Apple TV DVR interface revealed in patent filings

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  • Reply 41 of 113
    nace33nace33 Posts: 94member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by GQB View Post


    OTA?

    You seriously think that any manufacturer is going to market a product geared to an infrastructure that gives you about a dozen channels, most of them network pap? (Not to mention that OTA doesn't reach everyone.)



    Don't forget about iTunes. People don't want to pay for what they can get for free (i.e. OTA channels). But they will pay for premium content. As for OTA reaching everyone, ATT doesn't reach everyone either.
  • Reply 42 of 113
    brussellbrussell Posts: 9,812member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by GQB View Post


    the math comes down to,



    Comcast HD DVR: ~$15/mo

    HBO... haven't looked recently... $15/mo?



    vs...



    cost of ATV

    At least $20/mo in HD rentals



    I'm not getting your numbers. Cable/Sat TV + HBO + DVR are a helluva lot more than $15 or $30 per month. It's probably more like $100 per month. And AppleTV couldn't even approach the amount of content you'd get for that $100, even if you spent three times that amount on TV show subscriptions and movie rentals.
  • Reply 43 of 113
    gqbgqb Posts: 1,934member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by nace33 View Post


    Don't forget about iTunes. People don't want to pay for what they can get for free (i.e. OTA channels). But they will pay for premium content. As for OTA reaching everyone, ATT doesn't reach everyone either.



    Agreed.

    Ala carte sounds good in principle, but I'll bet that most people radically underestimate the content they consume ad hoc, flipping through channels (500 of them).



    Truth be told, going basic cable (but just how basic?) and requiring that everyone think out their TV watching in advance would probably be a GREAT thing all around.



    But I'll wager that if people were truthful about their viewing habits, and charged themselves even $1 for every hour of television they watch, they'd be shocked at how much more expensive ala carte is than a moderate, 1 premium channel, cable package. Remember, most people are still going to be spending 30-40/mo for the cable, so ala carte goes on top of that.



    for us, the problem is that very little of our watching is OTA - based.

    Comedy Central (Daily/Colbert)

    Home Improvement Network

    TCM (we LIVE on turner classic movies.) ala carting that alone would break the budget.

    Sundance channel...

    etc etc
  • Reply 44 of 113
    wigginwiggin Posts: 2,265member
    Interesting how everyone dismisses the possibility of Apple including a blu-ray drive in Apple TV on the grounds that it would compete with their iTunes sales. And yet when the topic of DVR functionality comes up everyone thinks it's the best idea ever, and Apple will definitely need to do this. Doesn't the same argument apply that it would compete with their iTunes sales (don't they make more money off TV shows than movies)?



    Just an observation...
  • Reply 45 of 113
    nace33nace33 Posts: 94member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by GQB View Post


    Agreed.

    Ala carte sounds good in principle, but I'll bet that most people radically underestimate the content they consume ad hoc, flipping through channels (500 of them).



    Truth be told, going basic cable (but just how basic?) and requiring that everyone think out their TV watching in advance would probably be a GREAT thing all around.



    But I'll wager that if people were truthful about their viewing habits, and charged themselves even $1 for every hour of television they watch, they'd be shocked at how much more expensive ala carte is than a moderate, 1 premium channel, cable package. Remember, most people are still going to be spending 30-40/mo for the cable, so ala carte goes on top of that.



    I totally agree. That is why it only makes sense, for me anyway, if there is OTA involved. I mostly watch the major networks. So if I get those for free i get the best of both worlds.
  • Reply 46 of 113
    zanshinzanshin Posts: 350member
    I dare say there's a lot of room and time for business plan and feature development between a patent filing and a product delivery.



    It may be great, or it may suck, or it may never see the light of day. I just hope that if it arrives, it has a great big honkin' 3.5" HDD, not some bogus 80gb dinkazoidal notebook drive or (gawd ferbid) a flipping 1.8" iPod special.



  • Reply 47 of 113
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by GQB View Post


    I'd love to consolidate to one box, but have to think hard about giving up HBO.



    Couldn't something like this open up new distribution opportunities for HBO, Showtime, etc? Can't they strike their own deal with Apple to offer content directly through iTunes? Something like a paid podcast subscription...
  • Reply 48 of 113
    bsenkabsenka Posts: 799member
    Apple should sell this device to the cable companies for them to provide as the cable box to their clients. If Motorola ca do it, Apple should be able to do it better.
  • Reply 49 of 113
    gqbgqb Posts: 1,934member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by echocron View Post


    Couldn't something like this open up new distribution opportunities for HBO, Showtime, etc? Can't they strike their own deal with Apple to offer content directly through iTunes? Something like a paid podcast subscription...



    Good point. I tend to think of HBO and Comcast as joined at the hip, but I'm sure we'll see changes in partnerships over the next couple of years.



    Exciting time!

    The more I think about it, this could be a golden opportunity to really re-evaluate how we watch TV. DVR has already done that to some degree.

    This, more than anything, is probably what the media giants really fear.

    Ala carte changes everything. Cable hates it and will fight it to the death, so its only hope is to be deployed via something like iTunes.
  • Reply 50 of 113
    sabonsabon Posts: 134member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by nace33 View Post


    Sing me up to buy several of these things. This is exactly what I have been looking for. A Tivo with no monthly billing that can buy all of the content I desire A'la carte.



    I would prefer just an OTA tuner and no cable card. Keep the cost down.



    It took ten minutes for me to write this as politely as I am.



    Do you HONESTLY THINK there will be no charge for the TiVo like box AND for each show?



    There is NOTHING in this that tells me this will be a free service. Look at the iTunes Store right now. What shows do you see that you can get for free? I mean good ones from Network or Cable TV.
  • Reply 51 of 113
    Cable card is a must. Think of the return rate when consumers find it doesn't work with their cable. Dual tuners is also a must. Three tuners? Now that would be shear bliss. Now a real question whether the Cablecard 2.0 standard will be ready when this device is. This would allow users to view OnDemand. Would Apple cripple this? I would hope not since I use it quite a bit. What would be great is if Apple made a deal with the cable companies that merged OnDemand with iTunes. So all the shows would be available for a short time for free then eventually charge for them.
  • Reply 52 of 113
    gqbgqb Posts: 1,934member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Sabon View Post


    It took ten minutes for me to write this as politely as I am.



    Do you HONESTLY THINK there will be no charge for the TiVo like box AND for each show?



    There is NOTHING in this that tells me this will be a free service. Look at the iTunes Store right now. What shows do you see that you can get for free? I mean good ones from Network or Cable TV.



    hmmm...

    I don't see where DVR capabilities on the ATV necessarily mean some sort of monthly fee.

    I know Tivo does that, but they're a different model, and struggling for survival as well.



    But you're correct that there will still be the monthly costs for cable (if you can do OTA, great, but most people want some sort of extended cable.)

    I doubt that they'll work out anything for premium content, so the question remains, are people willing to give up the relatively low cost of, say, HBO and change that for the more expensive ala carte movie and premium content of e.g. iTunes (but gain the control that goes along with that.)



    TBD.
  • Reply 53 of 113
    sandorsandor Posts: 655member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Clive At Five View Post


    And therefore limit the product only to those who have good reception? Bad idea. OTA is an important feature, but for those who live the country or even for some who, like my parents, live in the city but in a valley with terrible TV reception, Cable is pretty much the only option for quality TV.



    -Clive





    1) half the worlds population lives in urban areas - with ATSC OTA in the States providing better picture quality than any other broadcast HD, why not push for adoption? i have 1.5 TB of space filled up with television i have recorded OTA, for "free" with a computer based DVR. I could never watch everything i want to on the 25 channels i get OTA.



    2) Windows Media Center sells well, and it only supports OTA - cable card can be supported in the future, but the industry needs to get its act together.



    3) www.sagetv.com a nice community, an excellent DVR, and i can use it on my Mac.



    4) add a networked QAM/ATSC dual tuner like the HDHR, and the appletv with DVD software would be wonderful. www.silicondust.com



    5) if we can get cable companies to ditch encryption, all these ATSC tuners with QAM support would work fine for all cable content.
  • Reply 54 of 113
    magic_almagic_al Posts: 325member
    I can wake the Mac mini from sleep, open EyeTV in full screen mode, select recordings, delete them, put the Mac mini back to sleep all with nothing but the Apple Remote. Tapping Menu on the Apple Remote brings up Front Row, but holding down Menu brings up EyeTV. EyeTV 3.0 is almost completely controllable from the remote when it's in full-screen mode, including TitanTV guide access and changing preferences. The Play/Pause button on the Apple Remote can wake and sleep the Mac mini (hold it down to sleep). I keep the wireless keyboard and mouse nearby but don't need them every time.
  • Reply 55 of 113
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by dclance View Post


    I have TiVo, and I prefer it 100x over the Comcast interface, but the interface is staid, is sluggish, and connectivity between a Mac and an iPod is laborious at best. I would actually pay up to $500 per machine if there were no monthly fees associated with it. I always thought because Apple was in bed with the content providers that this product would never come to pass, but let's hope these filings are a sign of something to come and to come soon. I hope that this is not released in January 09 as Apple TV Take 3... I want this now.



    My buddy has Tivo and its just kickass. But I would never, ever, EVER pay for the DVR and THEN pay a monthly fee for the privilige of having said box dial up from a phone line (or via the net) to download what is basically a freely available TV Guide.



    For the Tivoted, this might not be a big deal, but folks, you're paying for a TV GUIDE by the month!



    I too would not hesitate to drop $500 for a device that did all this with no monthly fee.



    And if said device also linked up with my iPhone and dropped unwatched TV shows into it for me to view later?!?!



    Pardon me, I need to visit the restroom so i can "comb my hair"...
  • Reply 56 of 113
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Sabon View Post


    It took ten minutes for me to write this as politely as I am.



    Do you HONESTLY THINK there will be no charge for the TiVo like box AND for each show?



    There is NOTHING in this that tells me this will be a free service. Look at the iTunes Store right now. What shows do you see that you can get for free? I mean good ones from Network or Cable TV.



    Dear Sabon,



    of course there will be a charge for the box, and a charge for any content bought from iTunes. However, if Apple made a "DVR" device, which implies quite strongly that said device would record plain old vanilla Television programming, then said device would also have Tivo functionality, and enable one to record their fave TV shows like Tivo does now.



    The thing is, Apple is so shrewd they'd clearly make their Tivo-like box do its DVR magic with no monthly fees...and continue to make their iTunes money for content-on-demand.



    Mark my words, I'll bet $10 that I am dead on with this.
  • Reply 57 of 113
    gqbgqb Posts: 1,934member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by sandor View Post




    5) if we can get cable companies to ditch encryption, all these ATSC tuners with QAM support would work fine for all cable content.



    hahahahahahahah!!!

    Oh my sides hurt.
  • Reply 58 of 113
    quinneyquinney Posts: 2,528member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by zanshin View Post


    I dare say there's a lot of room and time for business plan and feature development between a patent filing and a product delivery.



    It may be great, or it may suck, or it may never see the light of day. I just hope that if it arrives, it has a great big honkin' 3.5" HDD, not some bogus 80gb dinkazoidal notebook drive or (gawd ferbid) a flipping 1.8" iPod special.







    If they stuffed a time capsule in there and gave it functionality of a home media server

    it would also satisfy many people, but then it starts getting pretty spendy.
  • Reply 59 of 113
    MacProMacPro Posts: 19,718member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Bageljoey View Post


    It will be interesting to see how much of this, if any, they put into production.

    I have verizon FIOS now and I don't care for the on screen guide and its lag and I *hate* the on-demand interface. I haven't yet ventured into the DVR world, but if Apple could come up with something that does everything WELL then I would be very interested indeed.



    If they could do for the human/TV interface what they seem to be doing for the human/cell phone interface, well, that would be a good thing.



    I agree, I love the actual speed of FiOS but their TV interface sucks especially the DVR. It isn't even close to TIVO's early versions. It can't even adapt if a 'scheduled to be recorded' show changes time. I have many Shark episodes that end half way through due to the station airing half an hour earlier. DUH!
  • Reply 60 of 113
    brussellbrussell Posts: 9,812member
    I don't believe that Apple will ever put a DVR into AppleTV. There are too many different standards, and it cuts against their basic strategy of selling/renting content. Who wants to bet me?
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