# Any news on virgin and tivo?



## asantaga-1 (Nov 12, 2004)

does anyone know when virgin will bring out their tivo service?
Angelo


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## cwaring (Feb 12, 2002)

Ever thought of using the forum search function?  Plenty of VM/Tivo-related threads. The latest of which this one.


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## asantaga-1 (Nov 12, 2004)

Awesome, many thanks, I thought I did searchh but obviously not well enough 

Xmas/New Year is perfect timing for me, I'll keep an ear out for this..

Angelo


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## scgf (Oct 24, 2000)

Virgins TiVo-powered PVR will have three HD tuners, terabyte storage and could host iPhone-style apps.

More info here.


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## cwaring (Feb 12, 2002)

The apps thing is new news.


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## asantaga-1 (Nov 12, 2004)

I wonder if people will be able to submit their own apps? ie ala android/apps store.. in theory, as tivo runs linux it could run a android subsystem... very possible... just speculating.. but if it did then that would be uber awesome..


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## mikerr (Jun 2, 2005)

Apps aren't new news - the new VM Tivo is based on TiVo Premiere (flash based) and that was announced to eventually have apps.

Although they have only just released the first app:

http://www.gearlive.com/news/article/pandora-tivo-premiere-q310/
(All this is currently US only of course)


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## deshepherd (Nov 30, 2000)

asantaga said:


> Xmas/New Year is perfect timing for me, I'll keep an ear out for this..


I'm hoping for "as soon as possible" as my TiVo has a HDD which is definitely on its way out!


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## okonski_uk (Dec 28, 2000)

Let's not forget the 'new' VM Tivo was announced LAST year. It was to be available 'in 2010'. In the Spring we were told it would be rolled out from Q3. They've ALREADY missed that deadline. As for Q4 - I doubt it, just 10 weeks to the end of the year and not a hint of a national, regional or segmented rollout.

They promise. Then they'll deliver when were too old to care anymore...


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## mikerr (Jun 2, 2005)

They did find the new software was incompatible with the existing samsung boxes,
and had initially planned on an over-the-air upgrade to existing V+ boxes apparently.

So now they're using brand new Cisco boxes for the new TiVo (in early 2011),
still not sure what sort of a stripped down version they are going to deploy to the rest of the network though.


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## cwaring (Feb 12, 2002)

okonski_uk said:


> Let's not forget the 'new' VM Tivo was announced LAST year. It was to be available 'in 2010'.


And it will be. "Soft launch by the end of this year" is what they've been saying for a while now.



> In the Spring we were told it would be rolled out from Q3.


Please cite a source for this as I do not believe it to be the case. Their official Press Release only "acticipates" 2010.



> I doubt it, just 10 weeks to the end of the year and not a hint of a national, regional or segmented rollout.


Ten weeks is plenty of time for a soft launch.



> They promise. Then they'll deliver when were too old to care anymore...


Well yes. Because there's never any problems that might delay such launches. Everything always runs to schedule, doesn't it


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## okonski_uk (Dec 28, 2000)

cwaring said:


> And it will be. "Soft launch by the end of this year" is what they've been saying for a while now.


Be a rose-tinted optimist by all means, but lets look at the facts. In 2009 we were promised Tivo would launch 'in 2010'. NOT that there would be a 'soft, hard or indeed floppy' launch in the dying minutes of 2010. I spoke with the Press Office in November and was told that the reliance on 2010 was to stop them being inaundated with requests from punters wanting it in time for Xmas (2009). Perhaps you should define this 'quite a while' timeframe you refer to, as I'm unaware of any media statement confirming anything 'soft' by the year end.



cwaring said:


> Please cite a source for this as I do not believe it to be the case. Their official Press Release only "acticipates" 2010.


Ah, the original November 2009 announcement I referred to earlier. The source for the 'Q3' was in a folow up release, which I recall was part of their Annual Statement. This provided the Q3 timeframe stated earlier. I have no issues with this, as clearly the problems you allude to later would be addressed during this period. Yet, it seems not.



cwaring said:


> Ten weeks is plenty of time for a soft launch.


 Please, lets not fall into the trap of who might be lucky enough to be in an area that will support it. That is no 'launch', that's a TRIAL. If you are prepared to accept that as any form of launch, affects your credibility to evaluate company statements.



cwaring said:


> Well yes. Because there's never any problems that might delay such launches. Everything always runs to schedule, doesn't it


Sarcasm now? Well, WTF have they been doing for the last YEAR? I'm not ungrateful that they're revitalising Tivo in the UK once more, but I think pre-announcing a technology a YEAR before a supposed trial launch to a select few, dents their credibility, but seemingly - not in your eyes?

Better yet, are you a Virgin customer? I've been one for 14 years, back when it had been called Cablevision. I've seen them pre announce everything from faster cable modems, 'enhanced' (ie "faster") STB's, TV Drive, and not one arrived within the timescale originally suggested at the press launch.

Now, one would think that after getting it wrong so many times before, they'd be doing their damndest to hit their proposed targets in the future. One of the reasons why - having given such a long lead time (and it must be said, a pretty unspecific one until Q3 was mentioned), they'd make the grade.

But then, who cares about a schedule if you can then con folk into believing there's be a 'soft' 'launch' (somewhere) so that makes it allright, then? 

Not in my eyes, and I'll wager, not many others who were thrilled 11 months ago at the first Press Release.... only to find a big load of silence.


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## cwaring (Feb 12, 2002)

okonski_uk said:


> Be a rose-tinted optimist by all means, but lets look at the facts. In 2009 we were promised Tivo would launch 'in 2010'. NOT that there would be a 'soft, hard or indeed floppy' launch in the dying minutes of 2010.


Indeed they did not specify. However, that also works in their favour precisely because they did not specify. A launch is a launch.

We'll see what happens.



> ... I'm unaware of any media statement confirming anything 'soft' by the year end.


Well there seems to be quite a few sites that _are_ aware of it.



> Ah, the original November 2009 announcement I referred to earlier. The source for the 'Q3' was in a folow up release, which I recall was part of their Annual Statement. This provided the Q3 timeframe stated earlier.


Fair enough.



> I have no issues with this, as clearly the problems you allude to later would be addressed during this period. Yet, it seems not.


What problems? Weren't aware there had been any 



> Please, lets not fall into the trap of who might be lucky enough to be in an area that will support it. That is no 'launch', that's a TRIAL. If you are prepared to accept that as any form of launch, affects your credibility to evaluate company statements.


It is _already_ being trialled by some VM employees and has been for quite some time now. (Again, I know this through personal contacts.)



> Sarcasm now?


It seemed appropriate seeing as you seemed to be under the impression that any release date would be doggedly have to be stuck to despite any problems that might arise that should really push said time-frame back.



> Well, WTF have they been doing for the last YEAR?


No idea, but I assume that ironing out any issues would be part of it.



> I'm not ungrateful that they're revitalising Tivo in the UK once more, but I think pre-announcing a technology a YEAR before a supposed trial launch to a select few, dents their credibility, but seemingly - not in your eyes?


Absolutely not. They (and Tivo) both annonced it at the same time. And it's not unique to VM. Companies announce stuff well in advance all the time. Perhaps not _that_ far in advance, but that's not a reason to dismiss it as wrong.



> Better yet, are you a Virgin customer?


Seriously? Perhaps you should try reading my sig. 



> I've been one for 14 years, back when it had been called Cablevision.


12 years here.



> I've seen them pre announce everything from faster cable modems, 'enhanced' (ie "faster") STB's, TV Drive, and not one arrived within the timescale originally suggested at the press launch.


So? As I said, companies announce new stuff all the time. No big deal. Well, to most of us anyway.



> Now, one would think that after getting it wrong...


So un-forseen delays is "getting it wrong" now? Most people can't tell the future. Perhaps you could hire yourself out? 

Again, companies announce new stuff in advance all the time.



> ..so many times before, they'd be doing their damndest to hit their proposed targets in the future.


Well they haven't missed _this_ target yet.



> But then, who cares about a schedule if you can then con folk into believing there's be a 'soft' 'launch' (somewhere) so that makes it allright, then?


Sarcasm now? 



> Not in my eyes, and I'll wager, not many others who were thrilled 11 months ago at the first Press Release.... only to find a big load of silence.


Quite frankly I really have more important things to worry about than VM not launching something to the exact second of when they said they would.

It will happen when it happens.


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## melmatic (Nov 24, 2009)

okonski_uk said:


> Ah, the original November 2009 announcement I referred to earlier. The source for the 'Q3' was in a folow up release, which I recall was part of their Annual Statement. This provided the Q3 timeframe stated earlier. I have no issues with this, as clearly the problems you allude to later would be addressed during this period. Yet, it seems not.


There has been no follow up press release.

Virgin Media's 2009 annual report made no mention of any Q3 2010 release.

The original announcement [by TiVo] and subsequent comments by Virgin have all stated late 2010.

Nov 24 2009
Tom Rogers - "Virgin Media's current expectation is to get the product out sometime by the end of 2010."

04 Mar 2010
TiVo Premiere will, according to TiVo chief executive Tom Rogers, heavily inspire the development work going into Virgins new offering, which is due out before Christmas.

12 Mar 2010
Virgin Media and TiVo revealed their tie-up at the end of November last year. At a cable TV conference last week, Virgin Media boss Neil Berkett said the boxes would be deployed before the end of the year.

17 May 2010
Virgin Media in the UK is taking a slightly different approach by choosing the TiVo box. Berkett: We are wholesaling TiVo inside our media box and we are the first operator to do so. It is the best product on the market, it is available and proven. It is the basis for product we deliver before Christmas and will give us first mover advantage in TV 2.0. After taking broadband further with DOCSIS 3.0 and being the first with catch-up TV. We are not just a platform, we are the core for multi-screen entertainment.

Virgin took the BBC iPlayer into the VOD environment, so people are used to see internet like content on their TV. At the moment 78% of our top tier customers now use VOD.

Virgin will soft launch TiVo before the end of the year and will roll it out aggressively in 2011. This is the way to get real traction into the market. Our TiVo world plus HD is a superior product.


> Please, lets not fall into the trap of who might be lucky enough to be in an area that will support it. That is no 'launch', that's a TRIAL. If you are prepared to accept that as any form of launch, affects your credibility to evaluate company statements.


Trials are ongoing. Commercial roll out begins later this quarter. 


> Well, WTF have they been doing for the last YEAR?


Upgrading their legacy digital TV infrastructure, deploying Cisco Digital Video Headend technology in all regional and central headends to help support the rollout of next generation TV services. Working with TiVo to develop the middleware and user interface software for next generation TV services.


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