Jean-Pierre Abe, thanks for your insight. Yes, actually I know that you can't (unfortunately) go back in time to record and playback desired shows. So my analogy only holds correct if I knew in advance that show was slated for broadcast. Which I didn't, but which is what I meant.
By the way, in case you're wondering why I'm so interested, I recently quit my job at a TV broadcast station (CBS-Atlanta) to join Morningstar.com as a stock analyst. So this stuff really gets my attention.
But you bring up an interesting point that's been on my mind quite a bit: video-on-demand. I find this VERY exciting but way off in the horizon. We should be able to choose any movie or program ever made and be able to play it back at our leisure. Unfortunately, broadband penetration of less than 2% of households throws a massive wrench in those plans. Not to mention, many of those with high-speed access are using G. Lite ADSL, which I believe cannot facilitate VOD delivery. :(
Any thoughts on any new companies focused on solely developing VOD? All I know is an OTC BB stock (USVO), which i'm wary about. Interesting, they trademarked the term "video-on-demand".
I eagerly await the day when VOD starts to push bricks and mortar video stores like Blockbuster into extinction (or force them to radically change their business model). I'm utterly sick of having to drive to those little stores, with little selection, be quick about returning the tape to avoid late fee penalty and make sure that I "be kind, please rewind!" to avoid another penalty charge.
- Netconductor.com
>>Jean-Pierre Abe wrote:
Netconductor you said: "If I had a goddamn Tivo Box, I would've been able to record and playback this spot at my leisure! :)"
With all due respect, I don't think you could have recorded this without knowing about it ahead of time. Tivo acts a lot like a regular VCR, in that it will only record programs that you tell it to before they are being
broadcast. In other words, Tivo cannot go back in time, like a true video-on-demand system would. In my opinion this is the single largest limitation of this technology, independently of how cool it is when
compared to a traditional VCR. When true video-on-demand finally becomes available over broadband digital networks (which are being rolled out aggressively as we speak), in my humble opinion PVR technology
will be quickly eclipsed. I welcome thoughts and arguments on this subject. |
