Filed under: HDTV, Home Entertainment

So the worst-kept secret in the consumer electronics industry right now is that TiVo is on the verge of releasing the CableCARD-sportin’, HD-recordin’ Series 3 box — but no one seems to know exactly when you’ll be able to buy one. We heard from Todd the Best Buy employee that the new machines will be in stock on the 17th of this month, and now our friend Dave over at ZatzNotFunny has spotted the highly-anticipated DMR (remember, they’re not DVRs anymore, and TiVo won’t sell you one if you use that terminology) on Circuit City’s website showing an October availability. Now does that mean October 1st? The 15th? The 31st? Well if we knew, we’d tell ya, but at least now we seem to have an actual release window: the Series 3 will (probably) be available sometime between September 17th and October 31st. As usual, we’ll keep you posted as more information comes to light, but if that’s not good enough, you’re always welcome to switch over to satellite and pick up on of DirecTV’s new HR20-700 HD DVRs — thanks to HDBeat, we know that Best Buy will ship you one of those post haste.

Read- Series 3 [Via ZatzNotFunny]
Read- HR20-700 [Via HDBeat]

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Filed under: Home Entertainment, Transportation

If you’ve been eyeing one of those rooftop satellite dish monstrosities for your Suvee-action-jeep or gravity-defying motor home, there’s a new one in town that can receive those snazzy DirecTV value-adds like XM Satellite Radio and local programming. The TracVision A7 goes for a spankin’ $2,995, and of course you’ll be shelling out $45 for the subscription cost, but isn’t that a small price to pay to be able to make fun of your local sports guy wherever you may roam? (Within your local television market area, of course). DirecTV Total Choice Mobile is still the only satellite TV package for cars after two years in action, and we don’t see any price breaks in sight, but at least now you can get a bit more for your money.

[Via Orbitcast]

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Filed under: Wireless

As the historic federal auction for wireless spectrum heats up and the proverbial wheat begins separating from the chaff, the first major victim of the escalating bidding war seems to be the satellite TV consortium composed of DirecTV and DISH-parent EchoStar. Combining their resources in the Advanced Wireless Services auction as a limited liability corporation known as Wireless DBS, the two companies were hoping to pick up a chunk of spectrum that they could use to offer WiMax broadband services to customers and compete directly with telcos offering so-called “triple-play” packages; currently, the two sat TV providers have only been able to offer Internet service through partnerships with established broadband carriers. Apparently the billion dollars that Wireless DBS was willing to spend ended up not being enough to cover the requisite regional licenses they would need to offer nationwide service, as the cost for such such complete coverage is now anticipated to be at least $4 billion. The next move for the satellite providers could involve either partnering up once again with a company like Clearwire, or waiting until next year to bid in the 700MHz auction — but that auction could see even higher bids, and the resulting spectrum would be unavailable for use until 2009. Sorry guys, we know how badly you wanted this one, but when you come to a gun fight equipped with nothing but a pocketknife, well, things are bound to end pretty poorly.

[Via Techdirt]

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Filed under: HDTV, Home Entertainment

So what's the dealio, DirecTV? The vicious cycle of delays surrounding its upcoming HD DVR has definitely not been pleasing, and these release date reports are beginning to lose clout. What we do know is that DirecTV's HD DVR has been delayed for months, and according to analyst speculation, the delay could be stemming from inventory shortages. Although we recently reported that you could (possibly) expect this much-anticipated device to drop in the September / October time frame, DirecTV has crafted a new statement shaving a month or so off that estimate. The company seems so sure (or just desperate?) about the forecast that a spokesperson made a point to "clarify that it's rolling out in LA in mid-August." While we realize it may actually be this fall before those outside of California get their paws on one, at least this party would finally get started somewhere. But before we put too much stock in what DirecTV is selling, it also proclaimed that "the box has performed magnificently in tests." While we can muster some patience waiting for a product to be done right, the question beckons: if it's all good, what the heck is taking so long?

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Filed under: Home Entertainment

Nature abhors a vacuum, so now that the AMD/ATI deal has gone from rumor to reality, we're in dire need of another potential mega-merger to fill the void. Luckily for us, News Corp. owner and the real "king of all media" Rupert Murdoch recently made some tantalizing comments on the Charlie Rose Show that may indicate DirecTV's renewed interest in merging with Dish Network parent EchoStar. Although he obviously didn't come right out and say that the two companies were involved in talks of any sort, Murdoch did suggest that the television landscape has shifted enough since the last merger attempt in 2002 that "it would be much harder for the government to turn it down" this time around. However, he also cautioned that a deal would be difficult if EchoStar CEO Charlie Ergen -- whose clashes with News Corp. execs reportedly put the kibosh on merger talks all the way back in 1997 -- insisted on running the new entity as one of EchoStar's conditions. Ars Technica sums up the situation nicely by suggesting that although a merger would help both companies in their quest to offer broadband service should they succeed in picking up some spectrum at next month's FCC auction, government regulators would be unlikely to approve such a deal for the same reason as last time: there are still too many consumers out there whose only option is satellite TV, giving a combined DirecTV-Dish entity monopoly status in certain areas of the country. Long story short: there's an excellent chance that Murdoch would love a deal to go down, but chances are it ain't gonna happen.

[Via Ars Technica]

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Filed under: Home Entertainment

Following last month's deal with web video publisher Brightcove, TiVo has announced another round of partnerships that will bring various on-demand video clips to broadband-equipped Series 2 owners, with a new service called TiVoCast. The company has been making moves in this direction for some time now, but this is the first time we're being offered content that we'd actually bother watching, including NBA and WNBA highlights, New York Times-produced video (featuring David Pogue's often-humorous reviews), advice from CNET, and a dose of hip hop culture from H2O, along with male- and female-targeted programming from Heavy.com and iVillage, respectively. The new content -- accessible from the "Showcases" screen -- will not be available to everyone, however, as USA Today is reporting that neither DirecTV subscribers nor Comcast customers will have access to any of these value-added TiVoCast downloads.

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Filed under: Home Entertainment

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Filed under: Features, Home Entertainment

TiVo's claims date back to a series of meetings in the late nineties. It was then that the fledgling TiVo approached Echostar, parent company of Dish Network, in the hopes that they could license the technology to the leading satellite company. It's there that the story begins to turn for the worse.

TiVo, a company blissfully unaware of the term "Industrial Espionage", decided to eschew the traditional Silicon Valley mantra of "PROTECT YOUR IP AT ALL COSTS."  Instead they chose to take the path less traveled; they left their prototype behind (at the behest of Echostar CEO Charlie Ergen) and promptly forgot about it.

Over the course of the next couple years, TiVo secured several patents and Echostar managed to produce its own "homebrewed" DVR. TiVo, still hopeful that they would be able to strike a deal with the satellite giant, chose not to push the patent issues with Echostar. On other licensing fronts, TiVo struck a deal with Echostar competitor, DirecTV. Under the terms of that deal, TiVo is reported to receive a licensing fee of $1 per month per user.

Fast Forward to 2004. With the DirecTV relationship quickly deteriorating and with it the possibility that a substantial portion of TiVo's user base could disappear as a result, TiVo filed a lawsuit against Echostar.

The heart of the matter (oddly enough) isn't whether or not Echostar copied the misplaced box. As presiding judge Folsom pointed out to the jury, it's enough to say that they violated the concepts involved in the patent. This is due, in large part, to the "doctrine of equivalents," a legal concept that protects patent-holders against competitors using slight variations to skirt patents. What is at stake is whether or not Echostar violated the "multi-media time-warping system"  In essence, TiVo's claim is that they've patented "watching one program while recording another… via a DVR."

If TiVo is successful in proving its claims, the rewards could be big. Experts testified that using market-penetration rates and the DirecTV licensing deal as a benchmark, TiVo could be entitled to a ballpark of 100 million dollars. This is in addition to the strengthening of future claims against other DVR technology companies.

In should be noted that this is not the first time that TiVo has tried to enforce this claim. TiVo had a legal battle with former DVR maker, ReplayTV. The outcome of that case, like most in this space, was a cross-licensing deal.

It's unclear what the end result will be. Even if TiVo were to will this ruling, it's likely that Echostar will drag its heels through a lengthy appeals process. However, any way you cut it, it's sad to see a pioneer stop inventing and start suing.

If you have comments or suggestions for future columns, drop me a line at theclicker@theevilempire.com.

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Filed under: HDTV

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