Post by dkennedy on Mar 29, 2005 12:16:58 GMT -5
Next Wave: Network DVRs
March 28, 2005
By Mike Shields
A report issued last week by Magna Global predicts that if network DVRs become a reality, DVR usage could skyrocket. Unlike set-top DVRs, which are already offered by several cable operators, a network DVR records virtually all programming on a central server in the cable system’s “headend.”
Theoretically, anybody who subscribes to digital cable could record whatever they wanted, without having to schedule an appointment with the cable guy or install a TiVo box.
According to Magna, network DVRs, if deployed this year, “would immediately make time-shifting technology available to 40 [percent] to 50 percent of a cable operator’s subscribers...significantly impacting how video content is consumed.” Magna Global’s director of industry analysis, Brian Wieser, who authored the report, said, “The possibility could be here a lot sooner than people think.”
Wieser is basing his theory on recent comments from Tom Rutledge, COO of New York-based Cablevision Systems, who declared that his company is exploring launching a network DVR, perhaps this year. “We do think the DVR is an inelegant solution to recording programming for consumers, and that it could be done on a network basis much more efficiently,” Rutledge said in a recent earnings call.
Imagine the ripple effect on the cable industry, as well as the 30-second ad model, if millions of network DVRs suddenly flooded the supersized New York market this year.
Copyright laws are one impediment to rolling out network DVRs. Those laws, according to Time Warner, flattened Mystro in its attempt at a network DVR in 2003. Time Warner said that the multitude of rights requirements needed to record a vast library of programming was simply too prohibitive.
Cablevision plans to move ahead. But one prominent cable lawyer said that the legality of recording TV shows on a large scale was uncertain. “This isn’t a legal dispute,” he said. Rather, it’s about a desire among programmers to protect the existing ad model. “If the [DVR] destroys the network model, there won’t be any [need for DVRs anymore],” he added.
“This is coming from the content providers,” said Mike Godwin, legal director at advocacy group Public Knowledge. He said that content providers may threaten to withhold programming or networks from cable providers if network DVRs become a reality.
To address these issues, Magna’s Wieser said he thinks cable companies may develop network DVRs that prevent ad skipping, something Time Warner is exploring.
March 28, 2005
By Mike Shields
A report issued last week by Magna Global predicts that if network DVRs become a reality, DVR usage could skyrocket. Unlike set-top DVRs, which are already offered by several cable operators, a network DVR records virtually all programming on a central server in the cable system’s “headend.”
Theoretically, anybody who subscribes to digital cable could record whatever they wanted, without having to schedule an appointment with the cable guy or install a TiVo box.
According to Magna, network DVRs, if deployed this year, “would immediately make time-shifting technology available to 40 [percent] to 50 percent of a cable operator’s subscribers...significantly impacting how video content is consumed.” Magna Global’s director of industry analysis, Brian Wieser, who authored the report, said, “The possibility could be here a lot sooner than people think.”
Wieser is basing his theory on recent comments from Tom Rutledge, COO of New York-based Cablevision Systems, who declared that his company is exploring launching a network DVR, perhaps this year. “We do think the DVR is an inelegant solution to recording programming for consumers, and that it could be done on a network basis much more efficiently,” Rutledge said in a recent earnings call.
Imagine the ripple effect on the cable industry, as well as the 30-second ad model, if millions of network DVRs suddenly flooded the supersized New York market this year.
Copyright laws are one impediment to rolling out network DVRs. Those laws, according to Time Warner, flattened Mystro in its attempt at a network DVR in 2003. Time Warner said that the multitude of rights requirements needed to record a vast library of programming was simply too prohibitive.
Cablevision plans to move ahead. But one prominent cable lawyer said that the legality of recording TV shows on a large scale was uncertain. “This isn’t a legal dispute,” he said. Rather, it’s about a desire among programmers to protect the existing ad model. “If the [DVR] destroys the network model, there won’t be any [need for DVRs anymore],” he added.
“This is coming from the content providers,” said Mike Godwin, legal director at advocacy group Public Knowledge. He said that content providers may threaten to withhold programming or networks from cable providers if network DVRs become a reality.
To address these issues, Magna’s Wieser said he thinks cable companies may develop network DVRs that prevent ad skipping, something Time Warner is exploring.