TiVo glitch causes automatic reboots
Customers hot about TiVo reboot glitch
By Richard Shim ZDNet News
A TiVo software glitch is causing some set-top
boxes to reboot repeatedly, CNET News.com has
learned, though the company says it recently
began downloading fixes to customers.
The problem affects only TiVo subscribers who have
DirecTV receivers and service. TiVo confirmed the
problem with its digital video recording software and
said it began downloading the fix to customers earlier
this month.
This is the second time in less than a week that reports
have surfaced of problems with digital video recording
software. The technology is just starting to catch on
with consumers but apparently isn't ready for prime
time yet.
TiVo spokeswoman Rebecca Baer said only a small
group of subscribers have been affected by the problem,
though she wouldn't specify how many.
"It seems that there are isolated incidents of people
having problems," Baer said Tuesday afternoon. "The
problems are tied to WishLists and searches for actors
with single names" such as Madonna or Cher.
TiVo's service allows people to digitally record TV
shows onto a hard drive. Its WishLists let subscribers
program TiVo to search for shows with certain actors or
directors and automatically save the programming.
According to research firm Gartner, 35 percent of TiVo's
153,000 subscribers were using DirecTV receivers at
the end of January.
Subscribers have been posting complaints to Web
forums for several months. The problem originates in
TiVo's software, version 2.0, which was released when
DirecTV receivers first began shipping in late 2000. The
glitch causes the set-top box to reboot repeatedly,
preventing viewers from watching their saved programs.
The DirecTV receiver with TiVo service is a set-top box
that picks up satellite television and allows viewers to
store the programming onto a hard drive. TiVo provides
the digital video recording service, which is billed in
combination with DirecTV subscriptions. The
combination service costs $22 to $83 per month.
Hughes, Philips and Sony sell the DirecTV receivers for
$399.
One owner of a DirecTV receiver with TiVo service who
had replaced his original unit with a new one wrote on a
Web forum: "Over the course of last week, I added a
large number of wish list items…Yesterday, the
rebooting started on this replacement unit."
Another person wrote: "It started the
reboot-every-20-minutes thing. It doesn't matter what I'm
doing; it will just reboot--very annoying obviously."
Other set-top glitches
TiVo isn't the only interactive TV company facing
software glitches.
As first reported by CNET News.com last week, an
unrelated software bug was discovered in set-top boxes
with Microsoft's UltimateTV service. UltimateTV
combines elements of Microsoft's WebTV--a
television-based e-mail and Web surfing
service--DirecTV satellite service and digital video
recording.
Gartner analyst Mark Snowden said such problems do
not bode well with consumer electronics buyers
who--unlike PC buyers--may be less familiar dealing
with upgrades.
"Those in the PC world have been conditioned to expect
that things don't work out, but consumer electronics is
a whole different world," Snowden said. "People expect
things to work on a TV."
Baer said that unlike the UltimateTV bug, the problems
with the TiVo boxes have occurred with a small number
of people and are already being taken care of. The
company is downloading the fix with its updated
software--version 2.01--to batches of customers through
May. The update is being downloaded to all set-top
boxes with TiVo service including so-called stand-alone
boxes.
After initially trying to sell the digital video recording
service in stand-alone boxes, companies are beginning
to realize that digital video recording needs to be
combined with other features to attract subscribers.
"Set-top boxes with integrated features are the part of
the future for TiVo, and DirecTV will play a major part of
that future," Snowden said.
The company expects 50 percent of new TiVo
subscribers this year will use DirecTV receivers. In a
software update for DirecTV receivers planned for this
summer, TiVo will activate a feature allowing viewers to
record a show on one channel while watching a different
show on a separate channel. |
