# DirecTV Sold - Goodbye Murdoch



## tbeckner (Oct 26, 2001)

John C. Malone/Liberty Media Corporation will soon own DirecTV. So, I guess the 2003 buyout by News Corp and Murdoch didn't work out so well.

So what do you think this means long-term for TiVo and the DirecTV News Corp DVR?

DirecTV Sold - NY Times


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## JimSpence (Sep 19, 2001)

Oh goody, more muddying of the waters.

What happens now with NDS provided DVRs?

Will TiVo and Liberty play nice?


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## drew2k (Jun 10, 2003)

tbeckner said:


> So what do you think this means long-term for TiVo and the DirecTV News Corp DVR?


I don't know what it means, but I know what *I* want out of this deal .... a Series 4 MPEG4 HD TiVo with dual integrated DirecTV satellite tuners!


The Article said:


> But it also puts Mr. Malone, the one-time king of cable television, back in the big leagues of companies that sell video services and could lead to a further reorganization of Liberty programming assets. These include half ownership of Discovery Communications, the QVC home-shopping channel and the Starz pay-television service.


Maybe we'll also see some an expanded lineup of Starz channels, and maybe even Starz HD?


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## JimSpence (Sep 19, 2001)

:up: :up: :up: 

With a very larger hard drive. 

Reduced subscription rates would also be nice.


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## rminsk (Jun 4, 2002)

drew2k said:


> I don't know what it means, but I know what *I* want out of this deal .... a Series 4 MPEG4 HD TiVo with dual integrated DirecTV satellite tuners!


and DirecTV 2Go as was announced back at CES.


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## WillieWildcat (Feb 26, 2003)

The subscription rates aren't all that high compared to equivalent cable packages (don't get any ideas DirecTV!).

I am hoping that with Murdock out of the way, Tivo negotiations can start up again.

I have two DirecTivos and am making sure they stay healthy.


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## Redux (Oct 19, 2004)

WillieWildcat said:


> I am hoping that with Murdock out of the way, Tivo negotiations can start up again.


What happens if (pipedream) they throw all the rascals out, not just Murdoch's top-level minions/cowards but the mid-level DirecTV management that enabled the near self-destruction?

Is it too late? Could Tivo again partner to re-create the best user experience that has ever existed in TV?

More locally, what will we do on this forum with our resident Quisling?


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## willbhome (Aug 28, 2002)

WillieWildcat said:


> I am hoping that with Murdock out of the way, Tivo negotiations can start up again.


Man, that'd be nice! Let's hope. My loyalties are with Tivo, though. If DirecTV ever stops supporting the equipment I have, I'll switch providers and get all new Tivo equipment before I'd go with other stuff.


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## iceisles (Mar 9, 2003)

willbhome said:


> Man, that'd be nice! Let's hope. My loyalties are with Tivo, though. If DirecTV ever stops supporting the equipment I have, I'll switch providers and get all new Tivo equipment before I'd go with other stuff.


I'm with you - I'll follow Tivo wherever they go. This is great news, and I hope DirecTV gets their heads screwed back on and renegotiates with Tivo. It wasn't broke, and there sure wasn't any need to "fix" it.


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## petersweston (Nov 2, 2006)

All we can do is hope that the r15 is not profitable(cause if it is tivo is sunk) It is doubtfull they will drop a profitable source. Now may be a good time to flood them with calls asking for tivo. Get all your friends and family together and start dialing. I for one will call several times asking for a dvr and when they offer me the r15 I will say no unless they can guarantee me a tivo.(A NEW TIVO)

Rally behind Tivo!


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## iceisles (Mar 9, 2003)

petersweston said:


> Rally behind Tivo!


I've already started doing this. I e-mailed Liberty Media a letter to congratulate them on the DirecTV acquisition and pleaded with them to make discussions with Tivo a priority. It might not be a bad idea for the rest of us to write Liberty and/or DirecTV to express our concerns. Who knows if we could make a difference?

If I get a reply of any substance, I'll be sure to post it.


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## Rob Helmerichs (Oct 17, 2000)

Too late for me--I've already gone S3, and no matter what DirecTV does now, that's too big a commitment to bail on for the next three years. And in fact, I'm very happy with the S3.

It's too bad--DirecTV was great for years, but they just didn't keep up. I'd been waiting for ages for a one-stop solution (SD, HD, TiVo, no OTA), and it was TiVo, not DirecTV, that finally gave it.


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## GusMan (Nov 16, 2004)

To be honest... the only thing I would hope for is to get my DTivo replaced with a NEW DTivo if any of mine die beyond repair. While my expectations may be low - all other upgrades would be just icing on the cake.


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## Oknarf (Oct 30, 2003)

The good news is it takes away the one strength NDS had going for it. It was owned by News thus making it a more cost effective solution. Now they are in the same boat with Tivo and will have to negotiate with D to sell product.

As far as D is concerned they still have an uphill battle regarding LiL and HD.


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## IndyTom (Mar 9, 2004)

(putting on flame retardant suit)

I could care less if D* uses Tivo or not. If D* can make their own DVR the same or better than it will eventually translate into a savings to us. Using Tivo would cause increased hardware costs (or monthly fees) due to D*'s passing on the Tivo licensing costs to the customer.

You guys are are lost in the trees.


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## HiDefGator (Oct 12, 2004)

Either way I see the chance they will go back to offering Tivo as somwhere between slim and none at this point.


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## iceisles (Mar 9, 2003)

IndyTom said:


> If D* can make their own DVR the same or better than it will eventually translate into a savings to us.


They never will. Tivo is what it is for a reason. I'd rather pay more to have the benefits of a proven Tivo over some DVR released by a cable or satellite provider.


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## John T Smith (Jun 17, 2004)

iceisles said:


> Tivo is what it is for a reason


I (we) just went back to DirecTv Tivo from a year on Comcast cable DVR (building a new house)

Menu differences aside, there is ONE Tivo feature that I really missed... when fast forwarding thru commercials the Tivo and DVR both displayed "scenes" of every few seconds... but when the first "scene" of the program displays with Tivo and I hit the play button, it automatically jumps back a couple seconds to then start where I want

The Comcast DVR would not do that, so I was constantly having to manually backup those couple of seconds to start at the actual program


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## feldon23 (Mar 13, 2001)

IndyTom said:


> (putting on flame retardant suit)
> 
> I could care less if D* uses Tivo or not. If D* can make their own DVR the same or better than it will eventually translate into a savings to us. Using Tivo would cause increased hardware costs (or monthly fees) due to D*'s passing on the Tivo licensing costs to the customer.
> 
> You guys are are lost in the trees.


You're going to need that flame retardant suit because DirecTV/Murdoch having to pay huge licensing fees to TiVo to avoid the same patent lawsuit as Echostar/Dish just went through with their DVRs means that Murdoch wasted time and money trying to make a cheap-ass DVR since he has to pay as much or more for TiVo as he did when the official DVR was a real TiVo.

Quit trying to copy TiVo and use the real thing.

I am seriously considering that $800 Series 3 cable TiVo. But if DirecTV reverses course and announces a Series 3 DTiVo, I'll stay.


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## iceisles (Mar 9, 2003)

John T Smith said:


> I (we) just went back to DirecTv Tivo from a year on Comcast cable DVR (building a new house)
> 
> Menu differences aside, there is ONE Tivo feature that I really missed... when fast forwarding thru commercials the Tivo and DVR both displayed "scenes" of every few seconds... but when the first "scene" of the program displays with Tivo and I hit the play button, it automatically jumps back a couple seconds to then start where I want
> 
> The Comcast DVR would not do that, so I was constantly having to manually backup those couple of seconds to start at the actual program


That's something I found annoying with the R15, as well. This feature is something that can easily be written into the software, and I'm amazed that Tivo-based units are the only ones that have that capability right now.

For most people, any DVR will probably do. But for me, after using Tivo for so long, anything else would most certainly be a downgrade.


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## dt_dc (Jul 31, 2003)

Oknarf said:


> The good news is it takes away the one strength NDS had going for it. It was owned by News thus making it a more cost effective solution. Now they are in the same boat with Tivo and will have to negotiate with D to sell product.


Also interesting is Liberty's recent sale of OpenTV to Kudelski ...

Prior to this, there'd be the exact same thing going on ... but with OpenTV replacing NDS. But with Liberty selling OpenTV ...

It'll be interesting to see what happens.


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## zalusky (Apr 5, 2002)

The important thing is that DTV should offer a choice and let the best products win. Now its only one provided by them.

Cell Phone providers offer a choice of HW. Car Rental companies offer a choice. Restaurants offer a choice.

If support is an issue we should be working with the HW vendor and not the satellite provider.

I work with my ISP and they work with the DSL provider and I have a choice of finding the ISP with the best service.

At least for now.


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## WeKnSmith (Jun 24, 2002)

feldon23 said:


> ...I am seriously considering that $800 Series 3 cable TiVo. But if DirecTV reverses course and announces a Series 3 DTiVo, I'll stay.


My wife and I are thinking the same thing. It is the DTiVo and NFL Sunday Ticket that has kept us with DTV. I'd go with a Series3 & OTA only except that ESPN and all of the content my kids watch prevent us from doing that.

Can anyone recommend an address for sending a letter to Liberty Media?


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## joetoronto (Jul 26, 2004)

John T Smith said:


> I (we) just went back to DirecTv Tivo from a year on Comcast cable DVR (building a new house)
> 
> Menu differences aside, there is ONE Tivo feature that I really missed... when fast forwarding thru commercials the Tivo and DVR both displayed "scenes" of every few seconds... but when the first "scene" of the program displays with Tivo and I hit the play button, it automatically jumps back a couple seconds to then start where I want
> 
> The Comcast DVR would not do that, so I was constantly having to manually backup those couple of seconds to start at the actual program


yup, that's a nice feature, no doubt about it.

i have 3 HR10's and 2 expressvu HD PVR's (same as dish network) and the HR10's are definitely more user friendly, including the remote control.

having said that, i still appreciate expressvu's PVR because *it's still a PVR* and i haven't seen any bugs at all yet.


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## bidger (Mar 30, 2001)

iceisles said:


> Tivo is what it is for a reason.


A company with one profitable financial quarter in its existence.

The reason why? The general public is not as rabid for its features as those who frequent these boards. I proselytized to my dentist for years. He seemed receptive and then the last time I saw him he asked me if I wanted a TiVo someone gave him last Christmas. Seems he's perfectly happy with the Time-Warner DVR. He bought into the PVR concept, be he didn't see any need it had to be TiVo-specific.

I even gave away an upgraded S1 Lifetime TiVo. At the time I gave it to this couple, they had Lifeline cable with broadband. I got summoned when they went with a digital cable package to get the TiVo to control the STB. Then I got the call when they upgraded to VoIP through cable and the TiVo couldn't call out. I had hoped that the prior experience could convince them to call me before they made that kind of change , but I was mistaken.

I tried to set up PPP through serial port on XP, but forgot the male-to-male adapter and they seemed to be tired of the whole process and told me never mind. They got a Time-Warner DVR and the only complaint I heard was about no Wishlists. I think the wife liked the idea that the TW DVR powered down. They went HD this past Summer and upgraded the DVR. I mentioned the S3 and the $800 MSRP and they just rolled their eyes.

I've been using the HR20 and I like it. There are things TiVo does that I miss like dual buffers, but I find myself using the HR20 more often than the HR10. It has recorded the Series Link recordings I've set up reliably to this point.

There was never a time when TiVo was the _only_ option. Replay and Ultimate TV had their fair share of fans. Dish Network subs seem pretty fond of their DVRs and I see posts here and elsewhere from cable subs who are content enough with their HD-capable DVRs that they don't want to shell out the $s for a S3.

I'm at the point that, while I feel it's a quality product/service, TiVo is not the only option for me.


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## tibruk (Nov 28, 2003)

John T Smith said:


> I (we) just went back to DirecTv Tivo from a year on Comcast cable DVR (building a new house)
> 
> Menu differences aside, there is ONE Tivo feature that I really missed... when fast forwarding thru commercials the Tivo and DVR both displayed "scenes" of every few seconds... but when the first "scene" of the program displays with Tivo and I hit the play button, it automatically jumps back a couple seconds to then start where I want


I thought that the backup when stopping was part of Tivo's patent, that's why other DVR's don't have it.

Tibruk


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## jmoak (Jun 20, 2000)

Sooooo.... Old Rupert's making a cool $5 billion profit and ends up with a monopoly for SkyMexico and SkyBrazil.

That old fart is pretty damn slick.


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## IndyTom (Mar 9, 2004)

iceisles said:


> They never will. Tivo is what it is for a reason. I'd rather pay more to have the benefits of a proven Tivo over some DVR released by a cable or satellite provider.


Wow - where were you when they poured millions into R&D. They should have just asked you if they should bother. 

If everyone shared that mentality, we would all be driving domestic cars and watching TV on our RCA's. First means better, right? 

I am not disputing whether or not Tivo is better than what they come up with. In fact, I am holding onto my HR10 for dear life after reading about the bugs in the HR20. _However - _ once D* has the kinks worked out - I am bolting Tivo. I am an early adopter of D* since the USSB days. My value judgements are not based upon who has dual live buffers and who doesn't. In my area, I stack up D* programming, pricing, and functionality (as a whole) versus Comcast's offerings. So far, D* still has my business.


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## ping (Oct 3, 2005)

IndyTom said:


> Wow - where were you when they poured millions into R&D. They should have just asked you if they should bother.
> 
> If everyone shared that mentality, we would all be driving domestic cars and watching TV on our RCA's. First means better, right?


To be fair, when he said "TiVo is what it is for a reason", he didn't supply that reason. It was you who assumed the reason was "first". I assume the reason he meant was that TiVo is a software company that has proven they understand good software engineering principles, while DirecTV has proven exactly the opposite with multiple devices.


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## IndyTom (Mar 9, 2004)

ping said:


> To be fair, when he said "TiVo is what it is for a reason", he didn't supply that reason. It was you who assumed the reason was "first". I assume the reason he meant was that TiVo is a software company that has proven they understand good software engineering principles, while DirecTV has proven exactly the opposite with multiple devices.


No, actually it was the "never will" part that struck a chord with me.


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## minorthr (Nov 24, 2001)

Someone from Tivo should be on the phone with liberty media right now discussing the mpeg 4 tivo


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## ping (Oct 3, 2005)

IndyTom said:


> No, actually it was the "never will" part that struck a chord with me.


DirecTV's software development process predicts future results, too.


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## josev069 (Nov 27, 2006)

Is it possble that TiVo can buy DirecTV and control it because the more i read the deals TiVo is doing with Yahoo & on the internet i feel i made a mistake in picking DirecTV as my provider.


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## Matt L (Aug 13, 2000)

IndyTom said:


> Wow - where were you when they poured millions into R&D. They should have just asked you if they should bother.
> 
> If everyone shared that mentality, we would all be driving domestic cars and watching TV on our RCA's. First means better, right?


I think what any of us want is a simple choice. If you like D's stuff, fine, if not pick TiVo. In cars there is and has been a choice -- you can buy a basic Ford or Chevy, or opt for a BMW or Lexus. Think of TiVo as BMW.

Sure, we TiVo-ites are a small group, but we are damn vocal and odds are we have the $$ to follow up our talk.


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## harley3k (Jul 19, 2006)

tibruk said:


> I thought that the backup when stopping was part of Tivo's patent, that's why other DVR's don't have it.
> 
> Tibruk


The Verizon FIOS DVRs do it. Works just like all my tivos ever did.

-h


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## Fluffybear (Nov 10, 2000)

The time frame for the announcement appears to coincide with the announcement Tribune is suppose to making about the sell of their assets. News Corp has been mentioned more than once as a possible buyer along with many others. 
Some of the speculation at the time involved News Corp needing to drop D* in order to make it happen. Murdoch's first love has always been print media and purchasing Tribune would add 2 of the biggest newspapers in this country to his stable. Sounds like a win-win-win (unloading D*, getting Malone off his back, and acquiring assets of Tribune) for him. 
The rest of December should get pretty interesting.


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## Bonanzaair (Aug 26, 2006)

I too have been excited about kicking Murdock and his supporters to the street but after listening to Tom Rogers at the UBS 34th Annual Global Media & Communications Conference yesterday explain that a good selling point to cable was that after Feb 2007 DirecTV won't be able to sell new Tivo subs. Neither satellite provider would have the Tivo software. Sure hope Tom was just trying out a negotiating posture for Liberty Media. 

Bonanza


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## vigfoot (Dec 1, 2003)

great news...i HATE murdoch and his ilk.


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## Mr. Soze (Nov 2, 2002)

jmoak said:


> Sooooo.... Old Rupert's making a cool $5 billion profit and ends up with a monopoly for SkyMexico and SkyBrazil.
> 
> That old fart is pretty damn slick.


Yes he is. What many people always forget about Rupert (often misled by their blind hatred of his supposed slant to the right wing view) is that it's strictly business to him. Nothing more, nothing less.

Interesting times ahead. I don't know or care about Malone's politics, but he's cut from the same bolt of cloth as Rupert. Not Red. Not Blue. Green.


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## DevilDogs (Dec 29, 2002)

I'm not so overjoyed at the news. Some people may not know this, but Malone used to control TeleCommunications Inc. That would be TCI Cable. I was unfortunate enough to have them once as my cable company. Now they may own the satellite company I switched too? Great!

I don't know if any of you are Digg members, but there's a post on digg.com regarding this story. I didn't post it because someone else beat me to it. However, I still think it needs to be seen. If anyone has a Digg membership could visit the following link and digg it up, I think that would be great.
http://www.digg.com/tech_news/News_Corp_and_Liberty_close_to_stake_deal_reports

I hope I'm not violating any rules here, if so, please delete the post. I just think the word needs to spread.


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## cyoung06 (Nov 30, 2006)

minorthr said:


> Someone from Tivo should be on the phone with liberty media right now discussing the mpeg 4 tivo


I would buy a brand new HD TV if that were to happen!


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## vigfoot (Dec 1, 2003)

Good riddance.


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