the providers have nudged for expiration on recorded programs. The ability to easily turn recorded programs into small, not DRM’ed files that can be played anywhere and can be easily shared on the internet will put them through the roof.
There will be fights on this, but probably not from Apple.
It’s the Age of DRM-Confusion… until everyone figures out what rights everyone actually has in the digital age, this stuff will keep popping up.
I agree with Peter. Apple won’t be against this, and the networks might not be either as long as you watch the ads. The iTMS sales at $1.99 are based on convenience and simplicity.
TiVo still requires you to preset to record (though not hard to do), to transcode into MPEG-4 (which takes an additional 60 minutes for a 60 minute show), and to import into iTunes (though not hard). And the recording still contains ads (unless you invest time to remove them).
the networks, actors, agents, managers, writers, and production crews benefit from the sale of their show(s) via itunes. only tivo benefits from offering this fee for service to their subscribers. this once again will be an a la cart model vs subscription service, only difference: this service is mpeg 4 compliant therefore ipod compatible. this will drive ipod sales as well as further dissemination of quicktime, both wins for apple. the tv industry should sue tivo for a cut of the fee to off set it’s losses. it would be cheaper and more cost effective for the industry to makes it’s content available via itunes, as itunes a) doesn’t require a subscription b) itunes market domination is astronomical.
mw “clear”
I don’t think Apple will try and stop this. I could do the same thing if I set up a Mini with an El Gato Tuner right? It is the convenience and no commercials angles they are selling on iTunes.